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Last Updated: Sep 2009
What is Dropshipping?
Drop shipping can occur when a small retailer who typically sells in small quantities to the general public receives a single  large order for a product. Rather than route the shipment through the retail store, the retailer may arrange for the goods to  be shipped directly to the customer.

Many sellers on online auction sites, such as eBay, also drop ship. Often, a seller will list an item as new and ship the  item directly from the wholesaler to the highest bidder. The seller profits from the difference between the winning bid and  the wholesale price, minus any selling and merchant fees from the auction site.
Drop shipping is a supply chain management technique in which the retailer does not keep goods in stock, but instead  transfers customer orders and shipment details to wholesalers, who then ship the goods directly to the customer. The  retailers make their profit on the difference between the wholesale and retail price.

Some drop shipping retailers may keep "show" items on display in stores, so that customers can inspect an item similar to  those that they can purchase. Other retailers may provide only a catalogue or website.

Retailers that drop ship merchandise from wholesalers may take measures to hide this fact to avoid any stigma, or to keep the  wholesale source from becoming widely known. This can be effected by "blind shipping" (shipping merchandise without a return  address), or "private label shipping" (having merchandise shipped from the wholesaler with a return address customized to the  retailer).
Dropshipping
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