PLAYBOOK · 8 MIN READ
How to start a resale business
SHORT ANSWER
Pick one category you can source repeatedly, register the business and get an EIN, set up resale documentation and a business bank account, buy a small first lot, and record every cost so you know what you actually made.
The first version of the business only has to prove two things: that you can buy at a price that works, and that you can sell what you bought. Everything else is scaffolding you add once those two are true.
Do the legal setup early anyway. It is cheap, it takes a week, and it is what suppliers ask for before they will quote you.
The steps
- 1Choose one categoryOne category you can source again next month. Repeatability beats a lucky flip.
- 2Register the entityForm the LLC with your state and apply for an EIN directly with the IRS. The EIN is free.
- 3Handle sales tax and resaleRegister with your state revenue agency and get your resale documentation in place before you approach suppliers.
- 4Open a business bank accountIn the company's name. Every dollar in and out goes through it from day one.
- 5Buy a small first lotSmall enough that a bad load is a lesson, not the end. Track freight, parts and disposal separately.
- 6Sell through one channelOne channel, priced against landed cost, with photos and grading you can repeat.
- 7Close the monthRevenue, COGS, expenses. A one-page P&L tells you whether to buy again or fix pricing first.
How it looks in practice
A first load of 20 appliances at $4,200 delivered, 17 sellable at an average of $390, is $6,630 of revenue against a $247 landed cost per unit — and a real answer about whether the model works.
Where operators go wrong
- Buying a full truckload before you have sold a pallet.
- Running sales through a personal account and losing a year of provable history.
- Pricing against invoice cost instead of landed cost.
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LAST UPDATED 2026-09-16 · REVIEWED BY REGISTIX OPERATIONS TEAM