I've been stuck in a bit of a rut for a while now. I've had explosive growth on Amazon and a couple of other platforms but I'm really struggling with cashflow due to payout times. With the current system, it can sometimes take 2 weeks to get payouts to the point I actually DREAD getting sales spurts on Amazon and often just switch my store off sometimes because I won't be able to fulfil my orders. I stock most items but have to buy in a lot of stock too.
I have multiple loans through UK banks, a YouLend loan and PayPal Working Capital. I feel like I'm just working to pay off interest on loans. I need the loans to keep my business afloat.
If Amazon switched to next day payouts, my business would be thriving. But I'm constantly in overdrafts, paying off loans and have to cut off my own sales sometimes twice a week because I cannot pay suppliers quick enough.
I have a very high credit rating but I cannot get a business credit card (always rejected) and my business bank (tsb) won't give me even £100 overdraft because I'm constantly having payments returned so they see me as high risk. I've offered to show my sales and Amazon accounts to PROVE I have the money in my accounts but I just can't seem to get any external help whatsoever, other than 20% loans from high street banks.
Can anybody advise on what I can do help myself? I'm tired of constantly dipping into overdrafts,
I've been stuck in a bit of a rut for a while now. I've had explosive growth on Amazon and a couple of other platforms but I'm really struggling with cashflow due to payout times. With the current system, it can sometimes take 2 weeks to get payouts to the point I actually DREAD getting sales spurts on Amazon and often just switch my store off sometimes because I won't be able to fulfil my orders. I stock most items but have to buy in a lot of stock too.
I have multiple loans through UK banks, a YouLend loan and PayPal Working Capital. I feel like I'm just working to pay off interest on loans. I need the loans to keep my business afloat.
If Amazon switched to next day payouts, my business would be thriving. But I'm constantly in overdrafts, paying off loans and have to cut off my own sales sometimes twice a week because I cannot pay suppliers quick enough.
I have a very high credit rating but I cannot get a business credit card (always rejected) and my business bank (tsb) won't give me even £100 overdraft because I'm constantly having payments returned so they see me as high risk. I've offered to show my sales and Amazon accounts to PROVE I have the money in my accounts but I just can't seem to get any external help whatsoever, other than 20% loans from high street banks.
Can anybody advise on what I can do help myself? I'm tired of constantly dipping into overdrafts,
Amazon expect you to have everything in stock that you have listed so the model of then waiting for payments is less restrictive.
You probably need to take a step back and look from the outside, the more loans/borrowing you have the worse a situation you are in, especially if payments are getting returned, if you've a lot of money in your amazon account, stop accruing more debt until that money comes through, stop selling items you dont actually have and just sell the stock you do. Getting an overdraft or a credit card isnt helping anything, particularly as a sole trader as thats your debt.
I get mine when i want, send amazon a message and explain to them your struggling, they might feel foe you and put you on instant withdrawal, my account is 12yrs old though
For the last 3 years I take out the money owed to me on a daily basis, that way I a a little exposed to the Amazon for sudden changes and holding the cash
Hi there,
I don’t usually post on the forum, though I’ve been selling on Amazon for about 15 years now.
I’m not sure if you’ve run your own business before, but I’d recommend googling the “Death Valley Curve.” It’s a very real and common phase in the life of many businesses.
In my experience, assuming the business concept is solid, navigating the Death Valley Curve is often the biggest challenge.
If you were asking me for advice directly (without having seen your numbers, so take it as general guidance), I’d echo what Cherrytree said: strip back, grow steadily. There’s always a tomorrow.
You sound driven and hungry for success — and that’s a powerful thing — but there’s no need to rush.
Wishing you the best of luck as you push through the growth phase. 💪
Wanted to add my opinion as I had similar issue's with cashflow. Knowing my numbers down to the penny has helped me. I measure everything and work out daily net profit margins.
I started capping my advertising spend daily as that was causing me cashflow problem as I only got paid on what I sold in two weeks. I then started initiating daily disbursements once I didn't have an account level reserve, this means I have cash land in the bank daily and I'm far more dynamic.
