If you want to begin selling wholesale apparel in 2020, you’ll quickly discover that there are many diverse options to get started in your new venture.
Wholesale often begins with buying directly from a manufacturer, which leads to a lower investment than you might otherwise experience. As a wholesaler, you can sell directly to retailers, or you can have your own e-commerce site.
Success in selling wholesale apparel depends on many factors, such as your niche, your branding, the quality of your products, fulfillment, and customer service.
If you’re interested in wholesale apparel sales but aren’t looking to start your own business, you can start a great career working for an already established brand. For example, UA Brands often has available wholesale apparel sales jobs in Fort Lauderdale, FL where their headquarters is located.
If you’re thinking about selling wholesale apparel in 2020, here are some ideas from our experts to get a head start in your business.
Choose Your Wholesale Apparel Niche Carefully.
There are countless niches in the fashion and apparel industry — women’s fashion, men’s apparel, children’s clothes, fitness garments, medical apparel, etc.
Some of these categories of clothing have quite a lot of competition. This is especially true when breaking the categories into subcategories by demographics, such as age and gender.
Choose a niche that uniquely positions your business and appeals to a specific market. This will help you narrow down which types of products you’ll offer, and you can create a business plan around it.
A targeted market that isn’t saturated with other wholesale apparel sellers will limit your competition while increasing the chances of building long-term customer relationships.
Find a Distributor, Supplier or Manufacturer That Has the Products You Want to Offer
Once you’ve decided on a niche, the next step is to choose and find the products you want to offer. The wholesale apparel market is extensive, and you’ll have a lot of options to choose from, so it’s important to research which manufacturer is best for your targeted niche.
Whether you plan to sell to a retailer, open an e-commerce store or sell directly to consumers, or something altogether different, it’s a good idea to start small. As your business grows, then you can extend your business further and add more inventory.
Research your chosen market and find out what’s popular and which trends are up-and-coming. Those are the must-have items you should put on your list to launch with and build your brand.
Contact any manufacturers that align with your business goals and ask them if they’re willing to have you as a wholesaler for the products they offer. Ask about sales targets you might have to meet or any other stipulations they have.
If the manufacturer won’t supply you directly with the products you want to offer, contact one of their distributors. Bear in mind that having to go below the manufacturer will affect your profit margin, so make sure to calculate those figures before making a final decision.
Each manufacturer likely has a set of guidelines to go by in how you can sell their merchandise. Find those out at the get-go, so there are no surprises later on.
Identify Your Market
Research your niche extensively to discover your ideal market for the wholesale products you’re offering. Depending on your market and how you approach your wholesale business, you may need to find store owners, dealers, or distributors.
If you decide to sell the product directly to consumers, you’ll want to work hard on building your brand and online presence.
You’ll also want to check out any competition relative to your wholesale business. Discover which products they carry, find out about pricing, and research to determine what type of customer service they offer. Find their weakness and focus on turning it into one of your strengths.
Set Up a Website for Your Wholesale Apparel Sales Business
A website is vital for business in the 21st century. There are many options that make it easy to build an eCommerce website on your own, but if you want something custom, or more professional, you may have to higher a developer or agency. It’s vital to consider the UX and SEO-optimization of the website in order to generate traffic and provide shoppers with a good online experience.
Once you have an active and professional website, it becomes a lot easier to get manufacturers to take you seriously. You may even attract other retailers who are interested in buying wholesale products from you.
Locate a Warehouse.
No bones about it, if you’re going to sell apparel wholesale, you’re going to need a place to store your merchandise. For most sellers, that means a warehouse.
Find a location that not only appeals to you but will minimally eat into your profit margin. You might even go to a nearby city adjacent to where you live if real estate is less costly.
The important thing is to have a place where inventory can be organized, kept safe, and is easy to ship from once you’ve made sales.
Success for Your Wholesale Apparel Business Begins Right Now in 2020
While these steps will get you started in the wholesale fashion industry, there are many more steps to having a successful apparel business. These include as establishing clear return policies, obtaining inventory software, and more.
With a good business plan, the right niche and market, and a solid understanding of E-commerce, you’re well on your way.
