100 Wholesale Item Ideas to Sell from Home For Profit
Wholesale is a profitable model where you resell items bought in bulk from established brands, leveraging recognition and boosting sales. Small sellers also thrive on platforms like Amazon and eBay, enjoying easy sales.
Starting a wholesale journey may be challenging initially, prompting sellers to consider alternative strategies like dropshipping or online arbitrage. However, you can build a successful wholesale business with thorough research and idea generation. This guide provides a strong foundation and valuable insights on the best wholesale items to sell from home.
Table of contents
How to Find Items to Sell Wholesale
Before selling anything, you need to know how to find products. This process should be thorough and take into account a variety of factors. Below, you will find a guide on how to utilize special tools and analyze each product’s potential.
These steps might also focus on doing research for Amazon, but they work for any eCommerce business. Since Amazon owns more than 50% of online commerce, trends here often reflect across all online sales.
Using Wholesale Research Tools On Amazon
Before anything else, it's crucial for you to grasp the extent to which a product is well-represented on the marketplace and how effectively it sells. To evaluate metrics and criteria, you will need a dedicated tool for product research. Check out the Amazon Dropshipping, Arbitrage, and Wholesale extension to simplify your product research process.
Here is how it works:
Step 1: Install the Amazon Dropshipping, Arbitrage, and Wholesale extension for Google Chrome.
Step 2: Start a free trial of the software.
Step 3: Browse Amazon.com as you usually would, searching for a niche that can fit these areas:
Products from existing or new wholesale relationships
Niches (or product categories) you are interested in joining
Trending products
Step 4: Scroll through Amazon's search results. The extension will show you data underneath each product. Pay attention to these criteria:
High-profit margins (above 50% should be prioritized)
Amazon fees for selling this product (including FBA fees)
Seller types. Products that Amazon sells directly are more competitive. It’s usually best to focus on products with FBA and FBM sellers, as those are less competitive.
Step 5: Mark the priority products using data from the built-in window with the extension. Pay attention to products that are private-label, hazmat, or gated. You can find out more about these product categories after step four.
Step 6: Review the historical sales data from the extension. Check the price and buy box history to determine profit potential and your pricing strategy.
Step 7: Narrow down the potential profit the product offers. By inputting the estimated costs of the product, you can calculate the profit and make an informed decision regarding its viability.
Narrowing Your Product List To The Most Profitable
You can use two additional tools to narrow your product list further or as an alternative to finding a specific product or supplier. These tools include the AMZScout Product Database and the PRO Extension. To find out how you can use both of these items, check out these steps:
Using the AMZScout Product Database To Find Product Ideas
Step 1: Go to the AMZScout Product Database (no installation is required).
Step 2: Start your free trial if you haven't already from the prior set of steps.
Step 3: Use the tool's search filters to narrow your products by these criteria:
Seller type (Both FBA or merchant sellers)
Price
Profit margins
Higher sales: it's good to start with sales that are at least 300 monthly or higher
Few sellers: the range goes from 2 to 20
Step 4: Narrow your product list further by focusing on product categories you are interested in. You can also use the Product Selection features to search based on proven results.
Step 5: Click "Find products" to get your results.
Step 6: Using these results, make a list based on essential criteria (like sales or reviews) to focus on the most viable products.
Once you go through these steps, you can use the AMZScout PRO Extension to narrow your results further.
Using the AMZScout PRO Extension To Narrow To The Most Viable Wholesale Products
Step 1: Install the AMZScout PRO Extension for your Google Chrome browser.
Much like Amazon Dropshipping, Arbitrage and Wholesale Extension, you can browse Amazon.com as you usually would to find products. Focus on those you've seen in the database.
Step 2: Open the extension by clicking the AMZScout icon on the top-right corner of your internet browser from any Amazon product page.
Step 3: Check the product sales. It's good to start with products that sell at least 300 per month. Wholesalers get the best results from products that sell well in their target niche.
