Hi Liam,
Yes, you may encounter drop ship suppliers charging small account set-up fees.
While by no means ideal, a small account set-up fee is fairly common practice among drop shippers. In most cases we can understand the charge because it costs the drop shipper time and money to process a new account.
That said, not all drop shippers in SaleHoo charge a fee. And even if an account set-up fee is charged, you can often get around it by purchasing through the wholesale area of the site rather than the drop shipping area.
I'm sorry to hear about your experience with The Select. Here are UK based drop ship suppliers from our directory. I have also listed the drop shipping fees as indicated in their sites.
Link hidden: Login to view NO upfront fees, NO minimum purchase and NO long-term commitment.
Link hidden: Login to view (GBP25)
Link hidden: Login to view (GBP35 inclusive of vat)
Link hidden: Login to view (fee not indicated, for dropshipping, you can order the item from them at 40% off their retail price, contact Geraldine 020 8678 1018 for more info)
Link hidden: Login to view
There is NO set up fee, but we request you to pre-register so that we can identify those who are legitimate internet traders.
Hope this helps. :)