Dropshipping becomes one of the most inspiring business models for the last few years. It doesn’t require any fatty finance to get started. You may, as a teenager, also want to get started and wonder how to start dropshipping as a teenager.
If so, I’ve good news for you!
It seems unlike other teenagers, you perhaps want to make money with the dropshipping business. This is because as an out-of-the-box thinker, you are not tending to get a 9 to 5 job for money instead of creating your business.
It is a great idea to start an individual business and create a source of money. Also, it is more pleasing to generate income using your creativity other than a 9 to 5 schedule. This guide is all about teenagers’ dropshipping and its related things.
[Disclaimer– All information in this article is only to create legal guidance, but not meant legal assurance. Therefore, you are strongly recommended to consult with a professional before following any of the information in this guide.]
Why Start a Dropshipping Business as a Teenager?
Make Extra Money
Sidelines are idyllic business thoughts for teens. For example, fit a pet into a native dog-walking business to earn extra money and enjoy something you are already doing. Relatively, save that money, spend whenever you think, and enjoy full monetary freedom.
The Lesson You Learn Will Benefit You Future
The first business will teach you to wear many hats like selecting a niche, finding a supplier, and pick products, driving sales, offering customer service, etc. So starting a business as a teenager will help to get a lesson that pays you back in the future.
Making Mistakes Is Informal for Teen
Businesses are involved in risk. But as a teen, if you started a business under your parent’s guidance, the failure rate and risk are relatively much lower. Eventually, making errors at an early age means you’ll get extra time to make it right.
You Have Already an Organic Audience
This is great! The age group becomes the best catalyst for testing an idea and school is a natural hub of likely buyers. So business in this stage makes it easy to succeed. It allows you to experience with your mates as teens to fix any issue or form ideas to gear to the future.
Teens Have Access to Free Possessions and Support
Your learning is going to charge you after finishing high school level. You must pay extra for everything from transportation, and gaming to entertainment. Thus, many schools are starting to teach the basic of applied business knowledge to teenagers and offering optional classes as part of the regular syllabus.
Teens Have Enough Free Time
You will have much free time just before you are hitting your adulthood. In childhood, when you were busy with school, sports, homework, and felt time are too short. But once you hit adulthood, your daily routine will get busier. So this is the right time to get started with a new idea.
How to Start Dropshipping as a Teenager? | Steps Involved
Here are the steps that involve teenagers to get started in their dropshipping venture;
Ask for Go-ahead
This is first and foremost. Make sure your parent or legal guardian permitted you to go ahead even before you tend to write an article or design a logo. Seek their full support so that you can do the job peacefully with no hesitation.
Your legal guardian will be liable for co-signing on any contract like legal papers, monetary products, and your digital store account. Certain platform may even ask them to sign up for and track social accounts if they are below the least age.
For example, in the USA and Canada, teenagers under 18 are not eligible to sign contracts. So on behalf of you, your parents can sign it. Still country and state systems vary, but the most fiscal, online business platform and social media products have the lowest age limits.
It is a good idea to consult local governments for better understanding and guidance on these procedures. The US Small Business Administration recommends that parents pursue the advice of an accountant and a lawyer.
Legal Amenability
Some countries (also states of the USA) have guidelines regarding at what age someone can build a lawful unit, open a legal bank account, and more. So, you must fix your native area’s legal rules about keeping a legal business.
Luckily, if you are staying out of the criteria of your native area, state, or country, you can even get your parent or legal guardian to act on your behalf of you. This is crucial because you will use your credit card to pay your dealers and manage the business’s funds.
So before you start searching for suppliers for your dropshipping business or set up your digital store, make sure of the legal amenability. Consequently, based on your business structure, product type, and more, you must fulfill numerous legal necessities including;
- Legal business registration.
- Prove tax returns and pay taxes, in the USA, must pay taxes if you earn more than $400.
- Renewing trade licenses and authorizations.
Find and Confirm Your Concept
The concept can come from anywhere and stand you out from others in no time. There are tons of business concepts from product/service selling to customer care service via an online store or creating a charitable everywhere as a source.
In the event of finding and confirming your business concept, make sure to prefer your target group or market where you want to sell your item/service. Then try to engage this group/market in your concept. So you get feedback and certify whether your concept is practical or not.
Find and Confirm the Investment
Though, dropshipping typically doesn’t require heavy investment. However, for the minimum investment it needs to start, you can get your parent’s support. And if you have the money to get started, you’ll also need an expert’s help to manage other monetary factors of your business.
Consult with your parents or legal guardian about whether you need a commercial bank account with them as the authorized or co-signer. Then before the start, you should also discuss your and your parent’s particular role in business.
Choose Payment Gateways
This is a very vital part that you should complete carefully. It simplifies the way money is transferred to a bank account after positive business dealing between you and your buyer. The payment gateway keeps the buyer’s info based on the way of payment offered, checks funds availability, and then starts the payment.
