Online menswear boutique

Men who prefer to shop online, and partners or family buying gifts.

You buy stock at wholesale and sell at retail price. The difference covers shipping, returns, website fees and advertising, and what is left is your profit.

• An eye for style and fit
• Basic online selling and photography
• Stock and order tracking
• Customer service

• Returns on clothing are common, so build them into your prices and policy
• Register for GST/HST once revenue passes the small supplier threshold, and check provincial sales tax rules (PST/QST) for your province
• Textile labelling rules apply to clothing sold in Canada, so check bilingual and fibre content label requirements with the federal Competition Bureau
• Check whether you need a home-based business licence from your municipality
• Holding stock ties up cash, so start small

Estimates put startup costs typically around $1,500 to $8,000, depending on how much stock you buy and how you set up your store. Holding stock ties up cash, so start small.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $500 to $5,000, depending on your range, pricing and how many orders you ship. Returns on clothing are common, so build them into your prices and policy.

Check GST/HST registration once revenue passes the small supplier threshold, and provincial sales tax rules (PST/QST) for your province. Textile labelling rules apply, so check bilingual and fibre content label requirements with the Competition Bureau, plus any municipal home-based licence.