Drop shipping is a simple enough concept. You make arrangements with a wholesale supplier, manufacturer or distributor to sell their products direct online, as opposed to having an inventory of products in your physical location. You can offer these products on your own website, or via online auctions like eBay, or through a sellers’ market like Amazon.
When a customer orders the product, you pay the supplier the discounted price to ship it directly to the customer. There usually is no indication that the product came from another company, and many offer branding options to further create the illusion that the product came from your business (such as customized packing slips).
Customer Price – (Wholesale Cost + Expenses) = Your Profit
Table of Contents
Click on the title to go directly to that section.
The Drop Shipping Business Opportunity
Getting Started with Drop Shipping eCommerce in Canada
Finding Wholesale Drop Shipping Products
A Note on Drop-Shipped Product Pricing
Drop Shipping Networks & Wholesale Suppliers
Individual Companies Offering to Drop Ship Their Products
Drop Shipping Tools to Beat Your Competition
The Dropshipping Business Opportunity
Drop shipping offers a unique opportunity for Canadian entrepreneurs to start a business without investing in product inventory. You won’t have to worry about being stuck with products that don’t sell, shipping, etc. You’ll also be able to have US suppliers ship to US customers if you like, without worrying about cross-border red tape or long shipping times.
The drop shipping business model can be permanent, temporary, or hybridized. It’s utilized in both small and large businesses because it’s cost-effective, versatile and easy.
For example, Namaste Vapes has an exclusive drop-shipping supply agreement with Ample Organics Inc. Ample Organics is Canada’s leading seed-to-sale software platform, currently used by the majority of Canadian licensed producers of medical cannabis. Namaste will connect its cannabis hardware and accessory platform via API integration with Ample Organics’ system. This will allow each of Ample Organics’ customers to purchase a large variety of devices and accessories.
How big does it go? Just ask Wayfair.ca, a company started at home that grew to one of the world’s largest online destinations for home decor. Over 90 percent of their products are drop shipped from a large marketplace of thousands of brands. Their total net revenue for Q2, 2020 was $4.3 billion USD.
Nordstrom also forms collaborative relationships with dropshipping suppliers to provide Canadian and US customers with a wider selection, including additional styles, sizes and colors.
Closer to home, TDOTPerformance.ca (who scored a Dragon’s Den deal with Michele Romanow in 2015), relies on drop shipping to keep inventory and fulfillment costs at a minimum.
“…drop shipping on demand means they don’t have to carry a lot of inventory, which is expensive,” Michele Romanow told the Financial Post.
Drop Shipping Risks
Most of the issues that used to arise, have been addressed for today’s dropshippers. For example, synced inventory management has all but eliminated fulfillment problems. The new and improved drop shipping business model has had a significant impact on profits. As a business model, dropshipping revenue growth increased by 44.8% in 2018, according to eCommerce Fuel.
There are only two major risks involved in dropshipping:
- Your reputation will ride on the reliability of your drop ship supplier.
- Your supplier may sell out of a product while you’re still taking orders.
Both of these concerns can be addressed by carefully selecting your suppliers. The larger drop shipping networks prevent these issues with integrated, automatic inventory updates and screening of individual suppliers. In less automated situations, consider having more than one supplier of the same product as backup in case an item is sold out. The best way to test reliability is to first place an order for yourself.
“We are 100% drop ship and we have a number of supply partners which are the largest of the large, so we have a deep and diversified catalog and plenty of inventory to work with,” said BettyMills.com CEO, Vic Hanna in an interview with DigitalCommerce360. The online medical supplies superstore has been in business for almost twenty years.
You will, however, face the same challenges and risks as any retailer. It’s important to learn about retail and ecommerce before starting your online business, whether you intend to use drop-shipped fulfillment or not.
Getting Started with Drop Shipping eCommerce in Canada
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First, you’ll need to pinpoint a niche or two to focus on. If you need some help with that, please read 10 Hot Product Niches to Sell or Drop Ship Online in Canada.
If you’d like to set up your own website to sell drop-shipped products, there are ecommerce hosting solutions that accommodate the arrangement with apps (such as Shopify Canada).
The Shopify/AliDropship app setup is what a New Zealand teen recently used to bring in $1.2 million in his first year of dropshipping, averaging 25% margins. The most interesting part of his success is the vast majority of sales came from Canada and the US.
If you use WordPress, there are plug-ins specifically designed for drop shipping, like AliDropship. If you plan to sell on eBay, you’ll find some drop shipping companies are authorized eBay dealers with integrated features to make auction selling easier, such as Wholesale2B.
For additional guidance, please read The Best eCommerce Software Platforms for Drop Shipping.
Fees are intended to cover the shipping service and/or to give you access to wholesale prices on a large number of products (which are usually only available to volume purchasers). Charging a fee is not a red flag. However, there are good services available and there are scams, as is the case with any business arrangement. Again, going through reputable drop shipper networks will greatly reduce these risks.