While selecting a payment gateway, consider it must have the following key patrons;
- Merchant– This is your dropshipping store.
- Cardholder– The buyer who placed the order to your store.
- Issuing Bank– The bank that holds the buyer’s account.
- Card Patterns– It may be Visa Card, MasterCard, and American Express.
- Getting Bank– This bank holds your account.
There are many payment gateways available in the industry, including PayPal, Stripe, and more. Picking one of them, keep in mind and make sure the following;
- Accessibility- It is available in both your and the buyer’s country.
- Safe- End-to-end encryption to keep both parties’ info safe from cheats.
- Linkable- It must easily link with your dropshipping platform or monetary software.
- Friendly- It is friendly for both you and your buyer.
Build Your Online Store
Now you need your online store where you’ll display your products to sell. You can do it by;
- Buying a Domain & Building a Website- This is a widely used method by most online sellers. Besides, for most eCommerce, a website is an essential part. Here, you need to pay for a domain name and hosting service. Luckily, there is no age limit to buying a domain.
- Go with a Dropshipping Platform- There are several dropshipping platforms like Shopify particularly intended to help drop shippers like you with no cost of building a website.
Find Product & Supplier
After having all the legal papers with a ready online store to show your product/service for sale, the next step is to find products and their suppliers. You can use the following platforms to do so;
- Alibaba.
- AliExpress.
- SaleHoo
- Taobao, etc.
Set Your Price
This is a critical part where you must show your highest intelligence and brain-storming creativity. It is a better practice to see your competitors’ prices for the same item or service and fixed your price tag. However, price it accordingly if you are offering any extra value.
Start Promoting & Start Selling
Since all has already been done, it’s time to promote your store and start selling. This is the final part that will decide whether your dropshipping business will exist or not. So it is very important to find your target customer demographic and decide the channel you should use to promote your product for better traffic.
How Old Do You Have To Be To Do Dropshipping?
In short, there is no least age or age limit to start a dropshipping business. So teens also can start dropshipping businesses. However, age is one of the basics of a legal contract. Further, most legal authorities work to a least 18 years of age.
Therefore, legal actions may take by entities opposing the agreed-upon rules that will permit trial. Luckily, there is some twist! Teens can get a reliable adult as a signer or use someone’s identity with their approval to run their dropshipping business.
Is It Too Late to Start Dropshipping With Shopify?
Of course not! Instead, you can start dropshipping business at any age with Shopify. But, if you are under 18, Shopify will ask you to assign someone over 18 to sign up for their platform and get started. You must click on the Terms of Service Contract when creating a Shopify account.
Once you made some sales, you will need to confirm your identity. Shopify will ask you to provide your ID and Social Security Number (SSN). Make sure you didn’t lie about your age while signing up, or Shopify will ban your account.
Here are two options that I strongly recommend you to start your dropshipping business and run it uninterruptedly;
- Find someone of 18+ Age to Create a Shopify Account for you– Your parent or legal guardian is the best option here. Your parent will sign up with Shopify. All given info will be used for registration purposes and any revenue will affect your parent’s taxes as the revenue would be under this name.
- Make an LLC– In this case, you will still need here someone aged 18+, but the revenue won’t affect the person’s taxes. This is the best part of creating an LLC- Limited Liability Company for a dropshipping business.
Another amazing benefit of this option is, if, regardless of the reason, you run into fiscal suffering with your business, your assets are safe. Only your business assets will be taken away from you.
Keep in mind, an LLC will cost you some amount of dollars that might seem extra; however, it is fairly a better option as it saves your parent from taxes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Legally Start a Dropshipping Business As A Teen?
The short and fair reply is that teens can start and run dropshipping businesses with a reliable person of 18+ age as a cosigner or borrow someone’s identity with their approval.
Do You Have to Be 18 to Start Dropshipping Business?
No, rather you can start your dropshipping business even if you are under 18. But, in this case, you will need someone aged 18+ to sign up with Shopify and a payment processor to maintain the business.
Will Shopify Check My Age?
Yes, Shopify may ask you to certify your identity with real age once you made some sales. And if it proves that you lied when creating an account with Shopify, they will block your account.
How Old Do I Have To Be To Start Dropshipping On Amazon?
You must have to be 18+ of age for that. Because they do not permit someone under 18 of age to dropship or sell products on their platform. So if you are under 18, you will need an 18+ person to sign up on Amazon on your behalf you.
How To Start Dropshipping as A Teenager? | Finale Thought
So here, the above is all about how to start dropshipping as a teenager. The reality is dropshipping is such a great business model that is open to start for all. Though, you will need your parents, legal guardian, or a trusted person to support you.
More importantly, you would also need an expert mentor since you are getting to start your dropshipping business for the first time. In this case, Dropshippertips would be the best option for you. Start it now, the world out there is yours, sure!