Sell cell phone cases online

Why sell cell phone cases?

Statistica estimates that in 2015, there were 224.4 million cell phone owners in the United States, and that’s just one of many major mobile markets.* As the technology in these phones progresses, and the prices soar accordingly, it becomes even more important to protect these devices. This creates a huge market for cell phone cases, which are fortunately both easy and affordable to produce and ship around the world.

Selling cell phone cases and accessories online is the perfect business for a new entrepreneur. There’s significant, recurring demand and it’s a product category that has global appeal. There are constantly new trends emerging, like cases that sparkle or charge your battery. The relatively low price point means that it’s a potential ‘impulse buy’ or gift for any occasion. It’s also a simple product that is relatively unlikely to generate a lot of refund requests or returns. Plus, there are healthy profit margins, plenty of suppliers to choose from and lots of opportunities to expand into other products (cases, lenses, selfie sticks and beyond.)

The product

For this product category, it’s up to you whether you want to make custom products or simply resell existing ones from a dropshipper. In order to make your own, you’ll need to buy transparent or solid coloured cases from your local craft store or an online marketplace like Amazon. You can customize these cases using glitter, nail polish, paint, markers, and even clay; design inspiration can be found on Pinterest, DIY blogs or Youtube. This production model is attractive if you’re a naturally artistic person who enjoys making crafts, and you want to physically manage your inventory. It’s harder to scale, however, because you’ll need to physically produce each item and mail it out.

The alternative is to partner up with a dropshipper like Alibaba (for buying in bulk) or AliExpress (for buying individual items). Although AliExpress has slightly higher prices per item, it's attractive because you don't have to buy anything until you've made a sale. A dropshipping app can also help you automate the process so that whenever someone orders on your Shopify store, the order goes through to your supplier or manufacturer. This is a highly scalable business model; however, you'll have less control over the product quality and fulfillment times, so it's important to pick a reliable dropshipper and to order samples for yourself.

• https://www.statista.com/statistics/231612/number-of-cell-phone-users-usa/