Home-Based Paper Export Broker

Overseas printers, packaging makers, stationery firms and paper distributors that want a dependable Canadian supplier.

A margin between what you pay the supplier and what the buyer pays you, or a commission agreed with the mill. Orders are usually large and infrequent, so income can be uneven.

• Sales and negotiation
• Organising paperwork and shipments
• Comfortable emailing and calling buyers in other time zones

• Payment risk with new overseas buyers: consider letters of credit, deposits or export credit insurance (check options such as Export Development Canada)
• Some products and destinations have extra rules, including recovered paper and wood-based goods, so check the export and import requirements with CBSA and the destination country
• Currency swings and shipping delays can erase a thin margin, so quote carefully
• Check how GST/HST applies to exports and whether you need a Business Number
• Check whether your municipality requires a home-based business licence
• Consider commercial general liability and cargo insurance, and agree who is responsible for goods in transit (Incoterms)

Startup costs are estimated at typically around $1,500 to $7,000, depending on your set-up, insurance, travel and marketing. You work from home and buy on a back-to-back basis, so the goods never pass through your hands.

Monthly revenue is estimated at typically around $1,500 to $7,500, depending on order sizes and the margin you negotiate. Currency swings and shipping delays can erase a thin margin, so quote carefully.

Check export and import requirements with CBSA and the destination country, including extra rules for recovered paper and wood-based goods. Also check how GST/HST applies to exports, whether you need a Business Number, and home-based licensing.