After a retailer, eBay store, flea marketer or anyone else who sells product sets up an account at Gift Dropship.com, they can simply visit that website, order the product and have it shipped in their store's name to their customer. The shipping is free; there are no dropship fees, membership fees, or sign-up fees. In fact, the website offers all this and a Better Business Bureau A+ rating; not an easy task in this age of impatient customers.

"We look out for the little guy," says Gift Dropship owner, Jimmy Bradshaw, from his headquarters in Lancaster, SC. "We sell to big stores, box stores and TV auction networks. We sell everything at the same price to these stores as we do to the little website, the mom and pops, the convenience stores, the gift websites and eBay stores." Bradshaw got into the business in 1988 with a flea market business. He began to tinker with websites in the early 1990s, as the Internet was getting off of the ground, and went on to perfect the Gift Dropship concept.

Setting up an account with Gift Dropship is simple. "If you are in South Carolina, where we are headquartered," continues Bradshaw, you need a tax ID number because we are a licensed wholesale company-one of the few licensed wholesale companies out there. Other than that, all you have to do is go to the 'My Account' tab, and you are set up and ready to go." Gift Dropship does not just service the entrepreneur who wants to have an eBay business or a brick and mortar store; the firm also offers fully loaded websites. "We have preloaded websites, which come with everything we carry already on the site," says Bradshaw. "These websites start at $36.95 a month, if you prepay for a year. Otherwise, they cost $49.95 a month. That includes hosting, customer service and all of the products already loaded on the website." There are several templates to choose from. The website is preconfigured with all of the shipping and credit card companies. Basically, customers sign up, do a few things to personalize the site and buy a domain name. "Once they get a domain name, they already have a store and are ready to go. All they have to do is promote it."

The retailer buying the website can also set the percentage of profit with the click of a computer key. Just how easy is the system to use? Bradshaw explains that when the preloaded website is up and running and an order is placed, the owner of the site simply goes to Gift Dropship.com, orders the item, and changes the shipping address to their customer's address. The product is shipped directly to the customer, who is unaware that giftdropship.com even exists.

Gift Dropship features several hundred items on the website currently, but its best sellers are the stained glass products. "Our customer favorites are the stained glass items: Tiffany-style lamps, fireplace screens and stained glass panels. These products are so popular because they are made of real stained glass that is hand cut and high-heat soldered. Our competition's wholesale price is almost double what ours is." There are markups on these products to warm the heart of any entrepreneur. For example, Gift Dropship's Baroque Stained Glass Panel wholesales for $89, and has a suggested retail of around $359; its Tree Design Stained Glass Panel wholesales for $105, with a suggested retail of $559.

Bradshaw sees great opportunities ahead for his business. He says that Internet sales jumped by about 15 percent last year, even during a period of economic recession. The expectation is that web sales will jump another 15 to 25 percent this year, as the web continues to increase in popularity, and as we pull out of the recession. Gift Dropship customers are configuring their businesses in unique ways. There are those who are 100 percent Internet-focused and do a lot of promotion for their site and their business. There are others who use Gift Dropship in combination with a brick and mortar store. For example, one of Bradshaw's customers has a small store featuring stained glass products. This way, a customer can see and touch the product and get a real feel for its quality. When they buy the product, the retailer gets on his computer and has the product shipped to the customer in his name. Says Bradshaw, "Your business ideas are limited only by your imagination."

For more information:
Gift Dropship
P.O. Box 1641
Lancaster, SC 29721
Tel.: 803-661-5095
Email: info@giftdropship.com
Website: www.giftdropship.com