We have a business credit card with Capital on Tap, give them a try. I pay my advertising fee with this card and get billed every two weeks for PPC then have more time to pay off the card within a month interest free but my advertising is still capped. This means I have the money land for a product sold THEN pay advertising costs, it used to be the other way around.
I buy all my stock on interest free finance, Billie and Clearpay. This often gives me 30 to 60 days before a bill is due by which time I've sold sometimes 100% of this stock, been paid for it and not paid an advertising bill with actual cash. I've gone from using actually cash for stock and being paid last to not paying for stock or advertising with cash and getting paid first.
When I first got started a few years back I put up £25k in cash BEFORE I got paid a penny from Amazon, it was 3 years of savings and highly risky.
Also, wouldn't shy away from asking the people around you who are more lenient than banks and know you. I had a £7,000 cash injection from a 15 minute conversation with a mate. This then allowed me to grow in line with any cashflow restrictions I knew I'd have (why I cap PPC and stock spending)
It sounds to me that you have the same problem that I have. It is an issue of cashflow, i.e you can’t get the money back in quick enough to pay your bills. So you borrow money to fund the stock you need and lose a big chunk of your profit to interest. Ironically your problem is caused be growth. If you sold the same amount of stock each week and are just replacing what you have sold you would be fine. As you are growing you need to buy more stock than you have sold which means you need more cash to fund the increasing amount of stock. Simply put you need more cash or less business. There are several things you could do. The first thing has already been suggested, put your prices up slightly to reduce your sales and grow slower. This is organic growth, using your profit to grow the business. The second option, not usually possible on Amazon, is to significantly increase your profit margin, more profit you make the more money you have to invest in stock. Imagine if you bought your stock for £1 and sold it for £500 you would never be short of cash assuming you sell enough. The third option is to borrow the money you need and invest it in stock. You need to borrow a big lump of cash as cheap as possible and for as long as possible. Each month you will have less cash available because you are paying off the loan and interest. Youlend loans are obscenely high interest, and you pay them back so quickly that you don’t get chance to use the money. You could try getting larger credit limits and longer payment terms with suppliers. Find an investor or family member to loan you the cash. There is also a company called IWOCA, who only lend to ecommerce companies, I have never seen their rates.
Are you actually making a net profit after the interest on these loans and other expenses? As they say, turnover is vanity, profit is sanity and cash .... 🤔 well that seems to be Amazon's.
Take a step back, do some analysis and focus on your highest margin products, ideally ones where you can place regular small orders to keep your stockholding and borrowings low.
The loans you've taken out have terrible rates....so it's not surprising that you feel like you're running to stand still
Also, you are sailing too close to the wind, you need more of a cushion....as other have said, slooooow down.
Hi, I'm totally in the same boat as you but with less sources. I've decided to deliberately not take on any new products until its all paid back. Just keep buying and selling the same successful items. Once all the borrowing is paid back, then look to expand with any profits. it takes time and patience, but without it you'll be stuck in a borrowing loop making other people richer. Spend your spare time looking at your other overheads and try to streamline those.
I've been stuck in a bit of a rut for a while now. I've had explosive growth on Amazon and a couple of other platforms but I'm really struggling with cashflow due to payout times. With the current system, it can sometimes take 2 weeks to get payouts to the point I actually DREAD getting sales spurts on Amazon and often just switch my store off sometimes because I won't be able to fulfil my orders. I stock most items but have to buy in a lot of stock too.
I have multiple loans through UK banks, a YouLend loan and PayPal Working Capital. I feel like I'm just working to pay off interest on loans. I need the loans to keep my business afloat.
If Amazon switched to next day payouts, my business would be thriving. But I'm constantly in overdrafts, paying off loans and have to cut off my own sales sometimes twice a week because I cannot pay suppliers quick enough.
I have a very high credit rating but I cannot get a business credit card (always rejected) and my business bank (tsb) won't give me even £100 overdraft because I'm constantly having payments returned so they see me as high risk. I've offered to show my sales and Amazon accounts to PROVE I have the money in my accounts but I just can't seem to get any external help whatsoever, other than 20% loans from high street banks.
