Dropship Lifestyle Review: 19 Things to Know Before You Buy Anton Kraly’s DSL Course

What makes Anton Kraly's Dropshipping Lifestyle different from the pack? Afterall, there's no shortage of courses out there all promising to bring you riches from dropshipping while sitting poolside on your laptop.

Anton's Dropship Lifestyle is more of a higher-end course and, if what he claims is true, it opens the door to a more sustainable and higher profit-margin version of dropshipping. In fact, Anton will be the first to tell you he doesn't class this as dropshipping.

IMPORTANT - There is a Dropship Lifestyle Affiliate Program. I'm NOT an affiliate for Anton (or any other dropshipper) - I don't have any hidden motive to influence you to sign up for his DSL course meaning this review is UNBIASED.

I've reviewed dozens of online marketing courses and share everything you need to know to make smart decisions about your future as an online entrepreneur. Including what I believe to be the best online business model to earn real, passive income no matter what the economy is like.

1. What is Anton Kraly's Dropship Lifestyle?

How many dropshipping courses can you name...5, 10, 20?

This one has a totally different approach to dropshipping compared to the usual suspects.

At its core, Dropship Lifestyle still teaches you how to source products, build your Shopify store, and so on.

So, how is it different you ask?

Let's explore…

Dropship Lifestyle takes the business model of dropshipping but focuses on the end result, the LIFESTYLE piece, and reverse-engineers the model to focus on methods that will free up your time in the long run. 

In fact, Anton says he doesn't like using the word "dropshipping" to describe what he teaches but he has to use the name to get attention from wannabe dropshippers.

I'll get into the nitty-gritty of why this approach could be the real deal but first...

2. Who is Anton Kraly?

So who is the man behind the DSL label...

After graduating college, Anton bought a cookie delivery route in Merrick, Long Island, New York back in 2006.

He loaded up his truck every morning from his supplier in Brooklyn and then drove around selling the cookies to retailers on Long Island all day.

If you've ever spent time in any of the NY boroughs, you'll know how horrendous the traffic is and there's no let-up.

No wonder he'd had enough.

He stumbled upon The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss and, being the smart cookie he is (pun intended), realized there are more effective ways to manage his cookie business.

He set up a quick $29 online store and before long, Anton was selling more cookies through his store than he could from his truck route.

Before long, Anton had another lightbulb moment!

Coming to the conclusion that selling cookies was only ever going to provide him a small morsel of profit but seeing the potential with online stores for bigger and better things...

There must be other items that people will purchase online but result in more profit and less work.

So, he sold is cookie store and took off to explore the world while figuring out what that next niche could be.

After spending time traveling Vietnam and Thailand chatting it up with new friends, he hit the jackpot with an idea for dropshipping stores specializing in higher-ticket home furnishings.

He focused less on the number of products and more on the quality and cost of the item.

He continued to see sales rising as he found the sweet spot.

Fast-forward a few years and Anton said he was being hit up non-stop by hoards of fellow dropshippers asking the same questions over and over about his success strategies.

He saw a desperate void to share this knowledge in a more organized fashion - his blueprint for successful dropshipping combined with Tim Ferriss' lifestyle design philosophy.

Alas, Dropship Lifestyle or DSL was baked, sorry...born in 2014.

According to his sales page for the DSL course, he’s had over 10,000 students and counting.

Surprisingly though, Kraly has since sold off his own dropshipping businesses and now just focuses on selling his DSL course, with the help of social media and affiliate marketers.

Kraly has created the lifestyle he wanted, being able to travel and spend time with his wife and young son.

You'll often see pictures of him with his son while working on his laptop or enjoying activities together.

For those who have stumbled upon their first hint of dropshipping and are wondering what the heck this whole thing is…

3. How Does Dropshipping Work?

Here's how it goes:

1. Find a product you can sell online
2. Pick a supplier who will deliver said product to your customers
3. Build an online store where customers can purchase the item
4. Promote the store online (usually via paid ads)
5. Process incoming orders
6. Item arrives at the customers home

If you're more of a 'picture person'

It seems simple enough BUT there's a lot of work involved, with no guarantee that you'll be making any profit in the end.

There are plenty of examples of stores raking in massive numbers but the owners still losing money when all is said and done.

If you're genuinely thinking of getting into dropshipping as your preferred business model, it's important to go in with the understanding that store revenue is very different from profit going into your bank account.

When you're looking at screenshots of store revenue, it can be deceiving to start those calculator dreams...

4. Is Dropshipping Legit or a Scam?

Here's where it gets interesting:

The concept of dropshipping is definitely legit and there are some nationally recognized names in the market who use this model...

