Go home early for the holiday! Seller: I just hope I won’t lose money in 2024

Go home early for the holiday ! Seller: I just hope I won’t lose money in 2024

How are you doing in 2023?

The majority of cross-border people are now summarizing their work in 2023 and making work plans for the new year.

From the feedback, sellers are in different situations in 2023. Some make big profits, some make small profits, some suffer big losses, and some suffer small losses. There are countless examples of making money. Some two or three people have achieved sales of over 10 million US dollars, and some have made profits of nearly 1 million alone. It is not easy to make money, but it is easy to lose money. Among them, a local tyrant second-generation rich man bravely entered the cross-border circle and lost nearly 10 million on Amazon in Shenzhen. Even old cross-border players can't escape the fate of losing money, and there are many examples of selling houses to save the company.

Whether making money or losing money, most cross-border people are anxious while moving forward. On the long road of life, people who "often feel insecure" and "suddenly feel tired" will inevitably be temporarily trapped by regrets and disappointments.

The situation of cross-border e-commerce companies is closely related to the situation of their employees. While a group of operators are still working diligently in the company, some operators have been told by the company that they have "received" an extra-long vacation due to poor performance.

The pitfalls of the previous year are valuable assets for the new year. Saying goodbye to 2023 and welcoming 2024, cross-border people have set new small goals. Bosses who are optimistic about the market in the new year have optimistically set a flag to increase sales tenfold or even more. A group of sellers who remain cautious think that it is more important to stay alive. In any case, everyone’s keywords generally include the following: just survive, don’t lose money, increase sales tenfold, increase profits, focus on core business, get promoted and get a raise, learn financial management knowledge, quit as soon as possible to work alone, and pay attention to physical health...

"2023 is a year of harvest"! Cross-border sellers in the money-making gathering area

In 2023, the complaints from people in the cross-border e-commerce industry continue. The full-hosting model "shine" and bring huge changes to the industry. Overall, a large number of cross-border sellers do smell business opportunities in the changing times and make money continuously:

2023 was a fruitful year , with performance continuing to grow and supply chain advantages being further integrated.

In the second year of entrepreneurship, the small team of 5 people achieved sales of over 11 million yuan , which is not bad.

Sales and profits are much better than in previous years.

The performance increased again on the basis of last year, and a new fixed deposit was saved.

In total, I have earned more than 1 million yuan, and I look forward to reaching a higher level in 2024.

…

Xiao Zhang (pseudonym), a cross-border seller, said that the 2023 plan was exceeded and revenue doubled. Although there were some minor setbacks in the middle and a loss of hundreds of thousands, fortunately, the sales volume during the peak season exceeded expectations.

Cross-border seller Xiao Li (pseudonym) also said that 2023 is the third year of his entrepreneurship, and the overall situation is improving. In detail, the revenue is much better than expected, with performance increasing by nearly 70%. At the same time, benefiting from the relatively strong exchange rate, profits have increased by more than 50%. In addition, it is very important that inventory and cash flow are in good condition.

Thanks to the company's good operating conditions in 2023, it is rumored that some operators received 80,000 commissions in the third quarter, and the commissions in the fourth quarter may be higher.

In addition to the situation of overfulfilling performance targets, there is also a group of cross-border sellers who have just met the 2023 plan. Seller Xiao Liu (pseudonym) can be said to be a typical representative of this type of people. During the off-season from January to March, the store's performance was terrible. It began to steadily recover in the second quarter, and then the orders fluctuated up and down, which stimulated the heartbeat. In the fourth quarter, sales finally exploded.

According to agency forecasts, the revenue of many listed big sellers such as Zhiou, Savi, Lechuang, and Yibai in 2023 is also gratifying, and the net profit has increased to varying degrees↓↓↓

The average net profit of Zhiou Technology in 2023 was 394 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 57.38%.

The average net profit of Suntech Power in 2023 is 367 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 98.39%.

The average net profit of Santai Co., Ltd. in 2023 was 216 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 53.45%.

Jihong Co., Ltd.'s average net profit in 2023 was 418 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 127.36%.

The average net profit of Lechuang Holdings in 2023 was 568 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 159.9%.

The average net profit of Giant Star Technology in 2023 is 1.733 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.08%.

Huakai Yibai's average net profit in 2023 was 375 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 73.26%.

