Master the Business of Jewelry Importation Webinar Recap: Jewelry importation class with Mary Osunlusi

Here's the recap of everything that was covered in the webinar, ‘Master the Business of Jewelry Importation’.

Introduction - About Midddleman - Mary Osunlusi's background

Sourcing Jewelry from China - Benefits of sourcing from China - Best sourcing platforms - Differences and similarities between three popular sourcing platforms

Buying Jewelry from 1688 - Importance of knowing jewelry types - Step by step process to research and buy jewelry on 1688

Managing Your Jewelry Business - How to avoid extra shipping costs - Product links to start your journey

Click here to watch the video recording.

Introduction and Welcome Omolara Sanni introduces herself as a representative of the Midddleman team. She explains that Midddleman is a platform for African businesses to pay Chinese suppliers. Omolara introduces Mary Osunlusi, the founder of Mary Moh’s Jewels, as the expert trainer for the session.

Mary greets everyone and expresses her honor to be invited to the class. She introduces herself as an entrepreneur, researcher, writer, and physiotherapist, and mentions her journey in the jewelry business.

Mary's Journey in Jewelry Importation Mary shares her experience of starting her jewelry business in 2017 and importing jewelry from China to Nigeria. She mentions relocating to Canada for healthcare research and putting her jewelry business on hold. Mary is now back in the jewelry business, selling in Nigeria and Canada, and attending fairs and exhibitions. She emphasizes her extensive experience and success in the jewelry business, supported by customer testimonials.

Overview of the Session Mary outlines the session's agenda, including jewelry importation, the integrity of jewelry, researching and sourcing for jewelry, and practical examples. She mentions that the session will run for about an hour, with time for questions afterwards. Mary encourages participants to type their questions in the chat and mentions that she will address them as she goes along.

Jewelry Importation: Sourcing from China Mary discusses the importance of sourcing products from China and other regions without the help of agents. She highlights the potential for high profits in the jewelry business, mentioning up to 500% profits. Mary asks participants if they shop from Lagos markets or other sources and encourages them to share their experiences. She emphasizes the importance of sourcing from reliable platforms and the differences between various platforms for jewelry importation.

Mary introduces three major platforms for sourcing jewelry: Alibaba, 1688, and AliExpress. She explains that these platforms are part of the Alibaba Group and are designed for different target audiences. Mary highlights the differences in pricing and user experience between these platforms, using examples of similar jewelry items. She advises against using AliExpress for jewelry importation, emphasizing the cost advantages of 1688.

She explains that 1688 was originally designed as a business-to-business platform, while AliExpress is more consumer-focused. She provides examples of the same jewelry items priced differently on 1688 and AliExpress, explaining the cost differences.

Mary emphasizes the importance of knowing where to buy to avoid losing money and ensure quality. She shares her personal experience of ordering jewelry from both platforms and the benefits of using 1688.

Transition to ABC of Jewelry Mary transitions to the next module, which covers the ABC of jewelry, including different categories and metal types. She mentions that participants will learn why knowing these details is important for their business. She continues by explaining the importance of understanding jewelry categories and metals. She encourages participants to study further about metal types, polishing/processing, materials, and color – citing customer trust as a significant incentive for studying these concepts.

Jewelry Research Mary shares a step-by-step process to acquire jewelry from 1688. In an example, she finds a jewelry product on pinterest and uses the photo search feature on 1688 to show how it’s done. She continues the process, using Google Translate to translate product descriptions from Chinese to English, and her unique tactic to compare between different suppliers on 1688.

Conclusion Mary opens the floor for participants to ask questions. She encourages the participants to continue learning on jewelry types and buy in small quantities to test their knowledge. She adds that participants should find a balance between speed and affordability when choosing a shipping partner. Towards the end of the webinar, she sends product links to the participants to help start their journey of importing jewelry on 1688.

Omolara ensures that all participants receive the links. She reintroduces Midddleman and confirms that more webinars like this are in the works for the Midddleman Community. She encourages all participants to join the WhatsApp community where future webinars will be announced.