Our Checklist: How to Start a Drop Shipping Ecommerce Business in Canada guides you step-by-step, as you explore this method of order fulfillment.
Finding Wholesale Drop Shipping Products
You have millions of products to choose from. If you need some help choosing which products to offer, please read How to Choose the Best Products to Drop Ship Online in Canada.
The next big challenge in drop shipping can be finding suppliers. Finding manufacturers isn’t a big problem, but most won’t deal with individual sellers and I don’t know of any that will drop ship direct to individual customers. They operate on volume purchases from companies placing large orders. Drop shipping is usually offered at the distributor level. That said, if you can prove that you’ve consistently sold thousands of their “widgets” some manufacturers may consider a special arrangement. At that point, however, you should consider having your own inventory of best-selling products.
It’s important to note that you don’t need to find Canadian dropshippers, you just need to find wholesale suppliers that will ship to Canada (or you could choose to not sell to Canadians at all). The beauty of the Internet is that the World is your marketplace. If you’re looking for Canadian dropshippers, Spocket makes an effort to recruit Canadian suppliers.
You may partner with individual companies that have existing drop shipping programs, or approach any company to ask if they’d be willing to drop ship. For example, it’s common for print on demand (POD) companies to offer drop shipping. We have 7 Print-on-Demand (POD) Drop Shipping Suppliers for Canadian Sellers to help you with that.
You could also gain access to a dropshipping directory with thousands of products from a wide range of companies. Several of the choices below offer a variety of ways to access products from multiple suppliers, it’s just a matter of deciding which structure suits you best.
Choose your suppliers and products very carefully and learn the warning signs of a bad deal. For example, some shady companies may offer products that should only be available from authorized dealers (such as Nikon Canada merchandise). If you resell these items, you could land in hot water and your customers could find themselves with a useless service agreement. When in doubt, contact the manufacturer or check their website. Using certified drop shippers through reputable networks eliminates this issue.
A Note on Drop Shipped Product Pricing
Chances are, you’re going to pay a higher price than you would if you were ordering a thousand of each item. There are people who don’t understand the concept who will post dire warnings about prices not being truly wholesale, but that’s their inexperience talking. Naturally, you want a large enough discount to allow for a reasonable profit margin and some research is involved to ensure it. However, you can’t expect to get the same wholesale price as volume purchasers when you’re buying the product one at a time. Plus, they’re doing the investment, storage, and shipping for you.
You’ll learn where to set your expectations as you go along, but in my experience the average margin is 15-40% (marketplace fees can reduce profit margins if you sell through them). If you find a product is selling really well, you can explore stocking the product yourself and pursue volume wholesale prices.
Drop Shipping Networks & Wholesale Suppliers that Serve Canadian Sellers
Wholesale2B – Wholesale2B has everything you need and is very easy to use. The majority of our drop shippers choose to work with Wholesale2B, in fact. They have several plans that facilitate selling over 1.5 million products on eBay, Amazon, Google, or through a website (your own or through a turnkey website). They ship to most of the World, including Canada, the US and the UK. Wholesale2B guarantees “the lowest dropshipping prices,” so you can be assured of profit margins large enough to make your business successful. Take them for a test drive with the free trial.
AppScenic – Facilitates and automates every aspect of the connection between ecommerce stores and premium wholesalers, either for individual dropshipping or bulk wholesale orders. They offer exceptionally fast shipping by design (usually 3-5 days). Their platform includes products supplied by Canadian businesses that drop ship and/or sell wholesale, as well as global suppliers. Search by country to find wholesale suppliers in Canada. AppScenic integrates with all major ecommerce platforms. They have five-star ratings on Shopify, Trustpilot, G2 and Capterra. Check them out with a free trial.
CJ Dropshipping – There has been a lot of buzz around CJ Dropshipping in the ecommerce community lately, largely due to their profit margins, fast international expansion and how they work diligently to reduce shipping time/costs.
They provide a number of services, including product sourcing, global warehousing, order processing and shipping. There’s a huge selection of products to choose from overall (including print-on-demand and white label products) and you can request any that aren’t there already. Their Canadian warehouse is just starting to pick up, but the domestic product selection is expected to increase soon. You can sell into any of the other countries through local warehouses to significantly reduce shipping time and cost.
Create an account through their website or use their Shopify app. CJ Dropshipping products can also be integrated with eBay, WooCommerce and other eCommerce platforms that are frequently used for online drop shipping stores.
AliDropship – Offers two affordable and versatile WordPress solutions. Both include over 100,000 suppliers offering free worldwide shipping to your customers, along with two combined revenue streams (product sales profit and affiliate commissions on those sales).
Concerns about shipping delays from Asia may soon be a thing of the past, as marketplaces like Alibaba open eCommerce processing centres in Canada. Now is the time to position yourself as a Canadian source of these low-priced goods. However, you may experience delivery delays until more efficient and reliable distribution is in place. Be transparent and protect your reputation by informing customers about possible delays.