Wayfair.com is just one example and they've done it for years.

What you need to look closely at is even the big brand names have been losing money in recent years.

In fact, Covid-19s consumer spending changes gave Wayfair it's FIRST profitable quarter in recent years.

Why should this concern you?

Yes, online shopping is trending up while retail store visits are taking a nose-dive but with worry about looming recessions and the possibility of unemployment, people are going to be much more cautious about spending on non-essentials when there's a risk they might not be able to pay their rent or mortgage.

Dropshipping courses also get a bad rep.

People often fall for the sales pitches claiming thousands of dollars worth of sales while sitting on a beach. Be careful...all is not as it seems.

As someone who tried dropshipping, one of the biggest letdowns was getting sales only to realize I only get to keep a small fraction of the money after all the expenses.  

It's easy to get hyped about the dollar signs on the store sales tracker but the actual profit you get to keep is more like 10-20% if you're one of the better dropshippers.

Compared to my favorite business model, Lead Generation, where there's 80-90% profit margin...more on that later.

You'll also need to be ready for:

• Dealing with fraudsters and suspicious orders on your store

If you're new to dropshipping or looking for more strategies, there's a lot of skepticism out there about the many courses.

Like most things internet-related these days...you've really got to do your research to determine what's good and what's fake.

5. How much does Anton's Course Cost? Any Specials?

Let's find out.

Anton recently released DSL version 8.0 and with it came another price increase. 

Get ready for this...

The premium+ package will set you back $4,997.

It does come includes the dropship blueprint and a done for you store, which can speed up the process.

You also have access to 3 months of mentoring to get started.

The big-daddy of packages, referred to as Ultimate, is a whopping $8,997.

It has the same stuff as the premium+ but comes with a full year of mentoring, his inbox funnels course, plus a retreat ticket.

Keep in mind, you'll need to pony up for your own travel expenses and they choose some very exotic locations that will cost a pretty penny to fly to.

If those prices seem out of reach, there's an intro packaged offered in small print for 'only' $2,997. 

It contains 7 modules plus an intro:

1. Overview
2. Niche Selection
3. Market Research
4. Create Your Website
5. Get Approval With Suppliers
6. Optimize For Conversations
7. Get Traffic
8. Automation

With the new release of DSL v8.0, don't expect to find any discounts.

After a quick search, it doesn't look like Anton has offered discounts on any of the previous versions either.

Pros of Kraly's Dropship Lifestyle

Anton's recipe is a fresh take on many of the competitor's courses but only you can decide if this approach is right for your taste buds.  

6. A Refreshing Approach to Dropshipping 

DSL isn’t about joining the rat races of the dropshipping world. 

You won’t find all these spy apps to see what is selling like hot cakes and how to swipe the winning ad.

And you won't be selling cheap crap off AliExpress that takes weeks to arrive at your customer's doorstep.

Instead, Anton teaches you how to find “Evergreen” products with a consistent, long term sales cycle and create partnerships with local suppliers who will "dropship" those good on your behalf. 

For example, Anton takes the photo below and points out all the examples right in front of us that qualify as evergreen items that can be sold in the target price bracket.

Meaning that they're not seasonal purchases and they don't become obsolete in a short amount of time.

I mean, we'll always need lights in our house.

They can also be sold for $200 plus which means opportunities for bigger profits.

Another key difference is DSL has a very specific target buying audience that it recommends to it's students.

This feeds into the mindset of dialing in on the ideal customer instead of wasting your time dealing with lots of high maintenance customers - main of whom will never really be interested in buying or will suck up your time

Kraly shares his experience on why the lower-income and super affluent customers create more work than the upper-middle class. 

There's a mixed bag of additional advice and hacks in the videos from previous retreats where current DSL members share their experience for automating tasks or workarounds for dealing with customers and suppliers while not letting them know that you're sitting by a pool in Thailand.

Anton jokes that apparently, suppliers get really pissed off when they find out you're sat on a beach getting paid while they're doing all the heavy lifting.   

7. Reverse Engineering the Lifestyle Component

I really like how Anton keeps this as the overall focus of the program. 

It all starts with targeting the right kind of target audience and products that can produce higher profit margins. 

Certainly makes more sense to sell 10 items than 1,000 if the income is the same.

The entire set up is geared toward maximum returns with less time once you have your store and systems set up.

There are sections for outsourcing and getting VAs in place to manage the day-to-day tasks and customer service calls.

