It’s quite easy to feel bogged down by current events these days. What with the UK plummeting into its worst recession since 2008, and millions of people losing their jobs, it’s proving a frightening time for us all.
However, good things often come out of hard times, which is very much the case in the realm of small businesses.
It seems months in lockdown, furlough and mass redundancies have inspired a whole generation of Britons to set up their own online businesses, with platforms such as eBay reporting a staggering 335% increase in new start-ups on their site.
We meet some of the savvy entrepreneurs who’ve overcome the bad and are now thriving on eBay – and show you just how easy it is to do it yourself.
The World Wide Web of business
Since lockdown began, all of us have had to adapt in some form or another – be it working from home while juggling childcare, to being furloughed and thinking of creative ways to fill our time.
Jemma feared that as lockdown eased, eBay sales would drop, but people are loving the money they can save on manicures by using Bluesky kits at home
As time’s gone on, and the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic has worsened, more and more of us have been seeking alternative financial revenues to stay in the green – or even just to try something new. After all, thousands of British people have found that lockdown has given them the time to reevaluate their lives, leaving many yearning for a fresh start.
Lockdown product categories that are bang on the money
Thinking of setting up an eBay business of your own? Check out the top 10 categories that have proven most popular with online shoppers since lockdown began to see where your fortunes could lie…
1. Men’s clothing
2. Women’s clothing
3. Speciality fashion
4. Cycling
5. Cars and parts
6. Mobile phone accessories
7. Fitness, running and yoga
8. Swimming pools and hot tubs
9. DIY materials
10. Facial skin care
Between the start of the pandemic and June this year, eBay saw a 40% increase in people registering businesses on their platform, a jump of 335% since June 2019.
The trigger for so many people to take this leap and go it alone is clear, but why have they chosen eBay – and is it paying off?
For Jemma Robinson, director of gel nail polish brand Bluesky Cosmetics UK, eBay allowed her to save her business and her loyal team, and helped them thrive, too.
She says, ‘We launched Bluesky in October 2018, then a year later we had a pop-up retail store in The Bullring, Birmingham, where we had an extremely successful Christmas period. As a result, we planned to open some permanent retail stores.’
However, as many bricks and mortar businesses have found, the lockdown decimated high street trade, and the impact is still felt now even as measures are easing.
But Bluesky Cosmetics UK wasn’t affected, because just as the lockdown came in it opened its eBay store so it could continue trading – and it’s been non-stop ever since.
‘Over the past six months, there’s been a huge surge in home beauty products, and our starter kits have flown off the shelves,’ explains Jemma. ‘People have realised how easy it is to do your own nails at home – and it saves them a fortune as well!’
Even as salons re-open, sales haven’t diminished, and the Bluesky fanbase are buying more colours and nail art tools as they recreate professional looks at home for less.
While lockdown buying trends have very much been in her favour, Jemma feels a lot of her success is down to eBay. ‘On one hand,’ she says, ‘with eBay’s customer base being so vast, there was more or less guaranteed to be a market for our products.
Bluesky gel nail starter kits allow people to create that salon-perfect, lasting gel manicure for themselves at home
‘Couple this with the fantastic support we’ve received from eBay as new sellers, such as being assigned our very own dedicated project manager who was always on hand to help with queries and setting up our store, and it’s easy to see why we’ve experienced such a significant sales increase.’
Jemma narrowly avoided damage to her business by going online instead of opening high street stores in April – but what about the businesses who already had established shops?
A helping hand for new sellers
Feeling inspired to launch a business of your own? eBay is offering an exclusive offer to help kick off your new online venture.
After seeing such a huge volume of new sellers join its platform, eBay is keen to help out its growing family of start-ups with its exclusive Free to List offer.
When you join eBay as a business seller, you will pay zero insertion fees on your first 150 listings during your first 90 days, so you can focus all your attention on getting to grips with the virtual market place and reap the rewards.
The Free to List offer is available until September 30, 2020. Find out more by clicking here.
Hitting the sweet spot
Jennie Crowhurst opened Pennyworths sweet shop in Truro, Cornwall, 11 years ago with her mother. After her mum passed away in 2014, Jennie became the sole manager alongside her main career as a business analyst, and gradually accrued a team of four to help her run the store.
Jennie outside Pennyworths, Truro, which has now re-opened for business and is still experiencing a good trade in addition to the rising popularity of her eBay store
When the pandemic hit, she had to shut shop, but also found herself lumbered with lots of newly ordered Easter stock.
‘We had an immediate problem of what to do with this stock, and decided the obvious way to sell it was to create Easter box bundles to sell on eBay,’ Jennie says.
The effect of this was two-fold; it prevented perfectly good stock going to waste, but it also enabled Pennyworths to continue trading when it couldn’t welcome customers in through its doors as normal.
Going online hasn’t just maintained sales, either – it’s boosted them. ‘We’ve been trading on eBay for five months, and we’ve already seen the business grow during this time,’ shares Jennie. ‘We’ve had plenty of customers place returning orders, and our regular shop customers have been making the most of our online store, too.’
Pennyworths has now reopened and customers are overjoyed – yet business continues to grow online for Jennie
The move to eBay has helped keep Pennyworths thriving for Jennie and her customers, old and new. And it was surprisingly simple to set up, as Jennie reveals: ‘Setting up was easy. Once we overcame the challenge of how best to package and price our products for the online market, sales went up and up.’
Her success on eBay has meant that Jennie is now looking to open a bricks and mortar store in Dorset, a sister shop to the one in Truro, and this new base will serve as a warehouse for the growing eBay arm of Pennyworths.
Edinburgh-based Sophie Jessop also used eBay to keep her store going, a decision she made just as lockdown was announced this year.
Sophie feared that her high street jewellery business wouldn’t survive lockdown, but she found a simple solution that has helped business boom
With no clue about what the future held, Sophie worried about covering the bills for Jessop Jewellers, her family’s business which has been going for 50 years. She started selling fine jewellery, watches and giftware through The Jewellers Outlet on eBay – and it proved to be her silver lining.
‘Business has been BOOMING!’, she exclaims. ‘eBay has performed really well for us, and I feel no other platform could allow a small Scottish jeweller like us a global shop window like they have. We’re exposed to millions of shoppers; eBay has truly been the biggest success of our lockdown.’
Sophie says: ‘Despite the current climate, people still want to treat themselves and celebrate special occasions, and that’s how our beautiful jewellery has taken off’
For existing small business owners, Sophie can’t recommend the platform enough. She says: ‘It’s a great place for buyers and sellers to connect in the UK and across the globe, and is the best place for small business to grow incremental sales.’
But it’s also a great base to start out if you’re thinking of setting up a business of your own. Sophie suggests the following simple tips for those looking to go into business with eBay:
‘1. Research your product and make sure it’s appealing.
2. Look into your competitors to see how they’re selling similar or identical products and learn from them.
3. Be different – can you offer something unique, such as free shipping?
4. If you want to make a living out of eBay, spend the same amount of time on building your store as you would any other full-time job.
5. Remember: The more effort you put into your eBay store, the more you’ll get out of it!’
Become a business owner today 
Whether you’re looking for new opportunities or finally want to set your dreams in motion, visit eBay today to find out how you can join its blossoming community of SMEs.
PLUS, don’t forget to check out our eBay Hub to learn about the diverse businesses finding success online.
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