Anker Innovations ' average net profit in 2023 is 1.631 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 42.66%.

The average net profit of Daotong Technology in 2023 is 379 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 271.41% (mainly engaged in automotive electronic products).

Edifier's average net profit in 2023 is 422 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 71.36% (mainly engaged in headphones, speakers and other products).

Based on the good performance in 2023, Xiao Li, Xiao Zhang and others continue to be optimistic about their 2024 target planning. Xiao Zhang said that next year, Amazon's business will maintain a growth of more than 30%, increase investment in full hosting, and Tik Tok's e-commerce business will also be studied carefully. Xiao Li's sales target for 2024 is 10 million. He also hopes to expand new platforms and seize the bonus period of full hosting. In addition to work, he also plans to exercise regularly every week. Xiao Liu hopes that annual sales can exceed 50 million, and at the same time, he can develop more new products in the new year and work hard to learn financial management knowledge.

Yienjun observed that there are actually quite a lot of sellers who plan to achieve revenue targets of over 100 million yuan in 2024, and there are also quite a few sellers whose revenue targets exceed 1 billion yuan or even higher. In the cross-border circle where "sellers are complaining that it is getting harder and harder every year", there are actually still a large number of people who are making a fortune in silence, and cross-border e-commerce still has great potential.

Just want to survive in 2024! Some companies give extra long holidays

The plans of cross-border bosses for 2024 will most likely depend on the revenue in 2023. Some want to achieve a 10-fold performance growth, while the primary goal of a group of people is just to survive.

Xiao Wu said that this year he plans to reduce the number of new products developed and focus on maintaining old products. He will make micro-innovations to old products to increase the repurchase rate. He does not seek to become bigger and stronger, but only to be small and beautiful.

Countless dream chasers compete on the cross-border e-commerce stage, with money-makers and money-losers occupying their own sides. Everyone has their own understanding of the industry, and disagreements are inevitable, resulting in a sense of separation. Just as those who make money cannot understand why someone would lose so much money that they have to sell their house to save the company, a group of sellers struggling on the survival line cannot believe that there are really peers who can achieve annual sales of over 100 million yuan ...

Yienjun learned that, in addition to Xiao Wu, many sellers are struggling to survive in 2023:

Profits plummeted, and most of the new products launched failed.
The debt was 100,000 at the beginning of the year and 500,000 at the end of the year.

My friend is a rich second-generation and lost 8 million after one year on Amazon.

Working alone on Amazon, I lost money for a whole year.

In 2023, 12 products were tested, nine were cancelled, two were found to be infringing, and one was barely surviving.

I was brainwashed by a training institution and entered the cross-border business, but I only saw investment but no profit. It is too difficult.

…

The small entrepreneurs who left their jobs and started out on their own in 2023 with great expectations have felt the cruelty of reality.

A solo seller said that he worked at home for a whole year on Amazon in 2023, but did not make any money. After comparing the two, he thought it was better to work in a company. At least he had income every month and his life was stable.

Another seller who officially started working alone in 2023 was in a state of negative profit in the first eight months, and then he began to show signs of profit. I believe many people can empathize with the difficulties of the process.

The seller Xiao Wu has been in business for three years and just started to make a profit this year, making nearly 100,000 yuan in total. Compared with the loss of 2 million yuan in the previous two years, this figure is undoubtedly a drop in the bucket.

Yi Enjun learned that apart from cases of quitting their jobs to start their own businesses, many newbies were attracted to the market by various advertisements on social media such as "starting a cross-border e-commerce business and earning 30,000 yuan a month", or were encouraged by words such as "entering the cross-border e-commerce market now and making money without doing anything" released by training institutions.

Xiao Zhang said that in recent years, relatives and friends have asked him if cross-border e-commerce is particularly profitable. They all said on a certain audio platform that Amazon is very easy, and that you only need to sit at home and use ERP to dropship, and the money will come naturally. Whenever this happens, Xiao Zhang will answer that cross-border e-commerce is becoming more and more difficult. If there is such an easy way to make a fortune, the other party will definitely sneak in and do it themselves. Even so, some relatives can't resist the temptation to sell goods, but unfortunately, the result is contrary to their wishes. After opening the store for nearly half a year, the traffic is still 0, and they have to leave at a loss. After the relatives tried it themselves, they realized that cross-border e-commerce is too difficult.