You can either buy the plugin and do it yourself (standalone or integrated with WooCommerce), or pay a one-time fee to have it all set up for you.
- The plugin is the best in the business, featuring store themes, search and one-click product import, auto-updates from suppliers, auto pricing, auto order placement, and a control panel for tracking and reporting.
- AliDropship also offers three dropship store packages, featuring their WP plugin, custom design, deep niche research, product setup, payment gateways, free domain name, and more. In the marketing department, they provide integrated marketing tools, SEO, branded social media pages, social media promotion tool, and a promo video.
Their client ratings on various platforms are very impressive, in the range of 4.5-5 out of 5 on Facebook, Trustpilot and Sitejabber.
SaleHoo Canada – Thousands of verified drop shippers and wholesale suppliers, along with direct shipping manufacturers. You have the option of using their web store to start selling instantly. They have a community for anyone who sells online, where dropshippers can review & rate suppliers. Salehoo’s expert training on how to launch and grow your drop shipping business (taught by 7-figure drop shippers), further ensures your success. You’ll find the free trial reassuring as you research almost 2 million products.
Spocket – A Canadian-founded drop shipping solution that boasts a growing list of Canadian drop shippers, along with American and European options. Suppliers offer a variety of products in a full range of categories. The app syncs with your store so you can fill your orders with one click and manage the entire process from start to finish. You can even order product samples through the dashboard, further ensuring your customers will receive quality goods. Spocket has ranked high on the Globe and Mail list of Canada’s Top Growing Companies. Get started for free (no credit card required).
Syncee – This international marketplace includes Canadian wholesalers, with some offering drop shipping services. Choose from millions of products provided by vetted suppliers with fast shipping. One of their best features is their Datafeed Manager, which you can use for both their wholesalers and your current wholesalers that only offer datafeed integration.
Individual Companies Offering to Drop Ship Their Products
There are individual companies that offer dropshipping to Canadian sellers. Some have active public programs, while others may consider it if you contact them directly. The Canadian Trade Index is a great place to start if you want to contact companies about drop shipping their products. You’ll find many more sources in Finding Wholesale Suppliers for Your Canadian Business.
Following are a few companies that have existing drop shipping programs or wholesale merchandise for Canadians:
Aosom Canada – Dropship outdoor patio furniture in Canada. The average order value is about $300. Contact them for details.
Printful – Order custom design products to dropship or sell direct online under your own brand. Customize over 140 products, including T-shirts and other clothing, décor, posters, phone cases and more. Sell from your website, including all major ecommerce platforms.
Payless Medical (Best Buy Medical Supplies Inc) – Large Canadian drop shipper with over 15,000 medical products. They have five warehouses, strategically located in New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia, to provide 1-2 day delivery to most customers in Canada.
KimmyShop.com – Toys, puzzles, bags, backpacks, apparel, party supplies, décor and more featuring characters from Disney, TMNT, Marvel, Mattel, Hasbro, etc. Currently offering a 15% discount to drop ship account holders. Orders are shipped from Montreal, Quebec or Champlain, NY.
Fragrance Net
– 16,000+ discounted brand name fragrances, aromatherapy, skincare and hair care products.
Grosche – Kitchenware company offers drop shipping in both Canada and the US, along with wholesale options.
Wordans – Canadian clothing wholesaler specializing in t-shirts, tank tops, sweatshirts, jackets, hats, work clothes, accessories, etc.
Nu-Look Fashions – Canadian Fashion wholesaler offering wholesale clothing with drop shipping options, including knitwear, formal wear, office wear, sportswear, cruise/resort wear, and evening wear.
Escape Swimwear – Wholesale and drop-shipped Canadian swimwear.
Art of Where – On-demand printing of your artwork on their products. Drop ships from Montreal, Quebec, or New York.
Wedding Star – Almost 3000 wedding accessories can be drop shipped to Canada and they pay the duty charges.
Prepac Manufacturing – Ships ready-to-assemble furniture (manufactured in Canada) from Delta, BC. Contact them for more information about wholesale and drop-shipping opportunities.
GFurn – Drop ships furniture, design lightings and home décor accessories from Montreal.
Hammock Universe – Drop shipping hanging chairs, hammocks and accessories out of Ontario.
One Wholesale– Wholesale Cannabis accessories drop shipping out of Toronto.
Hackney Nine Jewellery – Dropship eco-friendly jewellery from British Columbia (through Shopify with SyncLogic). Their jewellery is made using a combination of traditional artisan methods and modern manufacturing techniques to achieve an optimum balance of style, sustainability and quality. Hackney Nine uses a premium graded, recycled base metal to craft their collections, adorned with responsibly-sourced natural stone, fresh-water natural pearls and natural shell.
