Finding The Right Wholesale Supplier For Your Retail Business

Finding The Right Wholesale Supplier For Your Retail Business

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So you've decided to strike out on your own and start an online retail business. You've got the website, eBay account, got set up with Amazon, and are ready to send product feeds through Google Products and other shopping-comparison search engines. But what about the product? It's time to find yourself a reliable wholesale supplier.

Before you can start selling online, you need something to sell. From return policies to pricing, the wholesale suppliers you choose to work with can and will directly affect your business.

As you shop around for that perfect wholesale supplier, here are a few things to consider.

Quality of Products

Lower pricing often means lower quality, and lower quality often leads to higher returns, dissatisfied customers, and lower profit margins overall that will require you to sell more just to stay afloat.

Higher quality products will cost you more, but also improves your chances of higher margins and having satisfied customers. Over time, as you build your relationship with the wholesale supplier, you can negotiate lower pricing.

Return Policy

If you are a large-volume dealer, then you can often dictate the terms of your relationship. But when you are first starting out, you have to simply take what the distributor offers you... or find a different distributor to work with.

Your wholesale supplier's return policy will directly influence your own return policy. If your supplier doesn't accept returns, you'll have to decide whether or not you will do the same and suffer the wrath of customers if you implement a no-return policy.

But if you do accept returns when your supplier doesn't, you'll have to decide how to deal with those returned products. Do you consider them sunk cost, resell them at a discount, or try returning them to the manufacturer?

Drop Shipping

Does your wholesale supplier offer drop shipping? If so, it's a way that you can test out a product niche with very little risk.

Drop shipping means that you don't ever purchase any products until after you've already sold them. After making the sale and accepting payment, you pass the order along to the distributor who then ships the order directly to your customer.

Because drop shipping also means shipping out smaller orders as opposed to bulk, drop ship suppliers tend to charge a higher wholesale price. It's up to you to decide whether the higher cost of doing business is worth the time you'll save in packing and shipping, not to mention not having to worry about holding large amounts of inventory that may or may not sell.

In the end, you'll find that there are many different ways to work with wholesale suppliers, each having their advantages and disadvantages. Take a look at each in the perspective of how it will help or harm your particular business model, and make the decision that you feel is best for you.

About the Author:
Stu Wiseman is a marketing consultant at Doba which specializes in connecting retailers with drop ship wholesalers. With over 300 integrated wholesale suppliers, retailers have access to a wide range of wholesale products.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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