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$350,000+ In A Year: Felix Shares His Experience Of Dropshipping In Germany

By Yaroslav Nevsky

$350,000+ In A Year: Felix Shares His Experience Of Dropshipping In Germany

Do you know anything about dropshipping in Germany? Felix, our today’s guest, has a really positive experience in it – so, let’s see what he wants to share with us!

Disclaimer: all the success stories published in AliDropship blog are the results of interviews conducted in the written form. Even though the editors may make some minor changes to the grammar, spelling, and/or punctuation, the respondents’ writing styles, views, opinions, stores screenshots and personal photos are left unchanged.

Hi, please introduce yourself!

Hi! My name is Felix, I live in Germany and run my business here. I had an apprenticeship as a Computer Science Expert.

My computer career began very early. I’m 31 now, and I started learning about computers when I was 7. When I was 11, I programmed my first own text adventures and at the age of 14, I programmed a 3D Modification for the Game “Unreal Tournament”.

After high school (or German “Abitur”), I had an apprenticeship as Computer Science Expert with a focus on Software Development. I shortened the apprenticeship from 3 to 2.5 years because of my high performance.

Why did you decide to try dropshipping in Germany?

I worked for 7 years as an IT Freelancer (Web design, Web development, SEO and SEM).

At some point, I understood that I want an independent lifestyle with no limits associated with a 9 to 5 job.

How did it all begin?

I have read about dropshipping and AliDropship in Yaros’ post on the Warrior forum. It hit my attention from the beginning. “This is was I was searching for”, I thought.

So, I started using various AliDropship solutions, both the original AliDropship plugin and its WooCommerce version, on my different stores. I also purchased some of the Add-ons (Upsell, Facebook Business, Abandoned Cart, Countdown Timer and Recent Sales Pop-up) after they were released. The AliDropship solutions make it very easy to import a product from AliExpress and to fulfill the order after a sale occurs. The addons are great to increase your conversion rate. The Countdown Timer and Recent Sales pop-up nearly doubled my conversion rate.

At the moment, I run 3 stores, but initially, I built around 7. I dropped the stores which weren’t successful after a two week testing phase.

With these 3 dropshipping stores, I made around $350k revenue last year. Here’s a screenshot of the most successful store:

felix_sales-report.png

Do you remember the first sale made from your store?

Of course!

Around a week after my first shop went online, I booked an Instagram shoutout. I have written to Instagram influencers with the template AliDropship provided in one of their blog posts. Some influencers liked my store and products, so I booked shoutouts at their pages (one per day only to measure the results & ROI).

And so, I was in the cinema. I knew that an Instagram influencer will bring up a shoutout while I watched the movie (“The Arrival”, btw). At half of the movie, I looked at my phone and couldn’t believe it, the shoutout was up and the orders came dropping in like cheesecakes!

I was so happy and proud of myself at this moment.

How did you choose the niches?

My three successful stores are made according to my personal interest.

Ironically, for the two stores that weren’t successful, I’ve chosen the niches only because I thought the market was broad (cats & dogs supplies), but I did not have a real interest in those niches.

I recommend to choose a niche which you are passionate about!

How do you choose products and suppliers for your store?

I used the search strategies AliDropship recommends in their blog. For the suppliers, I check them with the AliDropship plugin and the “AliPrice” Chrome plugin to see if they are a good fit.

To add new products, I created different wish lists with niche names at AliExpress. I get personalized Instagram ads from AliExpress every day. They show me a set of 10 products and most of the time there are 1-2 new products which I like to add to my store.

How do you set the prices?

I normally aim for a 60-70% profit margin, but I also got “bait” products in my store which have around 20% profit margin.

How do you promote your stores?

Mainly through Instagram influencers, but I also set up a Facebook retargeting campaign (for Instagram), which targets customers who visited a product site, but not the thank you page.

To reach my target audience better, I searched on Instagram for the influencers who fit into my niche.