For more Canadian drop shippers, check out 15 Canadian Dropshipping Wholesale Suppliers. If you’d like some help in selecting which companies to work with, check out our list of the Top 5 Drop Shipping Suppliers for Canadians.
Drop Shipping Tools to Beat Your Competition
The Canadian entrepreneurs behind HotDiggidyDog generated $36,000 in six weeks by drop shipping a product they found with Sell the Trend’s AI analytics and trend-spotting tools (based in Ontario).
“Without that data, it’s all a shot in the dark. It’s not enough to be passionate about a product, it has to be in demand. It’s a numbers game and bad research can cost you a lot of money,” the owner told PayPal. “It blew my mind when it was happening and even my family couldn’t believe it. I had tried e-commerce before and maybe I made a few hundred dollars but dropshipping through Sell the Trend made all the difference.”
The tools you need may depend on where you’re selling. I recommend having an ecommerce website no matter where you’re selling, but you can opt to only sell on eBay, Amazon and other online seller markets. These markets can be more challenging due to the side-by-side competitive environment and confusing rules, but you can win the game with proper data and market analysis. To that end, you can capture, analyze and refine billions of data points from Amazon with Jungle Scout, plus research competitors and even find suppliers.
We will update this post periodically as we find more drop shipping and wholesale suppliers that work with Canadians, as well as current trends and tips applicable to Canadian dropshippers. Please follow us on social media and subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss any updates.
Are you new to drop shipping in Canada or do you have some experience to share? Please comment below or discuss this and other online business topics in the Online Business Canada Facebook group!
Note: This article about drop shipping in Canada is continuously updated. The original version was published in 2013.
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Melody McKinnon is an internet entrepreneur with 25 years of experience in a wide range of online business models, backed by a formal business education and enhanced by training and mentorship. She has owned or managed both educational and ecommerce websites. Her book, 7 Recession Proof Online Businesses to Start From Home, is available from all major ebook retailers.
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I really think I can do this! I’m excited to try dropshipping online and didn’t think I could have a store because I have a tiny apartment so no room for inventory. My dream is going to come true! YAY!
i am looking authentic distributor and wholesaler for amazonfba in Canada.
We just started drop shipping and already with the sales! I use NA suppliers because China still can take a long time for shipping but I’m thinking of expanding since the NA is going so well. Where does everyone else ship? Just Canada?
Quality control can be a problem and the scammers. Pretty simple once it gets going though. I just quit my job working for an online retailer who used drop-shipping for about a third of their suppliers. I’m going to start my own using the same plan.
My name is Jim from Trenton, Ontario, Canada, I just turned 65 May/2024.
I am short about $450.00 from being able to pays bills food etc.
I was doing small drywall jobs, until l got Nets intestinal cancer March/2024.
I had an operation then removing 65 cm of small bowel and another section plus severe hernia cutting off blood supply.
It took 8 days to find doctor to operate, doctor said l was dying had only 4% chance to survive 3 hour operation but l did.
But been in rough shape since lost over 130 plus pounds.
I also have over 40 spots of skin cancer 2 treatments only gets worse one treatment left doctor does think last treatment will help.
I need help to start online drop shipping business am very close to loosing my house.
I have other health issues list is to long.
Is there anyone in my area who can sit down and help me?
Or experience business lady like you Blaine would you help me we are 4 hours apart l am in Trenton Ontario?
Thanks for reading my message
James Reeves
Small home based embroidery owner in Canada. Really struggling to find affordable blanks. Millions on Alibaba and price looks great until the shipping is added on ;(. Particularly searching for Baby heirloom quilts. Where do I even start??
There can be a lot of legwork involved. Have a look at Finding Wholesale Suppliers for your Canadian Business. Good luck!
I can’t tell you what a relief it is to find other Canadians are having troubles with online wholesale. Every time I tried to figure it out before just the thought of finding suppliers contacting them was enough to make me freak out and put it off again. I think you accidentally created a community of wandering entrepreneurs who are lost on a online planet hahaha!
Does anyone have a healthy pet food wholesaler or drop shipper in Canada they can share with me? It’s the last category I need to fill before publishing my store. I’m in western Canada. Thanks…
I’m still looking for suppliers but I kind of like it that way because I’m finding more unique products. It’s worth it to take the time to teach small businesses + wholesalers about drop shipping sometimes. I think my income will be higher in the end. I’m going to combine them with some of the big drop shipping wholesalers for a complete line of products but I’ll always be on the lookout for something different from small businesses and craftsmen.
I’m attempting an eBay integration for Print on Demand drop shipping but I’m living in Canada. Would I be able to sell on ebay.com? It seems like the integration would only work that way.
You can sign up for an account on .com. They’ve been playing around with payment options and tax numbers so there may be some challenges there.
Hi Melody,
There are many Canadian business are just in the local Market and its unique products.
I am planning to buy it from a wholesaler and sell it through the online local and international.
