Gold, diamond and jewellery buying shop

You pay sellers up front. Your income comes from refiners and dealers who buy scrap and stones from you, and from customers who buy resale pieces.

You buy below the resale or melt value and sell for more. The gap between the two, minus your costs and any price movements, is your margin. Some owners also add small fees for appraisals.

• Testing metals and grading stones (learned through training)
• Fair, confident negotiating
• Careful record keeping
• Spotting fakes and suspicious sellers

• Many municipalities and provinces license secondhand or precious metals dealers and require ID checks, records and sometimes reports to police. Check your local rules
• Dealers in precious metals and stones may have federal anti-money-laundering duties, including FINTRAC registration. Check whether your activity is covered
• Stolen goods and fakes. Never buy without verifying the seller's ID and testing the item
• Metal prices can move quickly, so avoid holding too much stock
• Commercial general liability, property and crime or theft insurance, plus a safe and security system
• Check how GST/HST applies to gold, silver and jewellery purchases and sales
• Quebec has its own rules and French-language requirements

Estimates suggest startup costs typically around $25,000 to $100,000 CAD, depending on the premises you choose, the safe and security system you install and how much stock and testing equipment you buy.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $15,000 to $70,000, depending on how much you buy and resell and on metal prices. Prices can move quickly, so avoid holding too much stock.

Many municipalities and provinces license secondhand or precious metals dealers and require ID checks, records and sometimes police reports. Also check whether FINTRAC registration applies, how GST/HST works for gold and jewellery, and Quebec's own rules.