Margin on plants: how it works when you sell online

• You pay for shipping per box. So sell small plants in a box or set: then you make a 50 to 70% margin.
• Large houseplants and large orders earn the most euros per order.
• A pot, extras, a Greeting Card and free shipping above an amount make every order bigger.

An example. Your customer buys 6 Zamioculcas plants for €17.99 each, €107.94 in total. Of that, €8.91 goes to VAT. Your purchase cost at Everspring is about €31: ± €17 for the plants, ± €7 for packing and box and ± €7 for shipping that one box. You keep about €68, a margin of around 70%.

You set your selling price. The difference with your purchase cost is your margin. Always calculate it on the price excluding VAT: 9% for plants, 21% for pots, baskets and cards.

Note the difference between margin and markup. Margin is what you keep, as a share of your selling price excluding VAT. Markup is what you add on top of your purchase cost. If you buy for €10 and sell for €16.67 excluding VAT, your markup is 67% and your margin is 40%.

You pay for shipping per box, not per plant. One lavender on its own costs you about €16: ± €1.50 for the plant, ± €9 for packing and box and ± €6 for shipping. The same lavender in a box of 6 costs about €4 each. With Mix & Match you combine plants from one supplier in one box.

What shipping costs differs per supplier and per box:

• A box of small plants: €6 to €8.50.
• A box with one large houseplant: ± €14.
• A large order: the shipping per box adds up.

One small plant on its own earns little, because shipping is then the largest part of your purchase cost. In a box of 6 or as a set, your cost per plant becomes low.

A large houseplant ships on its own in its own box. Shipping is then a small part of the price, so you earn more per plant.

With a large order, you pay for packing and shipping once for all the plants. Two examples with real prices:

On your product page, your customer chooses more than just the plant: a pot from a row of pots, extras such as a moisture meter, potting soil or shears and a watering can, and a Greeting Card with their own message. If everything comes from the same supplier, it goes together in one box, without an extra shipment. The amounts in the animation are an example.

What an extra earns you depends on the price. Two examples with real prices:

Choose extras you really earn on. A cheap pot or plant food that other webshops sell for little sometimes earns you nothing. Work it out for each extra.

Below the threshold your customer pays shipping costs; above it you ship for free. That way your customer more often adds a second or third plant. One Zamioculcas with €5.95 shipping costs earns you ± €5. Three Zamioculcas plants for €53.97, shipped for free, earn ± €27. Set your threshold just above your average order.

Plants sell all year, with peaks in the garden season and around the holidays. At Everspring, March to June are the busiest months.

• Spring: garden plants and large houseplants. Make sure your range is in place in February.
• Holidays: Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Christmas, with Greeting Cards and gift sets.
• Autumn and winter: indoor houseplants and corporate gifts.

You pay commission and ads per order, so a bigger order leaves you more. The same example, a set of 3 Zamioculcas plants for €53.97:

On bol.com, sell sets and large plants. A single Zamioculcas for €17.99 costs you money there.

In this guide, "you earn" is what you keep after VAT and purchase cost. After that you still pay your own costs. Include them before you set your prices:

• Payment costs per order, such as iDEAL, credit card or PayPal.
• Ads or commission, as above.
• Your webshop, your software and your Everspring membership, per month.
• Your own time for customer contact, and for a plant that arrives damaged.

The more you earn per order, the easier it is to carry those costs. That is why it pays to sell more plants per box and extras on your product page.

1. Selling one cheap plant on its own. Instead: sell small plants in a set or box.
2. Free shipping without a threshold. Instead: ship for free above an amount, such as €50.
3. Following the lowest price on bol.com. Instead: sell sets and large plants your customer cannot easily compare.
4. Forgetting VAT in your sums. Instead: always calculate your margin on the price excluding VAT.
5. Offering only the plant. Instead: put a pot, basket or Greeting Card on your product page.
6. Selling only in spring. Instead: plan Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Christmas ahead.
7. No reason to come back. Instead: a subscription or a discount code on your packing slip.