As I already started the business and is doing well, my only challenge is how to find a wholesaler as sometimes the companies are not replying or unable to reach to the person who can help.
could you suggest any good way to find a wholesaler able to get me those items ?
Thank you
Ahmad Shekfa
Our guide, Finding Wholesale Suppliers for your Canadian Business, will help you do the legwork.
Ok thanks your advice and your service in figure we work together
Thanks thousand times
I’m very happy your honest
boss can u teach me how u did it i am struggling with wholesalers right now
Hi Melody
I am planning for online business ( selling of some gift items both online and offline ) in Ontario as I live in Canada, so do I have to register a company for tax purposes ? its just a shopify type business.
Thanks
Shah
It’s best to consult with an accountant as there can be many variables, and there could be liability issues to consider as well. However, you’ll need a business registration number of some sort for most wholesalers to work with you. Some will accept your GST registration number as a substitute.
Anyone interested in scrap Aluminum & Copper export from Canada should reach out to me at tbong5859@gmail.com
Forget china Raj! We need more CANADIAN retailers to drop ship! Great to see some more coming on board but wow…the potential! I do really good in the US with dropshipping because there’s lots to choose from but Canadian stores don’t seem to know about it much.
Agreed! We’re working on a few ideas to help Canadian retailers understand drop shipping, and the opportunities it offers to diversify revenue streams and increase sales.
I sure wish some would bring distribution in Canada from China!! Ship time is only what stands in my way. At least theres more reliable companies on this side of the pond now.
Hi I live in canada and I would like to know how long does the shipping takes when you use wholesale2b? do they have warehouse in Canada? thanks.
Wholesale2B connects you to over a hundred suppliers, each with their own shipping time to/within Canada. Once you’ve narrowed down your products, you can contact them to find out about shipping times and any other details you need.
I just found out about drop shipping and I’m really interested in starting my own clothing bouitque but i am scared and don’t know where to start regarding suppliers. so when I find a supplier how do I approach them with my idea of drop shipping
If you start with one of the networks mentioned in this post, connecting with dropshippers is easy. If you’re approaching a company that isn’t familiar with dropshipping, you may have to explain the concept (send them to this page if you like).
The more I read about it the more convinced I am that drop shipping is the answer to serving global markets. especially for countries that don’t have an economical international delivery option which is Canada in a nutshell.
Thank you
Your inför is great. I am interested to know where can I find a Wholesalers for Jeans (Pants and Jackets ..). Thank you.
Hi, I have access to a warehouse and products in Canada, but don’t know how to set it up for Dropshipping. Are there any resources out there to assist with this? or how to set up the process?
Would love some feedback and input.
If you want to set it up so you’re doing the drop shipping for sellers, I would contact Shopify Wholesale to see how they could make it work. Even if you decide not to go with them, you’ll learn a lot from their experts.
Hello, I would like to know where we can find whole seller for Corn maze, I need a database to find out most of the whole sellers. I am developing business in most of the people wants to establish a business , They don’t know where to start and how to get the products, I assist them registering their business, and fulfilling their legal obligations, such as obtaining licence and finding them suppliers.
Hello! Do you have any articles or advice on the tax or import/export side of things? It’s the only thing holding me back! I live in Canada. I want to drop ship from suppliers both in Canada and in the US, and sell the products worldwide. I can’t for the life of me figure out what tax laws or trade paperwork I need and it’s incredibly frustrating.
Taxes & trade law are constantly changing so we are unable to provide advice about it. To ensure you’re in full compliance, it’s best to check with an accountant who has expertise in multi-country transactions, such as the cloud accountants at GrantThorton. For sales tax, you may find it easier to work with a platform like Shopify and one of their dropshipping apps so it’s automatically calculated. Any paperwork required to ship the product should be handled by the dropshipper. You can contact any dropshippers you’re interested in working with and ask them how they handle those situations as well. Good luck!
hi Brandi i really don’t understand how salehoo works
they display a product, but the supplier you get under the products are not the supplier of the product. May be i am looking at it in a different direction…please help me understand how it works.
thank you
Hi, we are a Clothing Wholesaler in Toronto. We see a lot of dropshipping information on the internet catering mainly to people who want to start a dropshipping business – but there is not much information for how wholesalers like us can become suppliers to such dropshippers. Any advise how to find more information about this???
It works almost exactly like selling direct to customers via eCommerce, only you’re offering a wholesale/discounted price to a seller (who sets his own product and shipping price for his customers). When the seller places an order, you send it direct to his/her customer without identifying yourself as the seller. You can provide the seller’s info on packing slips, address labels, etc. Wholesale platforms like Shopify Plus provide lots of flexibility in regards to custom wholesale catalogues/prices/discounts.
The demand for Canadian companies that offer drop shipping is substantial, but it’s a surprisingly underused sales strategy in this country. Drop me a line when you have it set up and we’ll consider adding your site to the above list of suppliers.