Step 4: Divide the total product sales by the number of sellers to determine how much you can sell. Keep in mind that more sellers usually indicate high-competition products.
Step 5: Check the product score to determine your sales margins, sales history, and resale potential. Pay attention to product scores over seven, high potential margins (over 50%), and sales fluctuations throughout the year.
After you create a list based on the product score, profit margin, and level of competition, you can either contact your current wholesalers or new wholesalers to get the product. You might get a better wholesale discount by negotiating with them based on this proven data.
Some Considerations Before Selling Any Products
In our prior step, we've mentioned three critical product criteria. Avoid spending even one dollar before, keeping these in mind. These include gated, hazmat, and private-label products.
It would be best if you considered these before selling any products. Here are some details on what each factor means for you:
Gated products require approval from Amazon before selling. These have a high barrier to entry, while ungated products are allowed to sell with no restrictions.
Hazmat products are a specific gated category that requires additional approvals or certificates to sell. The approval can either come from Amazon or an authority in the space.
Private label products are sold by only one merchant, meaning other vendors can't usually resell them. You should avoid these products unless you can get express permission from the owner.
When researching potential products to sell, keep these three in mind. While these three categories aren't completely off-limits, they generally require more effort to sell. You'll want to determine the cost of that effort to decide whether or not you can still profit.
100 Product Ideas You Can Use as a Wholesaler
Now that you know how to research, you can get started. But the high number of options you can find can get pretty overwhelming.
To help you out, we've developed a list of 100 wholesale items to sell from home. This list follows our criteria of high potential profit and low shipping costs.
Home & Kitchen
The home and kitchen category is among the most popular because there are many entry points. Many are low-cost and easy to invest in, providing excellent expansion potential into the entire niche.
Candles
Rugs
Storage cubes organizer
House doormat
Bath curtains
Tumbler
Led strip lights
Utensils
Waffle maker
Food storage bags
Bamboo pillows
Bathroom accessories set
LED shower head with minerals
Soap dispenser
Makeup organizer
Garden tool set
Silicone cake baking
Fleece blankets
BBQ sets
Sauces
Knife sets
Clothing
Clothing is cheap to make and offers high potential markup potential. Because of this, the profit margins of brands can be very high, making them an incredibly appealing target. By reselling an established brand name, you can leverage its popularity in the industry to help you grow.
Leggings
T-shirts
Sweatshirts
Socks
Christmas sweaters
Pajamas
Swimsuits
Hoodies
Cotton bra
Caps
Sneakers
Assess the profit potential of these products yourself by using Amazon Dropshipping, Arbitrage, and Wholesale Extension.
Beauty
Beauty products include some of the most dynamic brands in the industry. The products are lightweight, easy to manage, and have a high resale potential. If the company behind the beauty products knows how to market, you can sell out of stock quickly.
Face mask
Jade roller
Reusable makeup remover pads
Makeup brushes set
Hair extensions
Gel nail polish
Lip balm
Eye patches
Liquid foundation
Rhinestone tattoo
Sports
Last year's Amazon Trend Report reminded us of the importance of the sports niche, as it was showing significant growth across numerous sectors. This supports equipment includes clothing and exercise gear that is easy to manufacture, meeting the demands of those who seek better health.
Stretch bands
Weight loss belts
Exercise hoop
Yoga mat
Jump rope
Fitball
Portable table tennis set
Yoga pants
Health & Wellness
The health and wellness niche is a narrower aspect of the sports niche that targets a similar audience. With this in mind, some of these are in the grocery niche, meaning you'll have to consider expiration dates. But many products in these categories have long-term expiration dates, meaning the chance of expiration is pretty low.
Essential oils
Supplements
Protein powder
Protein bars
Performance drinks
Creatine products
How-to courses and books
Foods that support specific diets
Floss and water picks
Meal replacements
Multivitamins
Energy drinks
Electronic & Accessories
Electronics include some of the highest volume sales on Amazon. Many of them are inexpensive and sold for pennies on sites like Alibaba. This means it takes less time to increase your profit margins.