Can anybody advise on what I can do help myself? I'm tired of constantly dipping into overdrafts,
I've been stuck in a bit of a rut for a while now. I've had explosive growth on Amazon and a couple of other platforms but I'm really struggling with cashflow due to payout times. With the current system, it can sometimes take 2 weeks to get payouts to the point I actually DREAD getting sales spurts on Amazon and often just switch my store off sometimes because I won't be able to fulfil my orders. I stock most items but have to buy in a lot of stock too.
I have multiple loans through UK banks, a YouLend loan and PayPal Working Capital. I feel like I'm just working to pay off interest on loans. I need the loans to keep my business afloat.
If Amazon switched to next day payouts, my business would be thriving. But I'm constantly in overdrafts, paying off loans and have to cut off my own sales sometimes twice a week because I cannot pay suppliers quick enough.
I have a very high credit rating but I cannot get a business credit card (always rejected) and my business bank (tsb) won't give me even £100 overdraft because I'm constantly having payments returned so they see me as high risk. I've offered to show my sales and Amazon accounts to PROVE I have the money in my accounts but I just can't seem to get any external help whatsoever, other than 20% loans from high street banks.
Can anybody advise on what I can do help myself? I'm tired of constantly dipping into overdrafts,
I've been stuck in a bit of a rut for a while now. I've had explosive growth on Amazon and a couple of other platforms but I'm really struggling with cashflow due to payout times. With the current system, it can sometimes take 2 weeks to get payouts to the point I actually DREAD getting sales spurts on Amazon and often just switch my store off sometimes because I won't be able to fulfil my orders. I stock most items but have to buy in a lot of stock too.
I have multiple loans through UK banks, a YouLend loan and PayPal Working Capital. I feel like I'm just working to pay off interest on loans. I need the loans to keep my business afloat.
If Amazon switched to next day payouts, my business would be thriving. But I'm constantly in overdrafts, paying off loans and have to cut off my own sales sometimes twice a week because I cannot pay suppliers quick enough.
I have a very high credit rating but I cannot get a business credit card (always rejected) and my business bank (tsb) won't give me even £100 overdraft because I'm constantly having payments returned so they see me as high risk. I've offered to show my sales and Amazon accounts to PROVE I have the money in my accounts but I just can't seem to get any external help whatsoever, other than 20% loans from high street banks.
Can anybody advise on what I can do help myself? I'm tired of constantly dipping into overdrafts,
Amazon expect you to have everything in stock that you have listed so the model of then waiting for payments is less restrictive.
You probably need to take a step back and look from the outside, the more loans/borrowing you have the worse a situation you are in, especially if payments are getting returned, if you've a lot of money in your amazon account, stop accruing more debt until that money comes through, stop selling items you dont actually have and just sell the stock you do. Getting an overdraft or a credit card isnt helping anything, particularly as a sole trader as thats your debt.
I get mine when i want, send amazon a message and explain to them your struggling, they might feel foe you and put you on instant withdrawal, my account is 12yrs old though
For the last 3 years I take out the money owed to me on a daily basis, that way I a a little exposed to the Amazon for sudden changes and holding the cash
Hi there,
I don’t usually post on the forum, though I’ve been selling on Amazon for about 15 years now.
I’m not sure if you’ve run your own business before, but I’d recommend googling the “Death Valley Curve.” It’s a very real and common phase in the life of many businesses.
In my experience, assuming the business concept is solid, navigating the Death Valley Curve is often the biggest challenge.
If you were asking me for advice directly (without having seen your numbers, so take it as general guidance), I’d echo what Cherrytree said: strip back, grow steadily. There’s always a tomorrow.
You sound driven and hungry for success — and that’s a powerful thing — but there’s no need to rush.
Wishing you the best of luck as you push through the growth phase. 💪
Wanted to add my opinion as I had similar issue's with cashflow. Knowing my numbers down to the penny has helped me. I measure everything and work out daily net profit margins.
I started capping my advertising spend daily as that was causing me cashflow problem as I only got paid on what I sold in two weeks. I then started initiating daily disbursements once I didn't have an account level reserve, this means I have cash land in the bank daily and I'm far more dynamic.
We have a business credit card with Capital on Tap, give them a try. I pay my advertising fee with this card and get billed every two weeks for PPC then have more time to pay off the card within a month interest free but my advertising is still capped. This means I have the money land for a product sold THEN pay advertising costs, it used to be the other way around.
