This Economics Student Imports Trendy Korean Fashion Accessories in Bulk and Resells to Her Campus Peers for Big Profits

Meet Joan Mueni, a 24-year-old Economics student at Kenyatta University who has managed to build an incredibly successful side business importing affordable Korean fashion accessories and reselling to her fellow students for big profits.

In less than one year since launching, Joan’s clever importing and selling hustle now clears over Ksh250,000 in monthly sales through simple promotion on campus social media groups.

Here is an inside look at how Joan leverages inexpensive accessories sourced abroad into massive profit margins by catering specifically to the fashion tastes of university students in Kenya.

An Idea is Born Out of Need

As a bright but broke university student living on tight budget, Joan was always seeking clever ways to supplement her limited income and afford additional spending money.

During a semester abroad in Seoul, South Korea, Joan came across all sorts of fun and trendy fashion accessories being sold at unbelievably low prices – stylish earrings, rings, necklaces, sunglasses and hair pieces.

That’s when an entrepreneurial lightbulb went on in Joan’s mind – what if she could import these inexpensive Korean accessories in bulk to resell at a markup to style-hungry students back in Kenya?

The margins were irresistible – she could source jewelry and hair accessories for Ksh50-150 from Korean exporters and wholesalers, then resell the exact same pieces for Ksh300-500 to students in Kenya desperate for affordable fashion paraphernalia to stay trendy on campus.

Joan had uncovered a perfect business model allowing her to keep her inventory costs low while almost tripling profits on each small piece she sold.

She just needed to import and connect the products to her eager market successfully.

Learning to Import from Korea as a Newbie

Right away, Joan jumped into researching how to import goods as a total beginner.

She spent hours learning best practices around :

• Finding reputable manufacturers and suppliers
• Communicating effectively despite language barriers
• Navigating customs requirements and import duties
• Calculating exact landed shipping costs
• Identifying the fastest and most affordable shipping options

After compiling a blueprint for cost-efficient importing to Kenya, Joan registered an official business name, opened the required business bank account, and placed her first small test order from a wholesale accessories supplier she found in Seoul.

Just 3 weeks later, her first shipment of 60 mixed Korean fashion accessories arrived at her dorm room doorstep in Nairobi!

Joan sorted through her imported goods excitedly and prepared to start selling.

Read also: 55+ Easy Ways to Make Money as a Student in Kenya

Generating Demand Through Social Media

Joan understood that successfully moving inventory fast came down to tapping into hungry buyer demand from her fellow university students.

She created accounts on Instagram, Facebook and Telegram specifically for her reselling side hustle.

Joan then joined dozens of campus buy/sell groups and actively posted enticing photos of her imported Korean goods modeling the pieces herself.

For example:

“Korean fashion lovers! 😍 Who wants to look uber stylish on campus for just Ksh300? I just received a new shipment of super cute Korean accessories perfect for any outfit! Limited stock – DM me fast to reserve yours!”

Along with photos displaying her affordable, unique jewelry and hairpieces creatively styled in different vibrant outfits, Joan’s social media promotions generated a surge of excitement and demand.

Soon her direct messages were overflowing with inquiries from students across different universities eager to purchase her imported Korean fashion products.

Streamlining Order Fulfillment

As sales exploded with hundreds of orders pouring in weekly, Joan needed to streamline her fulfillment and logistics.

She leveraged digital tools to make the importing and selling process more efficient:

• Joan used the Bulk Message Sender app to communicate with customers.
• She built an organized spreadsheet system to track inventory and orders.
• Joan purchased shipping supplies in bulk for speedy and inexpensive delivery.
• She explored different couriers to identify the most reliable and cost-effective shipping partners.
• Joan used Lipa Na MPESA to easily accept mobile money payments from students.

By optimizing her order processing system, Joan was able to handle increased sales volume while keeping profit margins high.

Expanding Selection to Sustain Growth

To sustain growth long-term, Joan knew she couldn’t just sell the same limited selection of imported goods over and over. Students would quickly get bored.

So she began expanding her Korean fashion offerings, testing small batches of new products like:

• Trendy Korean socks and stockings
• Cute Korean laptop stickers and device accessories
• Stylish wallets, cardholders and portable chargers
• Aesthetic home decor like wall tapestries and desk accessories
• Colorful phone cases and stylus pens

This constant testing and expansion of new products in small quantities ensured Joan’s social media feeds were constantly refreshed with exciting offerings.

Balancing School and Side Business Demands

As her Korean fashion import business took off, Joan did face difficulties juggling both her studies as an Economics major along with fulfilling hundreds of accessory orders weekly.

But through smart time management, Joan has struck an effective balance between academics and entrepreneurship:

• She focuses mornings fully on classes, assignments and research work, dedicating weekends to her import business.
• During holiday breaks, Joan places large re-stock orders from Korea.
• She prepares some bulk shipping packages discreetly between lectures when viable.
• Joan hired a couple of student assistants to help with packaging and deliveries.
• She ensures to not take any orders during big exam periods so she can focus fully on academics.

By putting academics first and maximizing pockets of time, Joan has achieved harmony between student life and side business success.

Read also: 10+ Best Ways to Make Money from Home on the Side

Strong Growth and Ambitious Goals for the Future

Incredibly, in less than one year since first testing small imports of Korean fashion accessories, Joan has completely validated the business model, generating over Ksh250,000 per month in sales.

Her projection based on current growth is to hit Ksh1 million in monthly revenue by 2024 through expanding to campuses across Kenya and broadening her imported offerings.

Joan hopes to ultimately register the business formally and open an online store alongside selling in-person on campuses countrywide. She even dreams of opening her own accessory boutiques in major cities one day.

Joan’s rapidly thriving business importing inexpensive Korean fashion goods and reselling locally perfectly demonstrates how identifying simple arbitrage opportunities combined with superb execution using digital tools can result in a massively profitable side hustle.

For other enterprising university students, Joan stands as an inspiration of how spotting unmet student needs, leveraging globalization, and tapping the power of social media provides an avenue to financial freedom and limitless potential.

The next generation of top Kenyan entrepreneurs is rising fast.

The time for bold innovation and hustle is now!

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