Who doesn’t want their eCommerce business to be profitable? But choosing the right kind of product to sell online can be quite a task.
The most profitable online businesses are those that require minimum investments but have the maximum returns! Want ideas on how to sell high profit margin products in India?
Here are the top 15 low-cost products that you can start your eCommerce business with!
What are high-profit margin products?
When you decide to start selling online, you have to first consider how much of your own resources are going into selling the product.
Then you have to analyse what the selling price would be for the product.
The difference in the entire cost of selling the product (including raw materials, labour costs, inventory costs, logistics and shipping) and the amount that is being paid for it by a customer – is the profit margin of a product.
So, what makes a product have a high-profit margin? Well, the more the difference is between the cost and the sale price, the more profitable it is.
For example, if you spend ₹500 on resourcing and making a handmade product, it is a profitable product if it successfully sells for ₹1500. Your profit margin – ₹1000.
The higher your profit margins, the more successful is your eCommerce business.
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What factors decide if a product is good to sell online?
Well, when choosing what product to sell online, there are multiple factors that an online store owner must keep in mind.
1. Does it help you make a profit?
eCommerce is not as simple as choosing a product and then selling it online. Unless you make a profit, you cannot expand and grow your small business.
Successful online sellers understand what their costs would be to sell a particular product, allowing them to predict the kind of profit margins that they would have on their online store.
So, first, identify your costs, then aim for a selling price that would be acceptable to the customers and also help you generate a profit.
2. How competitive is the market?
Eager to start selling online and making money? Everybody is! This is why it is important to analyse and evaluate the market that you want to sell in.
eCommerce is a vast industry that is only going to become more competitive. When choosing a product, you have to also prepare to get ahead of the existing competition.
You could also identify a specific niche to sell in, where you will have access to a larger portion of the market.
Related read: How to start an eCommerce business in 8 steps: From 0 to launch
3. How to price my product?
Even though you want to make profits, you have to be careful about the price you set for a product.
You have to understand your target customer. Will your customer pay the price that you have decided on?
The price may be too high and you won’t make enough sales, or the price point may be too low making it difficult for you to sustain your business.
Understanding your target audience and then experimenting with small groups to see what their response to the prices are is a good way to find a sweet spot!
Enrol in our free mojoversity course – “Marketing for small business in India” to learn the basics of audience segmentation, targeted marketing and strategies to increase revenues.
What are the high-profit margin products to sell online in India? (With their Pros & Cons)
Ready to generate maximum profits for your online store? Here are the 16 high profit margins products that you can sell online in India. Some of these are also part-time business ideas you can start in your spare time.
1. Clothing
In a country with such a rich culture like India, you can never go wrong if you want to sell clothes online. You have the advantage of choosing various subcategories, choosing from a plethora of suppliers and you have the freedom to experiment with your price points.
Pros of selling clothing
- Universal demand
- High margins if you can identify the right suppliers
- High-profit potential during festive seasons
Cons of selling clothing
- Quality of the material matters
- There has to be adequate stock
- Seasonal in nature
Average Margin: 30%-60%
Related read: How to sell clothes online in India (Step by step guide 2024)
2. Jewellery & accessories
In India, you have the advantage of venturing into either the ethnic or western styles of jewellery & accessories. The best part? You can start with low-cost products and then expand into expensive high quality, high priced jewellery products as well. Selling jewellery online has the potential for high profit margins in India!
Pros of selling jewellery & accessories
- Wide variety to choose from (Western or ethnic)
- Insane sales during festive seasons
- Enjoys demand in India throughout the year
Cons of selling jewellery & accessories
- Highly competitive
- Shipping and packaging needs to be fragile friendly
Average profit margin: 42%-47%
Related read: How to sell jewellery online in India (Step by step guide 2024)
3. Art
If you want to sell art online, there are multiple categories that you can branch into. Categories like self-made art have a high-profit margin. Apart from selling art online, you can also sell art supplies and stationery online. These also show high demand, and you can generate a profit with a good margin.
Pros of selling art online
- Extremely high demand
- Can be used for multiple industries
- Can be customised
- Unique designs
- Lots of niche subcategories
Cons of selling art online
- Too niche
- Low sales
- The creativity and energy of the seller is at stake
Average Margin: 30%-50%
Related read: How to sell art online in India and make money (Step by step guide 2024)
4. Shoes
Selling shoes online is a good idea once you have done some market research. Knowing the right suppliers and designs that are user-friendly can help you get repeat purchasers in the long run.
Pros of selling shoes online
- Universal demand
- Can have unique designs
Cons of selling shoes online
- High competition
- Quality of shoes matter when becoming repeat purchasers
Average Margin: 30% – 50%
Related read: How to sell shoes online in India: (Step by step guide 2024)
5. Cosmetics and beauty products
It is general knowledge that beauty products are always in demand. In India, Nykaa – an eCommerce platform selling beauty products was able to go from generating ₹5 billion in revenues (2018) to a massive ₹22 billion (2022) in just 3 years!
You also have the potential to see similar growth levels if you decide to sell beauty products online.
Pros of selling beauty products online
- Extremely popular
- Wide variety of products
- Easy to pack and ship
Cons of selling cosmetics and beauty products online
- Ingredients matter
- Customers often flock to big brands
Average Margin: 20%-70%
Related read: How to sell cosmetics online in India (Step by step guide 2024)
The above 5 categories have always enjoyed high search volume on the internet.
Here is a report from Google trends that shows you how interest in these items has fared over the last 12 months.