Promotion through Instagram influencers is the most efficient strategy for me. I tried Facebook ads (not the retargeting, they work great on Instagram!) & Google Ads, but the ROI wasn’t as good as expected.

On average, to promote my stores, I spend around $3,000 per month on all the stores together.

How much time does it take you every day to manage your stores?

Around 1 hour per day (even Saturday and Sunday!) to check if the Virtual Assistants are doing their job right.

Customer support takes most of the time, but I hired 3 Virtual Assistants to provide 24 hours support and I don’t have to take care about it myself now.

What are the most difficult challenges?

Overseeing the Virtual Assistants! In the beginning, I made a wrong choice and hired a person who made a lot of mistakes. But now, all 3 are doing their job great (But I had to test 7 VA’s first to find the right 3).

How do you deal with difficult customers (if any)?

I send them a free t-shirt/sweatshirt/hoodie if they ordered something in the wrong size. I also send free $20 gift codes to the angry customers.

Once, I turned an angry customer to a loyal Evangelist after I send her a free hoodie because she ordered a too small size + a free $20 gift coupon. This customer has had his 7th order now and recommends my store to all their friends!

Did you register your business officially to do dropshipping in Germany?

Yes, I registered an official business here in Germany. In Germany, it’s easy to start a “UG (haftungsbeschränkt)”. You can do so with just 1€, but I recommend you to start at least with 1000€ to cover the legal costs of the founding!

How has your life changed?

I now have the financial freedom to live my life like I want it. And I turned from working as IT Freelancer with 70-80 hours weeks to a business owner with around 10 working hours per week.

My friends and family are very proud of me. Especially my niece is very proud and wants to join my company after school.

What are your plans for the future?

I would like to expand my current stores and build more stores in the niches which I am passionate about!

What can you advise our readers – those who already run their stores and those who didn’t start the business yet?

Keep on board. The beginning may seem a little bit overwhelming until everything is set up and ready, but it’s totally worth it!

Never feels as good as watching the sales come in!

Thank you, Felix, for such an inspiring story! Now we see that dropshipping in Germany, as well as in any other point of the globe, is a highly rewarding business – and it’s definitely worth trying!

avatar
By Yaroslav Nevsky
Yaroslav is a founder of AliDropship Community helping people worldwide to start and run a successful dropshipping business.
26 Comments
Ogala Fortune 5 years ago

I indeed love what am reading. I am really interested in starting one and would love to know more and someone who would personally take me through the steps.

Jimmy 5 years ago

Great story by the way, question for Felix.
What niche are you in?
Sounds like you are in the clothing – hoodie t-shirt business.
Please confirm.
Thanks.
Jimmy.

abdul vahid v 5 years ago

Man, this is a fake article. Why are they not sharing their store links? Logic is simple. There is not such a store. It is only a plug-in business. Hi Admin, pls publish this comment if you have guts.

Yaroslav Nevsky 5 years ago

I have never seen a successful dropshipper who would be willing to share his niche and site! Dropshipping is a very competitive game. Sometimes It takes us MUCH time on testing to understand what products we can sell and what products do not work. Successful dropshippers usually have a niche that has plenty of sales of particular products that not many people stock. The less competition the more money and sales you will get.

So, no one will share his site or niche with you.

JANE 5 years ago

Inspirational story, congrats on your success! I signed up for the ultimate package and my site is in development. Just a coup,e questions;
How do you create different wish lists and get personalized Instagram ads from AliExpress every day like you mentioned?
And how do you get the set of 10 products that you spoke of?
Thank you in advance!

Travis 5 years ago

Is it possible to dropship in Germany from the US through Shopify + Aliexpress? Thank you!

bijan amid 5 years ago

Please let me know:
1- When your order comes from AliDropship, how long does it take to get to the customer from China and do you have any problem with the shipping time or not?
2- How much does it cost to start your business?
3- What do you use for your promotion?
Bijan amid

Tony 4 years ago

Which site Felix create or it is a fake? In the text you have just first name and not the site name

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your interest!