There's a mixed bag of additional advice and hacks in the videos from previous retreats. There’s a few nuggets here with current DSL members sharing their own experiences in automating tasks or finding workarounds for dealing with customers and suppliers while not letting them know that you're sitting by a pool in Thailand.

Anton jokes that apparently, suppliers get really pissed off when they find out you're sat on a beach getting paid while they're doing all the heavy lifting.

8. Strong Product Research Method

For example, Anton takes the photo below and points out all the examples right in front of us that qualify as evergreen items that can be sold in the target price bracket.

The program walks you through how to identify possible products and then put them through a series of checks to make sure they are the right fit.

If you really want assurances or just a second opinion, there’s an option to reach out to the DSL support team and they will confirm whether your niche is a good fit or not. 

From experience, so much time is spent in product research that this system is a game-changer. Firstly, because you’re not having to constantly find new products to sell because the ones you have will keep producing for you.

Secondly, being able to ask DSL support and help eliminate a lot of the guess work saving both time and money on testing.

9. Customer Support and a Community to Join

The fact that Anton has a responsive customer service team in place is impressive.

Unlike a lot of the other course where you're on your own watching a video, here you can reach out and ask a question if you're stuck. 

Anton is super active on his Facebook page answering questions and sharing ideas.

With the higher-level package, Anton's team will even evaluate your selected niche idea to help you avoid a dud. 

This could be a life-saver if it helps you avoid a dead-end niche that's that would kill your dropshipping career faster than the cookie monster devours a plate of cookie.

The major package also includes a ticket to his next DSL retreat. They are held in a different country each year and have included some exotic locations like Thailand and Bali.

The next one is going to be held in Portugal.

Why should you want a community when you're a solopreneur?

Let me share a secret with you here...

Being a solopreneur is nice because you don't have a boss telling you what to do nor do you have to deal with annoying employees.

BUT...there's only so much you can accomplish on your own and it can be a bit lonely for most folk.

How do you solve this?

Networking and masterminding with people who are on a similar path.

Being surrounded by people who 'get' what you're doing and can share their strategies and experience with you is an absolute game-changer.

I have a group that I'm a part of in my business model and some of these guys have become the best mentors and friends I could have wished for.

They celebrate with me when I've hit major milestones, been willing to test strategies with me, and probably most important of all - they've been willing to push me outside of my comfort zone when I needed it most to keep growing.

There's also an element of trust here with being part of a community too.

While there will be people who don't succeed with the DSL course, you can get a feel for the mindset it takes from those who are super successful with it.

Cons of Anton Kraly's Dropship Lifestyle

10. It's a BIG Investment

DSL is one of the most expensive options on the dropshipping course market.

Yes, there's a lot on offer here and the highest package comes with some done-for-you aspects which can speed up the process.

Still, it's a LOT of money and you'd better be ABSOLUTELY 100% certain that you're ready to jump into this full steam ahead and no looking back.

There is a refund policy in place but you have to meet some really tough criteria to qualify for it.

• Built out your website
• You have to show that you've really given it a fair shake of the stick by proving:
• And you only have a 30-day window to do this in or NO refund.

From the wording, it sounds like a strict policy for his course and that's kind of action is a lot to get accomplished in 30 days or less to qualify.

To be fair, Kraly puts it right there in print - don't buy the course if you're not fully committed.

Still...

There's a lot of angry reviews from people tried and failed, like this one:

With such a BIG investment, it's smart to proceed with caution and make sure you know exactly what you're getting yourself into.

11. Anton's No Longer in Dropshipping Himself

Speaking of which,

This one sends my spidey sense tingling a bit.

Anton got out of the dropshipping industry a few years back and now focuses on selling this course.

I'm sure he has his reasons but I'm a little skeptical when the person I'm learning from doesn't have any skin in the game themselves.

If it's really such a great business model, why get out of it?

There's a lot of talk about how difficult it is to make money in dropshipping and how the market is becoming as saturated as the cookie aisle in the supermarket.

Personally, I decided to get out of dropshipping a couple of years ago when I found a better online business model but I'm not sure I'd be so quick to recommend someone drop a big sum of cash to learn something I decided to stop doing.

12. Finding Your Own Local Drop Ship Suppliers

Huge sticking point here for me.

What if you can't find someone who'll agree to work with you?

That alone will throw your entire business down the toilet.

And it's not that easy - how do you show you're a credible business partner without a track record to prove it.

If you can find a quality supplier, they're probably good because they're very selective on who they allow to promote and sell their products.

Now you have to convince them to partner with you.

