My online business leaves me bankrupt

Hearing stories about how some youths become disillusioned with online businesses usually makes me feel sorry for them because I myself have also been in a similar situation.

When my wife and I just started our online shop, everything seemed so easy.

However, we later realized that running this business was unimaginably more difficult than operating a physical store.

After struggling for a long time, we finally went bankrupt.

Hence, with my experience, I would like to share some insights to give those who want to start an online business the most realistic view and save them from the potential reality shock.

- You must learn about the market, your competitors, products, sales channels, e-commerce, tools for editing photos and videos, photography and live streaming. If you are not tech-savvy, you might have to spend a significant amount of money on online courses.

- It consumes a lot of time. Your job ranges from editing images and videos, posting articles about your products and conducting price surveys to working with suppliers, receiving goods, inventory managing, packaging, planning promotions and working with e-commerce platforms.

- Additional costs may arise from discounts offered by platforms, shipping, returned products, unforeseen expenses and opportunity costs. Therefore, profit from an online business is not easy to calculate and is not necessarily as large as many people think.

- Those without time and good health will not be able to do this job. Running an online store means you must operate your business all the time. You might even find yourself with no time left to eat, rest, or take care of your family.

- When doing business online, you will encounter many frustrations, like payment issues, shipping costs, sluggish sales and negative feedback. Each emerging problem requires your full attention to be resolved, which is not simple at all.

Additionally, from the perspective of an online shopper, clothes must match your body shape and what looks good in pictures may not fit well on you.

It is the same with cosmetics. If you buy directly from a store, the staff can advise, answer questions, and offer samples to see if the product is suitable for you.

Meanwhile, with online shopping, the quality is not always guaranteed and you might end up buying products that you do not like.

Therefore, I personally find shopping at physical stores to be better than online.

Above are just some experiences drawn from my actual experience. There will certainly be many shortcomings, so I hope those who are working in this field can add more details to my advice.

And what do you think about running an online business?

Reader TQ Cuong

*This opinion was translated into English by AI. Readers’ views are personal and do not necessarily match VnExpress’ viewpoints.