The store owners sharing their success stories in our blog never disclose their store addresses for safety reasons.

They fear the possibility of losing customers who might switch to AliExpress, and they don’t want other entrepreneurs to copy their designs, promotional strategies, and product offerings.

Patrick 4 years ago

Hi Felix, thank you for your nice text. I wonder how you are dealing with the DSGVO aka GDPR.
Are you working with “trustbrands” like trustedshops?

thank you for your answer. Greatings from Switzerland
Patrick

Andreas Heppner 4 years ago

Hallo Felix, bin am überlegen in dieses Business einzusteigen, kannst du dich mit mir in Verbindung setzen bezüglich Gründung in Deutschland und was zu beachten ist(IT-Recht, Firmengründung etc.) Vielen Dank.

Bahmed Djamal 4 years ago

I really love what I read. I am really interested in starting one and I love to know more and a person takes me personally through steps. But I am a little bitter you do not know how to start

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your interest!
Our manager will get in touch with you soon via email.

Hassan Ahmad Muhammad Rafiq 4 years ago

love what am reading. I am really interested in starting one and would love to know more and someone who would

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your question!
Our manager will get in touch with you soon via email.

Griffin 4 years ago

Is it possible to dropship in South Africa, I am interested to start but I feel like it wont work for me and the rates would be very high. What do you think?

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your question!
Yes, you can run your dropshipping business in South Africa! What’s more, you can sell the products to any region in the world, and not only to your home country.
Kindly read this article about dropshipping in South Africa: https://alidropship.com/dropshipping-in-south-africa/

Angelo 4 years ago

Mira yo creo que independientemente de los resultados que aparecen como gente que ha conseguido cosas importantes . No entro si es publicidad del portal o es real lo que dicen los existosos.
Lo que está claro es que tenemos la posibilidad y herramientas mas que suficientes para que cada cual consiga los objetivos que se planteé , ya que cada persona independientemente del nicho , somos un mundo diferente , no todos tenemos la misma capacidad ni la misma inteligencia ni dedicacion para conseguir lo que otros consiguen. Yo creo que algunos lo que pretenden es copiar a los que tienen exito que le habra como en todo, pero lo mejor es que cada uno se esfuerce en lo suyo, que sea humilde y trabajador y no pretenda en un mes alcanzar cimas imposibles. Un poquito mas de humildad, un poquito menos de ambicion , y leer, informarse, adquirir conocimientos, creo que es una de las reglas importantes para no fracasar en el intento.

Pamela Chan 4 years ago

Is it possible to dropship in Malaysia? How do you hire VA?

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your interest!
Yes, you can dropship from Malaysia.
To hire a virtual assistant, you can create an entry on any local job website, or advertise this position among your friends and family. Remember that you’ll need to give your virtual assistant an access to the inside of your business, so make sure it’s a person you can trust completely.

karmen 4 years ago

Dear Olga hi,
Is it possible to change the language onto for example, Croatian in this AliDropship plug-in?
I am about to start but I really need some help as I do have bunch of questions.

Thanks

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your interest! Kindly read this article: https://help.alidropship.com/en/articles/2245542-translating-themes

Godfrey Ebojie 4 years ago

Thank you for this information, I would like to take a step in making an extra income for myself and this is a great route to work on. Do you have any information on practical step or guide for me to achieve this Drop shipping?

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for the interest!
Yes, you are kindly welcome to read this guide: https://alidropship.com/how-to-become-a-dropshipper/

Aremo 4 years ago

Hi, i loved what i read, i would like to start my own too, can someone put me through the steps to?

Olga L. 4 years ago

Hi, thank you for your interest!
To begin with, kindly read this free guide: https://alidropship.com/guide/ it explains the basics of dropshipping.
Then, to start your business, choose the option that you like the most here: https://alidropship.com/stores-comparison/ – there, you can also ask a free consultation if you need it.

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