Just as many dropshippers have been ripped off by suppliers, there are a gazillion examples of suppliers being left out to dry with customers who are angry at them because of dubious dropshippers over-promising delivery dates, providing shoddy customer service, or cutting and running off with the money.

Dropshipping can be a low-trust environment and it's hard to prove yourself in advance.

Still, if you can find the suppliers, you might have a winner.      

13. Not the Best Business Model for 2021

Here's a major concern here moving into 2021 and beyond.

The threat of a recession has been looming for some time if you follow the experts but has been made worse with the events of 2020.

Here's what the New York Times had to say about it:

The pandemic has left the economy a complete shambles and it seems that no country is immune from financial struggles.

It's worth asking yourself if people will still be buying nearly as many non-essentials for the next few years?

Anton recognizes the potential nose-dive heading our way too.

The other BIG problem with getting into dropshipping now is it's becoming a saturated market real fast. 

Everyone is looking for the NEXT BIG THING they can jump on and start selling on their stores.

I'm sure you've scrolled your social media feed and swiped on a sponsored post for something that thought was interesting.

Two days later there are like 20 different sponsored posts popping up on your feed - all with different sellers and slightly different prices. 

As soon as there's a smoking hot product, everyone and their aunt is all over it and undercutting each other or developing their own version.

There are boatloads of legitimate businesses that use online stores as a primary route to sell their own products and move lots of stock as a result.

There's also plenty of established folk in the dropshipping industry who already have their systems dialed in and an established client base.

However, even amateurs can throw up a quick store and start churning out ads.

With such an easy business model to get started in, you could find yourself left with just crumbs.

Concluding Thoughts

14. Do Anton's Students Actually Make Money?

What a great question!

There are examples of student's making sales using Anton's DSL methods:

BUT there's also a LOT of people bitching about not making a cent and it being a rip off:

There are many under-appreciated factors that go into being successful at any business model and some are easier to get a handle on than others.

Quality mentoring and instruction are important but so is aligning the business opportunity with your personal strengths.

Let's try to breakdown who might be the right fit...    

15. Who's a Good Fit for Anton Kraly's Dropship Lifestyle?

This is key to deciding if this is the correct channel for you to invest your money in...

• Someone in a location with local suppliers of high ticket goods
• Someone with a lot of money to invest up front in the course
  
• Someone who's ready and able to put in considerable time to get this going
  
• Someone with the finances and attention to detail for advertising and testing
  

It takes a certain kind of problem-solving mindset to be successful as an entrepreneur.

DSL is a lot of money to invest if you're not confident that you have what it takes to make it work out for you.   

16. What alternatives are there to Anton's Anton Kraly's Dropship Lifestyle?

If you're interested in a deep dive of the Top 10 Dropshipping Courses, click here.

In my review I go through the good, the bad, and the ugly - check it out to be an informed consumer.

How do they compare?

Adrian Morrison's eCom Success Academy is the original dropshipping course on the market with many still considering it to be the standard all other courses are compared to.

Adrian has a proven track record in dropshipping, meaning he's credible and has tried and tested the strategies himself.

His Facebook ads training is very in-depth and the case studies are excellent to learn from as a newbie.

The downside here...

He relies only on Facebook advertising and you're in royal trouble if your ad manager account gets suspended - and more likely than not, it will.

There have also been complaints that Adrian isn't super active or especially accessible in the group. 

eCom Elites from Franklin Hatchett stands out for its good value and hearty content. 

The basic package is only $197.

I say basic but it's far from limited.

There's more in here than most courses provide and Franklin allows upgrades to the top package if you cover the difference in price when you're ready for the more advanced strategies.

The drawback, he's a bit too conservative on ad spending which could mean you miss the boat on selling your product and have to keep moving on to something different. 

Overall, you can't beat the value Hatchett provides here for a course under $200 which also includes updated video posts when necessary.    

Parting Thoughts on Anton Kraly's Dropship Lifestyle

DSL is a different flavor of dropshipping and that might appeal to people who don't want to be running around looking for the latest trend or low-balling competitors on price.

The emphasis is on the quality of a sale over the number of sales to reach your numbers, meaning means less work and more play.

The focus on quality local suppliers who enforce the Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) policy is key.

But that's also where the problems begin - this is a lot more work than using AliExpress or some of the other regular dropshipping supply channels.

You're targeting a very specific market sector here - the Upper Middle Class - but so are the other DSL students and many other dropshippers who want a piece of that same pie.

All this in a time of where people are tired of ads and having products shoved in their face. Not to mention rising unemployment, a pending recession hanging over us, and the mistrust of social media advertising.

