What Is Dropshipping

 Dropshipping E-commerce Businesses

Dropshipping is an increasingly popular retail fulfillment method for ecommerce businesses. Read on to learn how dropshipping works and the benefits of this business model for online retailers.

If you're interested in venturing into ecommerce but aren't quite ready to handle the logistics of designing, manufacturing, warehousing, packaging, and shipping products that come with being an ecommerce wholesaler, dropshipping could be an excellent starting point for your entrepreneurial journey. With a third-party managing the logistics, you can concentrate on building your brand and marketing your products.
What is dropshipping? Dropshipping is a way of selling products online without needing to keep them in stock. When an order is received, the seller sends it to another company who ships the product straight to the customer. The seller is a middleman between the customer and the company with the product.

This streamlined approach to selling products online and its order fulfillment means you can start a business without having to lease warehouse space, juggle supply chains, or manage inventory.
Ahead, you'll learn everything there is to know about dropshipping, from how it works to benefits, and how to start your own dropshipping business today.

tWhat is a dropshipper?
A dropshipper is a person or business that uses the dropshipping model of buying inventory and fulfillment logistics from a third party, instead of warehousing and shipping the products themselves.
Because dropshipping relies on a third-party supplier to handle inventory warehousing and order fulfillment, a dropshipping operation may be managed by dozens of employees or a single business owner.
How does dropshipping work?
The dropshipping process is essentially a relationship between a customer-facing store and a supplier.
There are two common approaches to adopting a dropshipping business model. The first is to seek out one or more wholesale suppliers located in North America (or anywhere else in the world) on your own using a supplier database. Examples of popular online supplier databases include AliExpress, SaleHoo, and Worldwide Brands.
If you’re not interested in finding suppliers for all of the products you plan to sell, you can use an app that connects you and your store to thousands of suppliers. For this, use DSers, a Shopify app that helps independent business owners find products to sell.
With DSers, you can browse AliExpress and import the products that pique your interest directly to DSers—which is connected to your Shopify store—with the click of a button. Once a customer buys a product, you’ll be able to fulfill their order in the DSers app.
Fortunately, DSers automates most of the dropshipping process. As the store owner, all you have to do is check that the details are correct and click the order button. The product is then shipped directly from the AliExpress supplier to the customer—wherever in the world they may be.
Dropshipping is often seen as a no-hassle, get-rich-quick scheme. But it’s not. Just like any other ecommerce website, it takes dedication to get your startup running and successful. Done well, dropshipping companies can become reliable and convenient partners to growing ecommerce businesses to expedite order and fulfillment processing.