I buy all my stock on interest free finance, Billie and Clearpay. This often gives me 30 to 60 days before a bill is due by which time I've sold sometimes 100% of this stock, been paid for it and not paid an advertising bill with actual cash. I've gone from using actually cash for stock and being paid last to not paying for stock or advertising with cash and getting paid first.
When I first got started a few years back I put up £25k in cash BEFORE I got paid a penny from Amazon, it was 3 years of savings and highly risky.
Also, wouldn't shy away from asking the people around you who are more lenient than banks and know you. I had a £7,000 cash injection from a 15 minute conversation with a mate. This then allowed me to grow in line with any cashflow restrictions I knew I'd have (why I cap PPC and stock spending)
It sounds to me that you have the same problem that I have. It is an issue of cashflow, i.e you can’t get the money back in quick enough to pay your bills. So you borrow money to fund the stock you need and lose a big chunk of your profit to interest. Ironically your problem is caused be growth. If you sold the same amount of stock each week and are just replacing what you have sold you would be fine. As you are growing you need to buy more stock than you have sold which means you need more cash to fund the increasing amount of stock. Simply put you need more cash or less business. There are several things you could do. The first thing has already been suggested, put your prices up slightly to reduce your sales and grow slower. This is organic growth, using your profit to grow the business. The second option, not usually possible on Amazon, is to significantly increase your profit margin, more profit you make the more money you have to invest in stock. Imagine if you bought your stock for £1 and sold it for £500 you would never be short of cash assuming you sell enough. The third option is to borrow the money you need and invest it in stock. You need to borrow a big lump of cash as cheap as possible and for as long as possible. Each month you will have less cash available because you are paying off the loan and interest. Youlend loans are obscenely high interest, and you pay them back so quickly that you don’t get chance to use the money. You could try getting larger credit limits and longer payment terms with suppliers. Find an investor or family member to loan you the cash. There is also a company called IWOCA, who only lend to ecommerce companies, I have never seen their rates.
Are you actually making a net profit after the interest on these loans and other expenses? As they say, turnover is vanity, profit is sanity and cash .... 🤔 well that seems to be Amazon's.
Take a step back, do some analysis and focus on your highest margin products, ideally ones where you can place regular small orders to keep your stockholding and borrowings low.
The loans you've taken out have terrible rates....so it's not surprising that you feel like you're running to stand still
Also, you are sailing too close to the wind, you need more of a cushion....as other have said, slooooow down.
Hi, I'm totally in the same boat as you but with less sources. I've decided to deliberately not take on any new products until its all paid back. Just keep buying and selling the same successful items. Once all the borrowing is paid back, then look to expand with any profits. it takes time and patience, but without it you'll be stuck in a borrowing loop making other people richer. Spend your spare time looking at your other overheads and try to streamline those.
Amazon expect you to have everything in stock that you have listed so the model of then waiting for payments is less restrictive.
You probably need to take a step back and look from the outside, the more loans/borrowing you have the worse a situation you are in, especially if payments are getting returned, if you've a lot of money in your amazon account, stop accruing more debt until that money comes through, stop selling items you dont actually have and just sell the stock you do. Getting an overdraft or a credit card isnt helping anything, particularly as a sole trader as thats your debt.
Amazon expect you to have everything in stock that you have listed so the model of then waiting for payments is less restrictive.
You probably need to take a step back and look from the outside, the more loans/borrowing you have the worse a situation you are in, especially if payments are getting returned, if you've a lot of money in your amazon account, stop accruing more debt until that money comes through, stop selling items you dont actually have and just sell the stock you do. Getting an overdraft or a credit card isnt helping anything, particularly as a sole trader as thats your debt.
I get mine when i want, send amazon a message and explain to them your struggling, they might feel foe you and put you on instant withdrawal, my account is 12yrs old though
I get mine when i want, send amazon a message and explain to them your struggling, they might feel foe you and put you on instant withdrawal, my account is 12yrs old though
For the last 3 years I take out the money owed to me on a daily basis, that way I a a little exposed to the Amazon for sudden changes and holding the cash
For the last 3 years I take out the money owed to me on a daily basis, that way I a a little exposed to the Amazon for sudden changes and holding the cash
Hi there,
I don’t usually post on the forum, though I’ve been selling on Amazon for about 15 years now.
