Skip to contentSeller Setups

Imported sweets, snack boxes and treats. Sort out registration, labels and dates before you go on camera.

Food and drink: the kit, photographed as a studio still life

What you need to sell food and drink

The kit our builder picks for a typical Food and drink seller. Change the answers to fit yours.

1 of 2Setup Builder
Clear stackable 32 L tubs, 4 pack

Storage

Clear stackable 32 L tubs, 4 pack

See what’s inside without opening every lid.

See on Amazon
Overhead phone arm

Phone mount

Overhead phone arm

Clamps to the desk and holds your phone above the table.

See on Amazon
Two softbox lights with stands

Lighting

Two softbox lights with stands

Large, soft light for clothing and full-body shots.

See on Amazon
Clip-on wireless phone mic

Microphone

Clip-on wireless phone mic

Keeps your voice clear when you turn away from the phone.

See on Amazon

11 items

£298to £490

The guide

Each step in the order you'll need it.

01

Registration and the paperwork to do first

Register your food business with your local council through the GOV.UK service. It's free, and the FSA asks for 28 days' notice before you begin trading. The council may visit or phone to check how you store stock.

Reselling sealed, branded goods is the lighter route. Baking or repacking loose sweets into bags makes you responsible for allergen labelling and hygiene, and the inspection will look harder at your kitchen.

Keep a simple record of where each batch came from, with the supplier invoice. If a product is recalled, you can see straight away which orders it went into.

02

Popular lines and where to source them

Imported crisps, fizzy drinks, Japanese snacks and limited edition chocolate bars are the staples of food shows on Whatnot and TikTok Shop. Sell mystery snack boxes at one price per box.

Buy from UK importers and wholesalers who supply English labels and confirm the products meet UK rules. Grey imports from a supermarket abroad can contain banned additives.

03

Labels, allergens and dates

Sealed products from a UK importer carry the label already. Check it shows ingredients with allergens highlighted, a date, and a UK or EU business address.

Put the best before date in the listing for anything with less than three months left. If a buyer opens a box of short dated chocolate without warning, expect a refund request.

04

Showing snacks on a live show

Hold each packet up to the camera with the front facing out, then turn it to show the date. Buyers on food shows ask about flavour and size more than condition, so keep one open sample of each line on the desk to describe.

Keep chocolate off the desk under the ring light, where it softens during a long show.

05

Packing food so it arrives whole

Use a box for anything that crushes. Crisps and biscuits break in a mailing bag, and cans dent each other without padding between them.

Bag drinks in a sealed plastic bag before they go in the box, so a leak stays in the bag. Fill the gaps with paper so nothing moves when you shake the box.

Kit for this step

06

Postage, heat and summer orders

Send food on a tracked service so you can see where a parcel is if it's delayed. Avoid posting chocolate on a Friday in hot weather, when it can sit in a depot over the weekend.

In summer, you can pause chocolate lines or add a note that melting in transit isn't covered. Put it in the listing before the sale.

Common mistakes

Each one costs you money or reviews, and each has a fix.

  • The FSA asks you to register with the council at least 28 days before you start selling.
  • If you buy American sweets from an unchecked source, you may stock banned additives, so use an importer that sells for the UK.
  • Crisps posted in a mailing bag arrive as crumbs and come back as a refund request, so box anything that crushes.
  • If you leave the best before date out of the listing, buyers return short dated stock, so show the date on camera and in the text.
  • Cans packed against each other with no padding dent and leak, so wrap each one or divide them with paper.

Setups

Complete kits for one kind of seller, costed and laid out.

Snack box seller in a registered spare room: the kit, photographed as a studio still life
15 itemsTikTok ShopeBay50–150 orders a week

Snack box seller in a registered spare room

£413to £675

Spare-bedroom setup for a Vinted clothing seller: the kit, photographed as a studio still life
10 itemsVintedDepopeBay40–80 orders a week

Spare-bedroom setup for a Vinted clothing seller

£265to £436

Whatnot card setup: £300 starter kit: the kit, photographed as a studio still life
11 itemsWhatnoteBay10–40 orders a week

Whatnot card setup: £300 starter kit

£218to £363

Postage per order

What most orders like these go by, at today’s published prices. Prices checked 6 October 2026.

Compare all couriers
  • Royal MailRoyal Mail Tracked 48 Small ParcelUsual

    £3.75

    TrackedUp to 2 kg

    Clothing and small boxed items up to 2 kg, with tracking for less than untracked 2nd Class.

  • Royal MailRoyal Mail Tracked 48 Medium Parcel

    £5.70 to £12.25

    TrackedUp to 20 kg

    Trainers, homeware and electronics up to 20 kg, tracked and cheaper than untracked 2nd Class.

How to pack it

Crisps and biscuits in a mailing bag. They arrive as crumbs.

Open the Packaging Builder
  1. 1Seal drinks and anything that could leak in a plastic bag.
  2. 2Box the order and fill every gap with paper so cans and packets can't move.
  3. 3Send it tracked, and hold chocolate back from Friday posting in hot weather.
Honeycomb paper wrap, 100 m roll

A plastic-free wrap that cushions as well as light bubble wrap.

Bubble wrap, 500 mm x 100 m

One roll covers a few hundred small parcels.

Selling food and drink

Food sells well on live shows because buyers like watching an unboxing of crisps and chocolate they can't find in their local shop. You follow the same food law from your spare room as a corner shop does.

Register with your council at least 28 days before you start, and check every ingredient list against UK law. Keep best before dates in plain view. Pack in a padded box and send it tracked.

The usual route is sealed, branded products bought from a wholesaler or cash and carry. If you bake at home, you need allergen labels and should expect a council inspection.

Questions

Do I need to register to sell food from home?

Yes. If you run a food business in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, you register with your local council, and the Food Standards Agency asks you to do it at least 28 days before you start trading. Registration is free. Scotland has its own process through the local authority.

Can I sell American sweets and drinks?

Some US products contain colourings or additives that aren't permitted in the UK, and Trading Standards have seized imported sweets for that reason. Buy from a UK importer that relabels for this market, or check each ingredient list before you stock it.

Can I sell food past its best before date?

Food past its best before date can legally be sold if it's still safe to eat, because the date is about quality rather than safety. Tell buyers the date in the listing. You can't sell food past a use by date. Price short dated stock lower.

Can I sell homemade cakes and biscuits?

You can, once you've registered with the council. Expect a food hygiene inspection. A Level 2 food hygiene course isn't a legal requirement, but it shows the council you know the basics. List every ingredient with any of the 14 major allergens emphasised.

Can I sell alcohol on Whatnot or eBay?

Selling alcohol needs a licence from your council, and platforms add their own limits on top. Check your platform's restricted items page and the council's licensing team before listing any alcohol.

Can I post food with Royal Mail?

You can usually post sealed, non-perishable food. Perishable items and some liquids have restrictions, so check Royal Mail's prohibited and restricted items list before you choose a product line.