Selling Coffee Online? Here are Some Common Questions

Since starting this blog but primarily since starting my YouTube channel, I’ve received some questions about selling coffee online.

I want to share these questions as well as my answers in order to help you with starting your own online store selling coffee.

As I receive more questions on my YouTube channel, I’ll be sure to create blog posts for them as well.

Hopefully, you the questions and answers here will help you out.

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Selling Coffee Online Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do You Need a Business License or Resellers License to Sell Coffee Online?

Of course, what I write here is not professional advice.

When I come across various coffee roaster suppliers that offer wholesale coffee, private labeling, or dropshipping, many of them do not require a business license or resellers license.

However, it doesn’t mean that some of them won’t require a reseller’s license. It is a matter of contacting the suppliers you are interested in and asking if they do.

As far as your actual location, you should contact your city hall or other agency or department that handles business and reseller licenses. Ask what is required to run your business.

Another option is to reach out to a business attorney or accountant with your questions.

2. Is It Better to Buy Wholesale Beans or Dropship Coffee?

There are pros and cons to both of these options. Buying your beans wholesale will allow for you to have a higher profit margin.

You will need to buy your beans in bulk and coffee roasters can have these already packaged in individual bags for you.

Then you are able to price these bags for whatever you want. You will be responsible for packing and shipping your coffee to your customers.

Dropshipping alleviates ever having to handle the actual product. There is no need to buy or store any coffee.

When you receive orders, you simply pass them along to your coffee dropship supplier and they will ship their coffee directly to your customers.

The downside is that your profit margin may not be as high. Some coffee dropshipping suppliers charge fees or they do not offer wholesale pricing.

You really have to shop around for good dropshipping coffee suppliers.

Choosing between buying wholesale coffee and dropshipping will depend on your budget and preference.

Buying wholesale will require more start-up money. Dropshipping coffee costs a lot less but you may not make as much per item sold.

3. Can You Buy Wholesale Beans, Grind Them Yourself, Then Repackage for Selling?

This was an interesting question but definitely one that I’m sure others have pondered themselves.

You should never have to buy wholesale beans, grind them yourself, and repackage them. For one, wholesale coffee roasters offer beans whole and ground.

They even offer then pre-packaged and you can have your labels added to the bags depending on what the coffee roaster offers.

Besides that, you don’t want to handle food products that you plan on selling in your home. Meaning, your city/state likely has guidelines for food handling in the home.

Some cities don’t allow it or you may have to undergo several inspections. More often than not, you’ll be required to do so in a commercial kitchen.

Your best bet is to contact the food and health agency in your area if you prefer to actually roast and grind your own beans.

Otherwise, there should never be a need to do any of that when ordering from a wholesale coffee roaster.

4. I’m in the UK. Do You Know Any Good Coffee Suppliers for Dropshipping or Private Labeling?

I receive this question quite often on my YouTube channel and unfortunately, I do not know of any good coffee roaster suppliers in the UK.

However, I will do a bit of research and if I come across some ideal options, I will create a video and blog post about them.

Closing Thoughts On Common Selling Coffee Online Questions

It is interesting and fun to receive these different types of questions on my YouTube channel.

Although I’m learning all of this as I’m going along, I hope that what I’m learning and passing along is somewhat helpful.

If you are ready to start your own online coffee business, consider testing out the Shopify platform using their 14-day free trial.