I’m not sure if you’ve run your own business before, but I’d recommend googling the “Death Valley Curve.” It’s a very real and common phase in the life of many businesses.
In my experience, assuming the business concept is solid, navigating the Death Valley Curve is often the biggest challenge.
If you were asking me for advice directly (without having seen your numbers, so take it as general guidance), I’d echo what Cherrytree said: strip back, grow steadily. There’s always a tomorrow.
You sound driven and hungry for success — and that’s a powerful thing — but there’s no need to rush.
Wishing you the best of luck as you push through the growth phase. 💪
Hi there,
I don’t usually post on the forum, though I’ve been selling on Amazon for about 15 years now.
I’m not sure if you’ve run your own business before, but I’d recommend googling the “Death Valley Curve.” It’s a very real and common phase in the life of many businesses.
In my experience, assuming the business concept is solid, navigating the Death Valley Curve is often the biggest challenge.
If you were asking me for advice directly (without having seen your numbers, so take it as general guidance), I’d echo what Cherrytree said: strip back, grow steadily. There’s always a tomorrow.
You sound driven and hungry for success — and that’s a powerful thing — but there’s no need to rush.
Wishing you the best of luck as you push through the growth phase. 💪
Wanted to add my opinion as I had similar issue's with cashflow. Knowing my numbers down to the penny has helped me. I measure everything and work out daily net profit margins.
I started capping my advertising spend daily as that was causing me cashflow problem as I only got paid on what I sold in two weeks. I then started initiating daily disbursements once I didn't have an account level reserve, this means I have cash land in the bank daily and I'm far more dynamic.
We have a business credit card with Capital on Tap, give them a try. I pay my advertising fee with this card and get billed every two weeks for PPC then have more time to pay off the card within a month interest free but my advertising is still capped. This means I have the money land for a product sold THEN pay advertising costs, it used to be the other way around.
I buy all my stock on interest free finance, Billie and Clearpay. This often gives me 30 to 60 days before a bill is due by which time I've sold sometimes 100% of this stock, been paid for it and not paid an advertising bill with actual cash. I've gone from using actually cash for stock and being paid last to not paying for stock or advertising with cash and getting paid first.
When I first got started a few years back I put up £25k in cash BEFORE I got paid a penny from Amazon, it was 3 years of savings and highly risky.
Also, wouldn't shy away from asking the people around you who are more lenient than banks and know you. I had a £7,000 cash injection from a 15 minute conversation with a mate. This then allowed me to grow in line with any cashflow restrictions I knew I'd have (why I cap PPC and stock spending)
Wanted to add my opinion as I had similar issue's with cashflow. Knowing my numbers down to the penny has helped me. I measure everything and work out daily net profit margins.
I started capping my advertising spend daily as that was causing me cashflow problem as I only got paid on what I sold in two weeks. I then started initiating daily disbursements once I didn't have an account level reserve, this means I have cash land in the bank daily and I'm far more dynamic.
We have a business credit card with Capital on Tap, give them a try. I pay my advertising fee with this card and get billed every two weeks for PPC then have more time to pay off the card within a month interest free but my advertising is still capped. This means I have the money land for a product sold THEN pay advertising costs, it used to be the other way around.
I buy all my stock on interest free finance, Billie and Clearpay. This often gives me 30 to 60 days before a bill is due by which time I've sold sometimes 100% of this stock, been paid for it and not paid an advertising bill with actual cash. I've gone from using actually cash for stock and being paid last to not paying for stock or advertising with cash and getting paid first.
When I first got started a few years back I put up £25k in cash BEFORE I got paid a penny from Amazon, it was 3 years of savings and highly risky.
