Dropshipping in South Africa - Is it viable in 2024?

South Africa presents a good opportunity to start a dropshipping business in certain popular niches, such as electronics, apparel, and car accessories. In this article, we'll discuss whether dropshipping is viable in South Africa in 2024. Let us begin.

What is a Dropshipping Business?

A dropshipping business is an order fulfilment business model where the seller does not keep any inventory on hand. Instead, they utilise their connections with the suppliers to fulfil the orders. This is how it works.

A dropshipper has an online e-commerce website where they sell the products. When a customer places an order through the website, the dropshipper forwards the order to their supplier. Then their supplier handles the order fulfilment process. The customer then receives their order. The product may include customised packaging or your branding on the product as well.

How does Dropshipping work in South Africa?

The most common dropshipping model is Chinese Suppliers processing the order you receive on your website in South Africa. Chinese giant e-commerce websites like AliExpress or CJDropshipping allow you to set up a dropshipping business easily.

This includes your e-commerce website, either made with WooCommerce or Shopify, and plugins that allow you to import dropshipping products. The process is simple. Install the necessary dropshipping plugin on your website and import the products you wish to sell. You can also check supplier ratings and product ratings before you choose to import such products, allowing you control over choosing quality suppliers and products.

You might have heard that these Chinese dropshipping models are obsolete in South Africa due to high shipping fees and long delivery times. But with solutions like Airpool, you can make the process significantly easier for you.

Is Dropshipping still viable in South Africa in 2024?

Dropshipping has certainly become a viable business model, especially in the post-pandemic recovery era. You can most certainly try your hand at running a dropshipping business in South Africa in 2024. While it is not for everyone, dropshipping can be your calling if you can identify trends and trendy demands in the market.

Dropshipping is a business that mainly runs on trendy products. TikTok and other social media platforms are excellent sources for such research. For suppliers, you can use traditional Chinese sites from Alibaba or AliExpress. Or, you can consider using South African dropshipping suppliers like DropStore or Shopstar.

Choosing a South African dropshipping store can significantly reduce order fulfilment times. Besides, Dropstore and Shopstar both have plans that may provide you with a web design as well. With them, you can start your business in mere hours at reasonable monthly costs.

Conclusion

South Africa has a favourable environment to start a dropshipping business. However, you must understand the niches and the trends that sell well in South Africa. The flexibility of a dropshipping business also allows you to change or offer new products as you move forward. Use this to your advantage to experiment with various niches to understand what would work for you.

Skill Space is developing a full-fledged course on Dropshipping. It will be available soon, so stay tuned! Meanwhile, if you have any questions, feel free to drop a message to us and we will get back to you.