Hi Benny Can I have some details of your Wholesale Business. Email at info@canadatz.com please
Hi there,
I was recently intrigued by the idea of e-commerce. Will research and study into it more but can you advise where should I start?
Should I start creating a website (i.e. Shopify, WordPress etc.)
Thank you,
Patrick
We have a checklist that will guide you through each step:
https://canadiansinternet.com/checklist-start-online-business-canada/
I’m located in Toronto and am looking into dropshipping to North America (Canada & US) from individual manufacturers of niche products from, well, pretty much all over the world. Does any one have any experience with this? They’re adult novelty/personal products and are typically hand made by the artisan (ceramic products from Spain, wearable products from a French designer, wearable products from a German supplier, British designers, etc.) and most of them have never tapped into the Canadian market at all.
Would best practice be to label the products on my website with their origin and inform the customer of possible duties/taxes? Or should I scale back for now and stick with distributors of luxury adult products that already sell in Canada/US?
Thanks
Thanks for the great post! I would be interested in reading about others’ experience in building a drop shipping online store with small and local suppliers. Anyone? Thank you!
I live in Canada, but want to dropship from aliexpress to the usa, since the shipping to canadian customers could take 2 months. Can I do this? Are there rules or laws I need to follow, or taxes to pay? Is it considered making money in the usa if i travel there? and do need to pay taxes in the usa at the end of the year?
It’s common for Canadians to ship only to the USA with dropshipping. The laws and tax rules are highly variable, so I suggest consulting with an accountant who is familiar with the practice.
Hi, a quick questions. I have a drop ship business, but one of my suppliers is in Canada and doesn’t want to drop ship. I can’t be there to do the packing and shipping. Are there shippers in Canada who will receive the product in bulk (small orders) from the manufacture, the order from me and ship it out as a drop shipper? Like an Amazon distribution center but not Amazon. Looking to ship a few products from a small niche supplier.
Thanks
I think you’re looking for a third-party logistics company.
Very helpful information with clear cut direction. Love all the contact link./
Very good article Thank you do you have the french version? Also was wondering why you say find dropshipping supplier who are ready to ship in Canada as everybody we want also to have an international Market of course its necessary so we can order simples but otherwise Also I would like to find supplier worldwide not to be limited on canadian dropshipping suppliers
You’ll find many international suppliers under the section, Drop Shipping Networks & Wholesale Suppliers that Serve Canadian Sellers.
Can anyone comment on requirements or recommendations around Liability insurance and what is required to protect yourself from product issues when drop shipping products from China or USA?
Hello, I start in the dropshipping.
I can not find a website with a lot of product choices AND short delivery times. AliExpress is great but impossible to sell with 60-day delivery times for Canada !!! Do you know something like AliExpress with shorter delivery times AND choice in products as well as beautiful photos?
Thank you
I’m just about to start my first online store, I live in Canada, have my business corporation in Canada, although I’m going to drop ship from China to the USA only. How exactly does taxes work for me?
We are unable to provide specific tax information due to the constantly changing tax laws. However, you can find Canadian accountants that are familiar with these more unique business situations. For example, Grant Thornton is familiar with cross-border, online business and they have the option to work in the cloud so you can work with them from anywhere.
Hey there, loving the info on this site! Do you know of any good/reputable Organic Dropshippers in Canada? My wife and I would love to get into this type of business model and we’re currently looking for something in this niche – any help would be awesome!!
Not off the top of my head, but you can approach anyone about drop shipping. The worst they can say is “no”. 🙂 Canadian businesses may not be as familiar with the concept, but you can always point them to this post so they can learn about it.
Hi
Thanks for all this advices. I feel confifent in launching my store! I’ve heard about AliExpress. What do you think about it as a source for dropshipping suppliers to sell in Canada and US? Any experience to share?
Thanks!
We haven’t used AliExpress for drop shipping directly, but they’ve been suppliers through tools we’ve used like AliDropship. It’s one of the top sites Canadians visit so I know their merchandise is popular here. Shipping time might be a problem but the free shipping would prevent a lot of headaches.
I’ve used them for a few items. I only dropshipped from sellers with a good rating that offered e-packet shipping to Canada and the US because tracking was included and the shipping time was less. Items typically took about 15 days to arrive unless there was a Chinese holiday occuring then processing and shipping was longer.
We have been attempting to launch our dropshipping site for several weeks but have been running into issues related to sales tax. We are located in Vancouver, Canada but our dropshippers are in the USA. We are also selling exclusively to the USA. No-one (and I mean no-one) seems to be able to tell us whether we should be charging our customers US sales tax. It seems to have something to do with whether or not we are considered to have a business location (nexus) within the US. Some folks say that we do (because the dropshippers are in the USA) while others say we do not. We have spoken directly with the folks at Big Commerce as that is what our site is using but they don’t know. We have chased Avalara – a sales tax solution that integrates with Big Commerce – but we were told the solution is only available to companies located in the US and therefore we cannot use it. Online research has resulted in a confusing and conflicting array of information.
