Hi, sorry if my last post was a bit sharp, what I meant to say is that there will always be someone undercutting you, but, it happens everywhere. I have 2 friends that sell full-time on eBay, both making decent money, both not registered as self-employed, both not paying any tax or National Insurance, I pay my tax and N.I on money I earn, so is that fair?

The point is, eastern sellers buy from their country with applicable taxes, then send them out to the UK and globally, you have been profitting from this system yourself. With nearly any item, they will eventually try to cut you out of the middle and sell directly, and at that point it is up to you to inform your buyers of your advantages, you speak clear concise English, you are; willing to deal with any enquiries, helpful, and send items with compensation and tracking/proof of postage included in the original price.

I havn't made any money so I can't pay tax on my earnings!

lol good reply, I was just saying, I know people selling the same product(s) as me, and they pay no tax or contributions on their earnings/turnover, it isn't fair, but then again, not much is fair in the world.

Have you considered selling other items? or are you set on selling MP4's and the like? if it's the latter, then maybe you could find a way around having them delivered to you, maybe finding a supplier/seller willing enough to dropship the MP4's for you singularly.

I think i'll have to buy the more expensive ones.

Currently im selling at £30 which you can get from ebay china for £15-20. People are willing to risk importing at that price.

It's just a pitty customs aren't doing anything. Surely ebay is braking the law by letting sellers say they will under-declare customs value?

This is why i am going to china to setup my operations, if you cant beat them join them

I would be happy to drop ship your stock for you lol.

feck it, i'll come wiv ya!

Its really not that hard to compete with the sellers. I sell my products at £33.99 and there are numerous over-seas sellers with them at £26 delivered.

I've found these things help a lot...

- My own pictures with my user name.
- Clearly state that the item is in the UK and all VAT & Import duties have been paid.
- 100% authentic product.
- Fully UK compatible (whether it be plugs, region encoding etc.)
- A user friendly returns policy by being able to return to a UK seller.

There are a lot of people who will be worried about all of the above when buying from a seller over-seas. Things like quality, compatibility, and authenticity all matter and they will be prepared to pay extra.

Think what you have to offer... and show it off!

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Revelations that Tesco is shipping CDs and DVDs to Switzerland and back to exploit a tax loophole come as the chain prepares to launch its latest green initiative, allowing customers to recycle paper-based food cartons in 100 stores.

Discs shipping from outside the EU qualify for “low value consignment relief”, allowing Tesco.com to undercut rivals, though the savings to customers are as little as £1.56 for a DVD. The chain is one of a number of online retailers, including Asda and Amazon, exploiting the loophole.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/mai.../cntesco08.xml

I have wondered how amazon, play.com etc... have been able to sell cheaper than wholesale, on some items. It's because they don't pay VAT!