6. Sunglasses
Sunglasses have always been in vogue. And lucky for you, these show a high-profit margin too! Just be mindful of the lens quality and your target audience and you are good to go.
Pros of selling sunglasses online
- The right supplier can help increase your profit margin
- Shows high demand
- Easy to stock and sell
- Lots of design choices
Cons of selling sunglasses online
- Seasonal
- Easily damageable
- Barriers of entry
Average Margin: 40%-60%
7. Toys for kids
As long as there are children, there will be a demand for toys! They are easy to manufacture and source. So with the right suppliers and the right target audience, you have the potential to generate good profits for your online store.
Pros of selling kids toys online
- Constant and universal demand
- Low manufacturing costs
- Extreme variety
- Can be merchandise
Cons of selling toys online
- Big brands have a monopoly
- Ingredients have to be children friendly
- Soft corners, friendly packaging
- No small parts
Average profit margin: 25%-30%
Related read: How to sell toys online: The ultimate guide (2024)
8. Petcare Products
People who have pets treat them like a part of their family. That means they would want to buy their pets proper nutritional food, toys, different equipment, gifts etc! This is a great market to enter for online sellers who want to aim for high-profit margin products.
Pros of selling Petcare products online
- Great niche
- People like to spend on their pets
- High profit margin for certain products (Chewable toys can have a profit margin as high as 70%)
- Multiple subcategories to branch into
Cons of selling Petcare products online
- Only profitable in urban cities
- Sourcing nutritional and doctor-approved products might be a slow process
- Shipping can be expensive for large items
Average profit margin: 35%-45%
Related read: How to start an online pet supplies store (Step by step guide 2024)
9. Fitness equipment and services
During the pandemic, people started looking online for their fitness needs. Workout videos by influencers became hot topics and there was a huge spurt in fitness D2C brands.
In this market, you can easily sell equipment and also conduct online live workout sessions of your choice.
You can build your own landing page in just 5 mins for workout sessions, meal plans or other workout classes that you plan to conduct. Try out Instamojo Smart Pages – the easiest landing page builder that has in-built payments, themes, and features!
Pros of selling fitness equipment and services
- Multiple subcategories to branch into (equipment, yoga mats, workout apparel, portable equipment)
- Service-based businesses – workout sessions, meal plans
Cons of selling Fitness equipment and services
- Sourcing and sending large equipment is expensive
- Highly competitive
Average profit margin: 30%-70%
10. Home decor products
High-quality, unique home decor products have been seeing an uptick in demand in India for quite a while now. This is a good time to enter the market if you want to sell home decor online.
Pros of selling home decor products
- Easy to identify niches
- Easy to upsell/resale
- Very high profit margins
Cons of selling home decor products
- Shipping can be a nightmare
- Brand language and identity is important
- Has to be durable for long term use
Average profit margin: 25% to 47%
Related read: How to sell home decor online (Step by step guide 2024)
Here is an interactive map of India that breakdown the interest shown in each category in different cities.
11. Watches
Watches don’t just serve the purpose of showing time anymore. It has now become an accessory that complements your fashion sense. This is a great low-cost high profit margin product that enjoys universal demand.
Pros of selling watches online
- Seen as an accessory now creating demand
- Universal demand
- Symbol of respect
- Easy to resell (if the quality is intact)
Cons of selling watches online
- Consumers are brand conscious
- Highly competitive
- Fragile shipping
Average profit margin: 17% – 42%
12. Books
Books have an old-world feeling that just doesn’t go away. However, you can choose to sell books online, or even sell eBooks. eBooks are great because they require minimum investment. All you need is a laptop to type on!
Pros of selling books
- Easy to upsell/resale
- Can be bought and sold in bulk
- eBooks have high profit margins
Cons of selling books
- Have to have minimum damage
Average Margin: 15%-45%
Related reads:
13. Phone Accessories
From attractive phone covers, designs that are fan-favourites, pop-ups, tassles, earphones, earphone cases – the list can go on and on. Choose any of these to sell online, or enter the entire phone accessory market. The high demand is here to stay!
Pros of selling phone accessories online
- High universal demand
- You can easily experiment with different unique designs
- Easy to sell phone accessories that are merchandise
Cons of selling phone accessories online
- A very low barrier of entry to the competition
- Cheap low-cost materials are often preferred by people
Average profit margin: 30%-60%
14. Electronics Accessories
Electronics are durables that last a long time. But the accessories accompanying these durables usually show short term demand. People want to follow trends and also look fashionable when buying such accessories.
Pros of selling electronics accessories online
- Can be merchandised
- Can be sold as combo units
- Consumer durables have a high profit margin
- High demand
Cons of selling electronics accessories online
- Extremely high competition
- Packaging needs to be extra careful
- Saturated market
Average Margin: 30% – 60%
15. Bags
Did you think bags would just be limited to purses? Globally, bags enjoy a very high demand considering they are required just about in any industry. From laptop bags to duffel bags to small school bags, there is a scope for profit in every subcategory.
In fact, if you can sell bags that are unique, attractive and durable, you have a high potential of winning loyal customers.
Pros of selling bags online
- Multiple subcategories (school children, laptop, office wear)
- Easy to customise and design
- High in demand
Cons of selling bags online
- High competition
Average Margin: 25%-40%
Related read: How to sell bags online (Step by step guide 2024)
Selling any of these products online can help you build a thriving online store. But remember, you should always be careful about your suppliers, vendors and your target audience and their preferences.
Before starting any eCommerce business, make sure you do enough market research. There are thousands of resources available online that can help you make important business-related decisions.
Did any of these high profit margin products interest you?
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