This seems like something that someone must know the answer to but we just can’t find it. Surely other companies are doing this. Would you have any insights into this? Or perhaps you could point us in the right direction? Any help would be much appreciated!
The most reliable source of tax information about cross-border eCommerce are accountants who have experience with it. It’s important to only apply reliable, current information regarding anything to do with taxes, if for no other reason than it changes constantly. The odds of you finding correct info online are slim. That’s why we feel it’s irresponsible to provide specific tax information on this website.
Hello, I am interested In starting drop shipping in Canada, I live in Toronto. I would like to start with ebay first and then if it goes well to create my own website (online store) or maybe use some company to build it. Anyway, so my question is, If I want to start selling in ebay and use of the following two sites to find wholesalers: Wholesale2B or SaleHoo – Do I have to register a business or I can do it under my name? I have my own bank accounts, credit cards and paypal., but I am mainly using them for my own purchases and bills. I just need to know how exactly to start from scratch. Thanks
You can start out as a private seller and treat it as self-employment if you want to take it for a test drive.
Thank you. And do you think that Drop Shipping has a good future in Canada?
Absolutely! It addresses many challenges we face regarding suppliers and international eCommerce, for starters. It will improve as more Canadian merchants adopt drop shipping as a viable sales tool.
Thanks again for the reply! Do you know any reviews which do a detailed comparison between these 3 websites: Wholesale2B, World Wide Brands and SaleHoo ? specifically for Canada . I would like to find which of them would be better for me – e.g. has more drop-shippers\whole-sellers and products from Canada, since I would like to start selling on ebay.ca, as a start. And I would like to do the research before to register to a plan with them. Also, I need a platform which is ebay.ca or (amazon.ca) integrated. I know that Wholesale2B has that integration, and I just did a free signup but I could not find any products which are related to the specialty clothes (in which I am interested in). So I guess it will be between the World Wide Brands and SaleHoo. But from what I read in internet, I couldn’t find if they have ebay integration, and also I think the WWB is mostly US oriented, and I guess I will need mainly or only Canadian sources since the shipping will be faster and cheaper if it is done from Canadian drop-shippers to Canadian clients. And I think the ebay integration will be a plus for me since I am new to this and the whole buy and resell process will be much easier with such integration.
Thanks for your time.
I don’t know of a comparison like that, but it’s a good idea. The best thing to do is write to them and ask.
Do you have to get a tax Id number from government of Canada to start as a private seller and treat as self employed?
There are so many variables that it’s best to take this kind of question directly to the government or to an accountant.
Majority of the suppliers listed above already have a solid online presence. For example, Olive Kids sell all their items on Amazon at the best price. If I want to sell their products on Amazon and they are drop shipping for me, will the margins work?
They all work differently. For example, one merchant’s drop shipping program may only be intended for use on the seller’s own website. It’s best to contact the merchant that interests you to see if their particular terms fit into your plan.
Hi, I’m in the process of registering my dropshipping business but I have a question about the business name. Let’s say I choose a nice like baby toys, so when I register the business I have to put the company name the same as I would in my domain, logo, etc? Or can it be a general business name regardless of the domain I will have? I’m concerned that if my niche doesn’t work out then do I have to register a new business name when I change domain?
It’s nice to have the company name in the domain name but it isn’t absolutely necessary. The primary reason is so people can easily guess the domain but a quick search will get them to you. A company name and domain name with main keywords in it is good for SEO.
http://www.oxelectronics.com/ is out of business please remove the link. Thanks
Thanks for letting us know!
I have just started using wholesale2B for my e-commerce business. So far it is going well.They have some suppliers that ship to Canada so it worked out for my particular business. My shop is setup with BigCommerce and they have an app that integrates well with the platform. I’ve recently made my first order thru them and everything is pretty simple once you’ve setup your store correctly. Once I processed the order the status updated automatically on my store and the trackig info updated automatically as well. So far smooth sailing.
That’s a good point about researching the drop shipper. I help people connect their drop shipping account to their web store. For example, taking products from a supplier and placing them into WooCommerce or Shopify (those are really popular right now). The best thing I can advise people is to look into the quality of the data feed. This is often overlooked as a technical detail but it can make a huge impact to your store. For example:
– Make sure they have quality images! Some suppliers don’t provide them and expect you to get your own.
– Do they use placeholder images that could break your store theme?
– Do any products have missing descriptions?
– Do they have properly formatted variant data or is it jammed into the titles?
– Do they include categories? Are products in the right categories?
Ask the drop shipper for a sample of their data feed so you can look for these common problems.
I am currently researching drop-shipping into the Canadian market, but I am worried about customs fees happening to my customers. I know I have been hit with duty fees from the US and China before, and I am wondering if there is a way I can avoid this issue, so my customers won’t be charged extra money from the courier. I know when this has happened to me in the past, it ends up adding another 25% percent or so onto the cost of my items!
