Online children's furniture shop

Parents furnishing a nursery or bedroom, grandparents buying gifts, and small nurseries or childminders.

You buy at trade price and sell at retail price. The margin on each item pays for delivery, returns, marketing and your time.

• Choosing a good range
• Online selling and basic photography
• Customer service and handling returns

• Product safety rules for children's items such as cots, bunk beds and mattresses, check what applies and ask suppliers for test evidence
• Distance selling rules, including the right to cancel and return, check the current consumer law
• Delivery damage and bulky item returns can eat into margins
• Product liability and public liability insurance, ask a broker what suits online sellers
• Register as a sole trader or company, and check when VAT registration becomes necessary

Startup costs are typically around £500 to £5,000, depending on your website, your range and whether you buy samples or send items direct from suppliers. These are estimates, so a focused range can keep early costs down.

Monthly revenue is typically around £500 to £5,000, depending on your range, pricing and how you attract parents. This is an estimate of sales rather than profit, and it starts from about 8 hours of work a week.

Check which product safety rules apply to cots, bunk beds and mattresses, and ask suppliers for test evidence. Also check the current distance selling rules on cancelling and returns, and ask a broker about product and public liability insurance.