Also, wouldn't shy away from asking the people around you who are more lenient than banks and know you. I had a £7,000 cash injection from a 15 minute conversation with a mate. This then allowed me to grow in line with any cashflow restrictions I knew I'd have (why I cap PPC and stock spending)
It sounds to me that you have the same problem that I have. It is an issue of cashflow, i.e you can’t get the money back in quick enough to pay your bills. So you borrow money to fund the stock you need and lose a big chunk of your profit to interest. Ironically your problem is caused be growth. If you sold the same amount of stock each week and are just replacing what you have sold you would be fine. As you are growing you need to buy more stock than you have sold which means you need more cash to fund the increasing amount of stock. Simply put you need more cash or less business. There are several things you could do. The first thing has already been suggested, put your prices up slightly to reduce your sales and grow slower. This is organic growth, using your profit to grow the business. The second option, not usually possible on Amazon, is to significantly increase your profit margin, more profit you make the more money you have to invest in stock. Imagine if you bought your stock for £1 and sold it for £500 you would never be short of cash assuming you sell enough. The third option is to borrow the money you need and invest it in stock. You need to borrow a big lump of cash as cheap as possible and for as long as possible. Each month you will have less cash available because you are paying off the loan and interest. Youlend loans are obscenely high interest, and you pay them back so quickly that you don’t get chance to use the money. You could try getting larger credit limits and longer payment terms with suppliers. Find an investor or family member to loan you the cash. There is also a company called IWOCA, who only lend to ecommerce companies, I have never seen their rates.
It sounds to me that you have the same problem that I have. It is an issue of cashflow, i.e you can’t get the money back in quick enough to pay your bills. So you borrow money to fund the stock you need and lose a big chunk of your profit to interest. Ironically your problem is caused be growth. If you sold the same amount of stock each week and are just replacing what you have sold you would be fine. As you are growing you need to buy more stock than you have sold which means you need more cash to fund the increasing amount of stock. Simply put you need more cash or less business. There are several things you could do. The first thing has already been suggested, put your prices up slightly to reduce your sales and grow slower. This is organic growth, using your profit to grow the business. The second option, not usually possible on Amazon, is to significantly increase your profit margin, more profit you make the more money you have to invest in stock. Imagine if you bought your stock for £1 and sold it for £500 you would never be short of cash assuming you sell enough. The third option is to borrow the money you need and invest it in stock. You need to borrow a big lump of cash as cheap as possible and for as long as possible. Each month you will have less cash available because you are paying off the loan and interest. Youlend loans are obscenely high interest, and you pay them back so quickly that you don’t get chance to use the money. You could try getting larger credit limits and longer payment terms with suppliers. Find an investor or family member to loan you the cash. There is also a company called IWOCA, who only lend to ecommerce companies, I have never seen their rates.
Are you actually making a net profit after the interest on these loans and other expenses? As they say, turnover is vanity, profit is sanity and cash .... 🤔 well that seems to be Amazon's.
Take a step back, do some analysis and focus on your highest margin products, ideally ones where you can place regular small orders to keep your stockholding and borrowings low.
Are you actually making a net profit after the interest on these loans and other expenses? As they say, turnover is vanity, profit is sanity and cash .... 🤔 well that seems to be Amazon's.
Take a step back, do some analysis and focus on your highest margin products, ideally ones where you can place regular small orders to keep your stockholding and borrowings low.
The loans you've taken out have terrible rates....so it's not surprising that you feel like you're running to stand still
Also, you are sailing too close to the wind, you need more of a cushion....as other have said, slooooow down.
The loans you've taken out have terrible rates....so it's not surprising that you feel like you're running to stand still
Also, you are sailing too close to the wind, you need more of a cushion....as other have said, slooooow down.
Hi, I'm totally in the same boat as you but with less sources. I've decided to deliberately not take on any new products until its all paid back. Just keep buying and selling the same successful items. Once all the borrowing is paid back, then look to expand with any profits. it takes time and patience, but without it you'll be stuck in a borrowing loop making other people richer. Spend your spare time looking at your other overheads and try to streamline those.
Hi, I'm totally in the same boat as you but with less sources. I've decided to deliberately not take on any new products until its all paid back. Just keep buying and selling the same successful items. Once all the borrowing is paid back, then look to expand with any profits. it takes time and patience, but without it you'll be stuck in a borrowing loop making other people richer. Spend your spare time looking at your other overheads and try to streamline those.