They all work differently so you’d have to contact your drop shipping supplier and see what you can work out with them. Also avoid shipping with UPS as they have the highest brokerage fees in the industry.
I was wondering, how to go about starting up a business. I live in Canada and my dropshipper, would be from the U.S.A. (there are very few dropshippers, in Canada).
I am having a difficult time finding out what I need to get started (business name and number etc.).
If I live in Canada, do I need a US address, to sell on Amazon.com, or is Amazon.ca fine?
How would I charge taxes on the products? Each province and state (in the US), has different taxes. Or is this something my dropshipper would do?
I am new to this, but have wanted to do dropshipping for years.
Is there somewhere I could get all
of this information ?
I know someone who does this, but she lives in the U.S.A. so it’s different for her (I’m assuming).
It varies widely between platforms so it’s best to send an email to those that interest you. If you go through a platform that facilitates drop shipping it will be easier because everything is set up and automated.
I liked Worldwide brands when I was dropshipping in Canada because I already had the ecommerce structure set up and just needed to find suppliers. For less experienced people you’d probably be better off with a turnkey solution like Wholesale2b. Shopify makes it pretty easy too and you have lots of freedom to sell from any supplier you want. Products turned out to not be my thing but it was pretty straight forward to make a profit. I might do it again in the future. I suggest sticking with niches though and build a store around it. If you go too big it’s harder to make money believe it or not.
I’m in the middle of trying to find reputable companies who dropship in Canada. So far I have found nothing and I am finding myself feeling frustrated as I know what I want to sell, I know how to market a product to sell, and yet its the “finding” of a company who has a good quality product. I want my customer’s to have a wonderful experience when ordering off my website. Any info would be greatly appreciated!
Unfortunately, nothing replaces the legwork we must do to find the products we want to sell. Going through the resources listed above will start you off in the right direction.
Hello Friends,
I would be really greateful to you if I can get some suggestions here. I am planning to start dropshipping business on Ebay Canada website. Should I register my business as a sole proprietorship or Incorporate it? I live in Vancouver,BC. I plan to also sell on ebay US website in near future but not sure if Sole proprietorship will be the way to go Or Incorporate my business in BC to sell on Ebay US as well? Any insights you can provide will help immensely. Thank you!
Most people start out as a sole proprietor for online business, but there are advantages to both: The Ultimate Guide on Business Incorporation in Canada. You can incorporate in the US as well, but you’d have to go there to set it up. We always recommend consulting with a corporate attorney as the Internet can be an unreliable or outdated source of information.
Thanks Melody! I was thinking about starting out as sole proprietorship as well. I was thinking when will be a good point for someone starting out as a sole proprietorship for doing online business on Ecommerce platforms like Ebay,Amazon and Etsy to Incorporate their own company?Is it after making a certain amount,lets say, more than $5,000 per month once the business starts to take off? Per my research, I found that opening LLC in USA is a very bad choice for a Canadian since he or she will be part of double taxation since he/she will have to pay taxes on income earned in USA and then also file a Canadian tax return for worldwide income earned as a Canadian resulting in shedding out the profits every year he/she is in business.I understand nobody can provide legal advice on this forum but I am just asking for an opinion in general. Any responses would help. and will be greatly appreciated!
The info here is priceless. Absolutely PRICELESS. I can’t tell you how much time I wasted trying to apply USA dropshipping advice to Canada only to fetch up on something halfway through. I may leave all of my dropshipping millions to Melody in my will LOL I’m THAT grateful!
I just started so I can’t tell you much except I’m excited about where I can take drop shipping. It made it possible for this stayathome mom to start a business with hardly any capital and without risking next week’s groceries. In a couple of months I’ve made over 20 sales and they all got positive feedback on ebay.ca! Now I’m building a site. Thanks so very much for all that you do to help Canadians get started in business online.
XOXOXOX Rosa
Hey Rosa, happy to hear your positive feedback. I’m interested in drop shipping but I don’t have a clue where to start. Would you mind getting in contact with me and helping me out with the basics? I would really appreciate that.
Hi Rosa! 🙂
When you started your business, is there any paperwork or anything you need to fill out, to get started? I will use a US dropshipper (I have found it difficult, to find any canadian ones) and plan to start out on ebay and then amazon.
Do you need to file a business name etc.? Just wondering how to do it legit.
Thank you for your comment, is very helpful for me, because I am in Vancouver, Canada, right now I am selling in Amazon and I am planning start a healthy dropshipping business on Ebay, so looking for wholesalers in the area etc, many ideas, but any way, do you have any suggestions after testing the water?. Thank you very much.
I’m very new to this is anyone willing to talk to me on the phone in more detail on how the process works?
If my online store is registered in Canada (sole proprietorship) can I use a U.S. dropshipping company to sell products in the USA without registering my company in this country?