Tom H

6-Figure Amazon seller. Looking to connect with other sellers who are growing their business.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

haha, exactly the same. Product was returned to Cocoon Center but UPS sent me the "Import" bill and I'm trying to figure out what do with this.
I also got an email the other day from UPS telling me I need to upload additional Customs documentation (some metal form) or another package from Cocoon Center will sit in their warehouse, accruing warehouse fees.
Other shipments get through just fine but I may not be able to rely on Cocoon Center shipments anymore.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

@FBAFelon @BowTiedMahi Same from a Cocoon Center order. Were you able to fight it or just ate the coast?

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

@7FigSaykho What happen to that guy? I just realized I haven't seen any new bangers from him on youtube in a hot minute. I mess up my algorithm or is he taking a break?

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Nothing more fun than spending all morning fighting Safe-T claims and reversing A to Z claims made against my account...
It needs to be done but man its the least fun part of this job. That, and submitting claims for lost inventory on inbound

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Closer to what I like to see. Still trending behind July numbers but I'll probably have to accept that due to Prime Day being so good last month.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

oof, not good. Only positive is I sold through some inventory which was just sitting. But hope I don't have too many days like yesterday.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Not great but the poor margins are mostly due to 2 fairly expensive returns from 1 customer. I've already got them back in hand so I should be able to resell them. So it goes

[Chris Potter @ChrisPotter361]

𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗖𝗞: "It's a tax write-off" is NOT the same as "it's free money"

I'm watching entrepreneurs burn cash because they think write-offs = 100% savings.

𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙖���𝙠𝙧𝙪𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲��� 👇

The expensive delusion plaguing small business:
💸 "Buy the $5,000 laptop, it's a write-off!"
💸 "Upgrade to first class, tax deductible!"
💸 "Get the premium everything, we'll write it off!"

Plot twist...you're still out $3,500+ on that laptop.

The write-off only saved you $1,500.

📊 WRITE-OFFS vs TAX CREDITS:

𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲-𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝗼𝗻 $𝟭,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲:

25% tax bracket = $250 savings

You still paid $750 out of pocket

$𝟭,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁:

Direct reduction from taxes owed

You save the full $1,000

One reduces income.

The other reduces actual tax.

Massive difference.

💡 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲-𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗵:

$10,000 business expense in 25% tax bracket:

Reduces taxable income by $10,000
Saves you $2,500 in taxes
Net cost to you: $7,500

You didn't get $10,000 for free.

You got a $2,500 discount on something that cost $10,000.

🎯 Smart deduction strategy vs. Dumb spending:

𝗦𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗧: Buy what you need, write off what you buy
𝗗𝗨𝗠𝗕: Buy things you don't need because "tax write-off"

The goal isn't maximum deductions.

It's maximum profit after taxes.

$50k revenue - $20k smart expenses = $30k profit

$50k revenue - $35k "write-off" expenses = $15k profit

⚡ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 "𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲-𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽" 𝘀𝘆𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗺𝘀:

- Upgrading everything to "business class"
- Buying equipment you'll use twice
- Expensive meals "for networking"
- Premium subscriptions you never use

Your tax savings don't justify wasteful spending. Period.

Here's the profitable mindset shift:

Instead of "Can I write this off?" ask:

𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀?

𝗗𝗼 𝗜 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀?

𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹?

Write-offs are the cherry on top, not the reason to buy.

What's the most ridiculous "write-off" purchase you've seen? 👇

RT if this just saved someone from expensive "tax strategy" 🔄

Tag an entrepreneur who needs this reality check 👥

Remember.. 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝘅 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Sales are down a bit and margins are a little lower than I like them but not a bad day. I'll take it.
What I'm really excited about is my VA found something that could become very profitable for the rest of the year. Sourcing is starting to come together for her!

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Pretty good margin wise. What I like to see.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

@FBA_Chris Yeah, I am pleasantly surprised. Been identifying the items that have had the largest returns in July and avoiding them. Also putting a few extra seconds into making sure my FBM orders are protected so USPS doesn't damage them in transit.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Pretty good weekend with both sales and margins. But going to be spending a good portion of today putting FBM orders together from the weekend. A little over 100. So it goes

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

And then there were bad days. Coming off the high of seeing the end of month numbers yesterday this can be a bit jarring but just need to remember that these days happen and to double check everything for gaps. So it goes

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Onward to $600k for last 12 months. It might be ambitious and I really want to maintain my margins so I'm honestly hoping to hit it by end of September. But July was a nice surprise so maybe August will be a even bigger one.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Best month ever, for both sales and profit. I attribute it to Prime Day, repricing strategies from @JeffSendsIt , and all the good advice from the larger community. Thank you everyone!

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

So it goes. Refunds killed my profit but reviewing them they seem to be spread out across various products so just one of them days.
Last day of the month! Make sure you share that end of month success

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

@simone064121202 @JeffSendsIt Repricer? SellerSnap

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Officially past my last month sales high (outside Q4) about a week early this month. Attribute that to Prime Day and new repricing strategies from @JeffSendsIt . Margins* aren't as good but profit should also be higher by EOD. Pretty pleased but need to tighten up margins.

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

I remember being ecstatic when ~$1k days were becoming the norm as oppose to just hitting them occasionally. Now I'm equally pleased that ~$2k have become the norm. As numerous others have said, just need more good inventory. On to $3k!

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

@LocdoesFBA Same. A bunch of bundles. Same items but with different flavors/colors

[Tom H @Trader_TomH]

Yes! Sales are down but margins are up. This is where I want to be. I have a few items that are just flying at ~50%. Difficulty will be keeping them in stock.