Phone cases
Laptop cases and stands
Earbuds
USB cables and charges
Selfie stick
Screen protectors
Wireless mouse
Wireless chargers
Gaming headphones
Wireless headphones
Electric Toothbrush
Tire pressure gauges
Speakers
Kids and Babies
Like the home category, the kids' category involves inexpensive and difficult-to-break products. Because those products fit these two essential criteria, you experience fewer returns and the potential to serve the needs of parents wanting products from these established brands.
Diapers & wipes
Kinetic sand
Plush toys
Slime
Fidget toys
Puzzles
Building blocks
Board games
Pet Supplies
Pet suppliers cover a wide range of entry points because there are many types of pets. Thanks to social media, these pet trends increase demand for pets (and their supplies, by extension). You can establish a long-term sales strategy for pet supplies by leveraging these trending products.
Pet food
Fetch & tug toys
Automatic cat feeders
Car seat cover
Dog leashes
Collars
Waterproof dog boots
Dog winter coat
Jewelry
Jewelry is a gated category that requires approval for entry in some areas. In others, jewelry is an excellent gift, with significant sales spikes around Christmas and Valentine's Day. Contrary to popular belief, not all jewelry requires a high upfront investment, meaning you can earn solid profits with the right target.
Necklaces
Rings
Earings
Hair clips
Charm bracelets
Bonuses
The bonus section covers a few inexpensive wholesale areas to get into or have good resale value. When looking into these bonus products, pay extra attention to their sales fluctuations. By developing a sales strategy based on these, you can leverage trending products to make great money.
Grocery shopping bags
Notebooks
Party supplies
School supplies
Textbooks
How Does Selling Wholesale Items From Home Work?
Once you have found and chosen a product, you can proceed with the next steps to kickstart your business. Below are the four general steps that every reseller follows.
1. Find Suppliers
First, you must find worthy suppliers from which you can buy wholesale. Below is a quick list of methods you can use to do that:
Use online wholesale marketplaces like Alibaba to buy products in bulk at steep discounts.
Contact proven manufacturers to purchase items at wholesale prices to resell at a solid markup.
Go to trade shows or flea markets to browse wholesale products with high marketplace value and excellent resale potential.
Use trade magazines to browse the same items from your home and research those items online.
2. Order Products in Bulk for Wholesale Price
After creating a shortlist of potential suppliers, you can use that data to call for more information. Your goal will be to find out more about their wholesale pricing.
You will need to purchase these products in bulk, so have some space at home or elsewhere to store them. Don't be afraid to negotiate lower pricing, which is easier if you already have a proven sales track record.
3. List Your Products to Resell (on Amazon or another platform)
When the products arrive, your next step will be to list your products on a third-party marketplace. Sites like Amazon and eBay offer the most straightforward solutions to sell these products.
Start by looking for pre-existing listings and seeing how your competitors describe these products. You can also use marketing materials from your wholesale supplier to help write a product description if you create a new listing.
4. Order Fulfillment Management
After your products are listed, you'll need to decide how to ship them. There are two general ways to manage shipping: outsourcing or handling it yourself.
Outsourcing has the advantage of saving you time and letting you focus on other business development activities. Amazon offers the simplest solution, letting you outsource through FBA (Fulfillment By Amazon), where you can ship your products to them to handle warehousing and shipment.
Alternatively, you can handle it and travel to your local shipping station (like FedEx or UPS). This second method saves you money but takes away from your time doing other important activities (like business growth or customer service).
Conclusion
With the right strategy, wholesale products require a higher upfront investment but offer greater potential profits. By keeping these steps in mind, you'll be better prepared to establish a process for resale.
Research is the most critical aspect of this process. By leveraging tools from AMZScout, you'll be able to sell products more effectively. You can also take some product ideas from the list above.
By establishing a proven process using our foundation, you'll understand how to sell and how to research regardless of what stuff you sell. This will make you an effective wholesale provider.