Xiao Zhou (pseudonym) is one of those people who was deceived into cross-border e-commerce by training institutions. He spent 6,000 yuan to enroll in a cross-border e-commerce training course. He had no withdrawals in the eight months after starting his business. He couldn't bear it anymore some time ago and finally gave up on venturing into the cross-border circle.

It is understood that the business of teaching people to follow others and sell is very popular now. There are always some newbies who are deceived and are very happy. They pay large amounts of money to training institutions. By the time they realize that they have been deceived, it is already too late. It is even more difficult to get back the original investment.

As the saying goes, "Small sellers encounter small setbacks, and big sellers encounter big setbacks." In 2023, many sellers with larger investments will suffer losses that are much higher than those of small sellers.

A well-known seller in the cross-border circle said that 2023 was a year of difficulties. Amazon's business shrank, and the SaaS software business was not satisfactory. He had to sell his house and move to a smaller office.

Coincidentally, the seller Siye also went to the point of mortgaging his house to save his company. Some time ago, Yienjun tweeted " 10 Years of Shenzhen Sellers: From "Making Money Lying Down" to Mortgaging Houses to Save Companies!" It has a detailed introduction. In 2023, the gross profit of Siye's company's products was only about 10%, which has a lot to do with the expenditure on the cost side. As Amazon's operating costs rise year by year, in 2023, advertising expenses alone burned more than 20 million, accounting for 15% of the total sales.

Siye roughly calculated that from 2020 to now, the company's operations have been unsatisfactory for four consecutive years. Judging from cash flow alone, it has lost about half of its small target. Almost all the wealth accumulated during the peak period in the early years was used to save the company, and even all the properties under his name that could be mortgaged were mortgaged.

There are many similar situations. When business is hindered, cross-border sellers often think of reducing costs. As we all know, labor costs are the biggest part of sellers' expenses. Soon after the peak season ended, a group of sellers with poor performance began to lay off employees. Many operators were "happy" to lose their jobs and went home early for the New Year.

Now, cross-border companies have issued Spring Festival holiday notices one after another. It is understood that a small cross-border company's Spring Festival holiday is more than 40 days long. Except for the statutory holidays of the Spring Festival, employees are not paid for other time, but they need to take time out to handle work matters. The boss clearly stated that the company's situation is not optimistic, and early holidays can save costs. There is not much work to be arranged next, so employees do not need to work.

To a certain extent, cross-border bosses and workers are in the same honor and disgrace. When the company's revenue is in jeopardy, the employees' performance will not be very high. In 2023, many cross-border workers spent their time without commissions. "Empty-handed, no commissions, and no year-end bonuses. I spent 2023 relying on basic salary, and the money I earned was not enough to cover my expenses" is the real situation of many workers.

An operator found that the promotion of new products in 2023 was almost a mess, product sales remained at an average level, and it felt like his capabilities had remained stagnant. He didn't know how to break through his bottleneck and was in a dilemma.

Apart from their own ability problems, many operators unfortunately encountered cheating companies, wasting a lot of time and energy in vain. It is understood that some people entered the company of laolai and were owed wages for several months. Even if they were enforced, they could not get their labor remuneration back. They were unable to make ends meet and worried about their lives for a long time.

Will we go it alone in 2024? Cross-border people are anxious about moving forward

Whether you are a boss or an employee, you can’t avoid moments of anxiety. An industry insider said that most of the people around him who do cross-border e-commerce, mainly Amazon, live a comfortable life and make a fortune quietly, but they are still very anxious inside because users and inventory are in the hands of the platform , and the future is full of uncertainty.

Insecurity is the most common feeling among Amazon sellers.

"The platform conducts audits every few days. Once there is any disturbance, the account cannot make payments immediately. The initial passion has been slowly worn away, and now I always feel tired." An Amazon seller said that the platform's boom has passed, the probability of making money has become smaller, and the probability of losing money has increased. With the increase in advertising and other costs every year, price wars have become more severe year by year, and the problem of store closures has affected people's mentality from time to time. Now, to put it nicely, I am starting a business and starting a company, but in fact I am just working for the platform. I am unwilling to step out of my comfort zone.

