Start in one product category where you already know the makers and the retailers, buy in bulk from manufacturers or importers, and sell to shops on thin margins and volume. Register for GST from the start, since selling goods to another state needs it whatever your turnover and retailers want tax invoices; add free Udyam registration, which brings MSME protections, and an FSSAI licence if you deal in food (a Registration up to Rs 1.5 crore turnover, a State Licence up to Rs 50 crore). List on IndiaMART for buyer leads and on B2B apps like Udaan to reach more retailers. The business runs on working capital: you pay suppliers before retailers pay you, and most wholesalers fail because their money is stuck in credit given to shops. Fix credit limits per retailer, collect on time, and use the MSME law in your favour: a buyer must pay a registered micro or small supplier within 45 days or owe interest at three times the bank rate, enforced through the government's Samadhaan portal.
GST is the single compliance item a solo founder most often gets wrong, either registering too late or not knowing the threshold differs for goods (40 lakh) versus services (20 lakh). ClearTax is the canonical Indian reference on this: it walks the exact portal steps (TRN, Aadhaar authentication, document upload), the documents you need, and the penalty math for skipping it (minimum 10,000 rupees, up to 100% of tax evaded), so you register at the right moment and not a filing cycle late.
The threshold is not one number: roughly 40 lakh turnover for goods and 20 lakh for services (lower in special-category states), computed on aggregate all-India turnover under one PAN
You often need GST anyway to invoice business clients who want to claim input credit, regardless of your turnover
Skipping registration when required carries a penalty of at least 10,000 rupees or the tax evaded, so treat the threshold as a hard trigger, not a suggestion
The FSSAI's current table of which food business needs which licence and what it costs a year, revised from 1 April 2026: most businesses up to Rs 1.5 crore turnover need only a Registration at Rs 100, a State Licence costs Rs 5,000 up to Rs 50 crore, and a Central Licence Rs 7,500 above that. Importers, merchant exporters and businesses registered as e-commerce need a Central Licence whatever their size, and hawkers pay nothing.
The government's only portal for registering a micro, small or medium enterprise. It states registration is free and lists the revised limits: a micro enterprise has investment up to ₹2.5 crore and turnover up to ₹10 crore, a small one up to ₹25 crore and ₹100 crore.
A B2B marketplace where small retailers order stock from brands and wholesalers with delivery to the shop, an alternative or addition to the local distributor.
If you are registered as an MSME and a customer sits on your invoice past 45 days, this government portal is the actual legal mechanism for filing a delayed payment complaint and claiming compound interest under the MSMED Act. Most founders never register or never use it, and it is one of the few real levers you have against a buyer who signed a deal and then stopped paying. Worth registering for Udyam before you need it, not after.
