The second dream of everyone who ever imagined creating their own product is to see that product on a retailer’s shelf. But you need to be careful not to get ahead of yourself and risk jeopardizing your reputation before your product lands in its first store.
To help you along the way here are some questions to ask yourself to discover if you’re retail ready:
How quickly can you fill orders?
Before they order, new clients will want to know when to expect delivery, and if it’s not on time you might not receive a second order. Evaluate your ability to supply retailers by looking at your production schedule, deciding how many orders you can handle at one time and looking for ways to increase production quickly if your product takes off.
How will you ship orders?
Answering this question involves thinking about shipping method and costs, and bulk and multiple deliveries. Think about the shipping materials you will need to have on hand to fill orders and how you will get your product to retailers in one piece. Research your shipping options to ensure you’re on loosing money on the shipping costs.
What’s your sales strategy?
Before you fill your first wholesale order, you need to find clients. There are probably as many ways to reach potential clients as there are wholesalers! Think about social media, attending trade shows, hiring sales reps and developing a marketing strategy.
Is your buyer’s packet ready?
Your buyers packet introduces your company and your product to potential retail clients. It should include:
An introduction letter that says who you are and why your product is perfect for their store.
A price sheet listing both your wholesale and suggested retail prices.
A line sheet containing professional photos of your product, prices, descriptions and details and delivery information.
An overview is a must have for any product, but if yours needs special explanations on how to use it, its purpose or any other information that isn’t immediately obvious this is especially important. Try to answer all of a retailer’s questions about your product before they ask.
An order form makes it easy for retailers to place their first order. The easier you make it the more likely they are to buy right away. Make sure your form requests all necessary information like billing and shipping addresses, contact name and number, payment options and shipping costs.
Your buyers packet can also contain look books, press clippings, FAQs and testimonials from other wholesalers and retail clients.
Are you ready to work for sales?
It’s going to take time to build a clientele of wholesale customers, especially with a new brand or product. You need to be ready to invest your time into sales or if sales isn’t your forte, invest the money to hire someone with sales experience.
This list is guide will get you on the path to being retail ready, but it takes a lot of work to get your product into the retail market. There’s no fast track, but if you put in the time, effort and dedication to your product, you’ll get there.