In the cross-border chain, basically every small link needs to be extra cautious, otherwise it will be a lesson of losing money. It is observed that infringement, stocking errors and other issues are the main reasons that drag down cross-border sellers.

Many sellers will make serious mistakes when it comes to stocking up. One seller was too optimistic about the peak season market in 2023 and stocked up on a lot of seasonal products, which resulted in many products being unsalable. He spent a lot of money on advertising to consume the excess inventory. If it weren't for other profitable products, he would most likely end up losing money in 2023.

Many sellers will suffer heavy losses due to infringement. According to an Amazon seller, he was full of confidence in early 2023 to make a big splash in the industry. However, just half a month after the product was put on sale, it received an infringement complaint and was removed from the shelves. Then the next product repeated the infringement mistake. These two blows caused the seller to suffer heavy losses. After a period of adjustment, the store began to slowly get rid of the shadow of infringement, but then encountered a crisis of poor sales. The number of orders per day hovered in the single digits, and the profits could not cover the cost expenditures such as advertising expenses.

There are thorns everywhere in the depths of the flowers. All these scenes show that cross-border e-commerce is far from being as easy as imagined. Is 2024 still a good time to go it alone? Are you still full of expectations for the future? The answer of many workers is actually yes.

A group of workers are looking forward to the future: after the Spring Festival in 2024, they will switch to a company that is more suitable for them and strive for promotion and salary increase as soon as possible.

A large number of workers have made a New Year's resolution for 2024: to quit their jobs as soon as possible and develop their sideline business into their main business. Many operators have already made up their minds: after the Spring Festival, they will stay in their hometowns to start businesses and not return to big cities.

One of the operators said that he was very busy throughout 2023. He was working for the company while running his own store. The company's annual sales exceeded 1 million, and his personal store's performance exceeded 400,000. In 2024, he hoped that his personal performance could double, so as to get rid of his identity as an employee. According to him, he started his sideline career as early as 2022. At the beginning, he was not profitable. After more than half a year of losses, he reached a break-even state. After that, the store's performance improved amid twists and turns.

What have you gained in the past year? Sellers summarize their operational experience

What valuable experience have cross-border people, whether they are profitable or loss-making in 2023, extracted from this year and previous operating experiences? The editor summarized and found that focusing on core business, surviving first and then developing, and improving labor efficiency are the key points.

Industry insider @跑的法老 said that the tone of 2023 will remain stable and improving! The expectation for the new year is still: seek progress in stability, think more from the user's perspective, polish good products, consolidate the supply chain, and not be affected by the anxiety and madness of the outside world.

Pharaoh officially entered the cross-border e-commerce field five years ago. From the initial small-scale trial, to the disorderly expansion during the epidemic period, to the readjustment based on the supply chain, and returning to Amazon as the main traffic channel as a growth path, the biggest experience learned is "duty". No matter what e-commerce platform, the ultimate essence is products and supply chains. In terms of selling goods, we must continue to strengthen the research on consumer psychology and the continuous upgrading and transformation of products at all times; in terms of supply chain, sellers who can really survive on major e-commerce platforms have the advantage of deep cultivation in the supply chain. In all walks of life, those who can persevere to the end must be the small group of people who see the survival logic of the industry clearly and have not given up after experiencing many difficulties.

As long as these two foundations are laid , it is never too late to enter other fields.

In addition, compared to blindly expanding the team to increase sales, increasing per capita output is actually more important.

A company cannot always think about how to develop the team, but needs to consider how to reasonably let capable people and those who have made more efforts get more rewards under the existing resources. In 2023, a cross-border company has been doing subtraction. At the beginning of the year, there were more than 20 people, but only half of them were left at the end of the year. However, the full-year performance in 2023 was the same as that in 2022. The company's profits increased significantly, and the annual income of employees also generally increased, benefiting both parties.

Survive first and then talk about development. This is also the direction that more and more cross-border people are working towards. They take one step at a time and move on to the next product after one product is completed. When Xiao Wu first started his business, he fantasized about getting rich overnight. Various new products were continuously put on the shelves. As a result, the sales volume did not meet expectations and the company was almost dragged down. As he slowly cut off unprofitable products and strictly planned advertising fees, shipping costs and other expenses, the profit and loss gradually reached a balanced state.

How much money did you make in 2023? What did you gain?