There's no doubt Anton was successful with dropshipping back in 2015 and this method worked then. But will it still work now...?

How Does Dropshipping Stand up to Others? Like Lead Generation?

Now, have you read MJ DeMarco's fantastic book, "The Millionaire Fastlane"? 

It's considered an essential bible for entrepreneurs? 

If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend doing so before making a final decision on your business model of choice.

When evaluating in opportunity, there's 5 areas to dig into to assess it's potential according to MJ:

• Control
• Entry
• Need
• Time
• Scale

DeMarco uses the acronym C.E.N.T.S. to quickly assess these factors when making decisions on business ventures.

For an in-depth review of The Millionaire Fastlane, C.E.N.T.S. and how to apply the knowledge to make smarter decisions, click here.

For now, I'll take DeMarco's methodology here and compare Dropshipping and Lead Generation as viable business models in just a couple of categories to give you an example of how it works.

18. Control

Okay, here's the terrifying reality facing anyone relying on these major platforms like Shopify, Facebook, YouTube, Google Ads, Instagram, and so on...they have tons of rules and regulations AND the moment you violate one, your account gets shut down automatically.

All too often, you've absolutely no clue what even triggered it.

It can take days or weeks to get a human being to actually review your case.

Your marketing reach could go from 100-0 in an instant and it's not a quick fix.

Sometimes it's literally impossible to get your account up and running again.

There's plenty of examples online where this has left business owners devastated and broken.

Profits have come to a screeching halt.

This headache was one of the main reasons why I got out of dropshipping and into Lead Gen.

Lead Generation is predictable and certain income every month.

Just this one site brings me $9000 a year.

And take a guess at how many of these kinds of digital properties I have?

Oh and the bonus?

My yearly expense to run one site is less than 3% of the income it generates - the 97% profit margin makes this a clear winning strategy.

I use Google's organic traffic - it's free and they can't suddenly cut you off for using a word or image that breaks their ever-changing policies.

Once the initial work is done to rank #1, I rarely have to touch the site ever again and money turns up in my mailbox every month from the business owner taking my leads.    

19. Entry

DeMarco stressed how important it is that your business of choice has a higher barrier to entry.

Why?

If anyone and everyone can do it, it's a saturated market in no time. 

When you’re facing heavy competition for similar items, it's not long before the price becomes the differentiating selling point and that's the fast-track to struggle, and lower profit margins, not a success and long-term wealth.

It's easy to get sucked in and follow the crowd because it feel safe.

Our natural biology hard-wires us to fit in with the herd for acceptance.

So, what are the barriers to entry with dropshipping...not much.

Can you set up a basic store and find something on AliExpress to sell?

Easy and it just $29 a month for a basic Shopify store.

Set up some ads on Facebook or Google?

Sure.

You can call Google Ads with your credit card and they'll be more than happy to help you get something set up.

Lead Generation, on the other hand...

Most people don't even know it exists or where to start.

There is a specific process to follow and skills to learn to be good at it.

And most people who are looking for that get-rich-quick scheme aren't going to stick with something that requires effort and patience.

BUT...

That scarcity is exactly what makes it such an in-demand need from business owners everywhere AND why they'll pay each month for your leads.

Conclusion

I hope you found this Dropship Lifestyle course review useful.

There’s a lot to unpackage here and while it’s dropshipping, it’s not exactly dropshipping as most people think of it. Heck, even Anton would prefer not to name it dropshipping but knows he has to if he’s going to market the DSL program to the right folk.

In theory, if you can get a couple of good suppliers and dial in your advertising strategy, this method has a lot of potential for someone who really wants the freedom to travel or do other things with their time.

That said, locking in those suppliers is harder than it sounds. These guys don’t dropship for a reason and are going to be very cautious about who they do business with and what risks they are willing to take with their reputation. 

In the past, I did make decent money in dropshipping and had some experience selling higher-ticket items. With the rising cost of ads and having to trust Google and Facebook for my income made me very nervous. These companies aren’t interested in the one-man set ups even if we spend a few thousand a month on ads. They are focused on delivering for the major corps who drop millions in paid ads through their platforms. Knowing that my entire income pipeline could disappear overnight led me to keep looking for a better solution.

Sadly, no dropshipping course can solve having to use paid ads or other methods that hand over control of income generating channels.

Now, I focus local lead generation and benefit from Google’s organic traffic instead. And yes, I’m laughing all the way to the bank...well when I look at my banking app on my cellphone but you catch my drift.

Do yourself a solid and click on the button below and see for yourself why Local Lead Gen is the online biz model for 2021 and beyond.