Etsy's Handmade Blog
Holiday How-To: Wholesale on Etsy
Story by daniellexo
Published on September 17, 2008 in How-To 		Photo by

tuccipaperco

Have you ever received an inquiry about wholesaling your work from a boutique owner and wondered how to respond? Also, what should you charge? And how do you handle the increased volume of this kind of order?  So many questions spring to mind!

With the holidays around the corner, brick and mortar shops are looking to stock up on the perfect gifts! (And where better to start their search than Etsy?) Read on to find out more about wholesaling your work to shops and galleries. Have an experience to share or want to learn more? Leave it in the comments below or join us this Wednesday, September 17th, 2008 at 4pm Eastern in the Virtual Labs (our live online classroom!).

Why Wholesale? 

Why should you wholesale your work when you can sell it for more online? There are a few reasons. First, consider the time it takes to photograph, list, promote, package and ship your own work. When you are sending a larger quantity of items to a wholesale account, they do this work for you. Secondly, wholesaling is an opportunity to create a consistent income from recurring wholesale orders. If you wholesale to multiple buyers, this can bring in a steady and large portion of your income.  

Tip: Creating items in multiples, as is required for a lot of wholesale orders, can cut down on your labor time (per item) and cost of supplies (if you buy in bulk).  

Minimums 

The shop owner contacting you might ask you what your "minimum" is. If you've never heard this term, what they are referring to is the minimum order they need to place to receive your work at wholesale prices. They are looking for a dollar amount: for example, if they place an order of $200 or more, they have met your minimum. You should decide what your minimum for wholesale orders is going to be based on your costs. What amount makes the wholesale price worth this discount?   

Pricing

Retailers interested in your items are looking to sell your items for double their price. This is called a keystone markup. Keep in mind that many interested retailers might assume your Etsy prices are already at their retail price. This means that when they ask you for your wholesale prices, they are usually interested in the price you have listed on Etsy, cut in half. Many sellers find this a bit of a quandary. When they've listed their items without taking this situation into account, they may find themselves severely undercut if they take 50% off their current prices to take advantage of a wholesaling opportunity. In this situation, you can either increase your Etsy prices or let your wholesale buyers know that your wholesale discount is less than 50%. Both have their own challenges: You need to weigh the pros and cons for both situations and figure out which will be most advantageous for your shop. If you are serious about selling your work in brick and mortar shops, I would suggest increasing your Etsy prices. It is always best to have the prices of your work consistent online and off. This will keep your wholesale buyers happy! 

Tip: You can keystone your Etsy price + shipping!  If a shopper buys your item from one of your wholesale accounts, they don't have to incur the shipping price. This is a little trick that can help raise your wholesale prices a touch. 

For more info on this topic, check out Bethela's great article, Preparing for Wholesaling, from the Art of Pricing series.  

Terms

Before you send information, such as your terms of agreement, I would make sure you are dealing with a "legit" buyer.  You can ask them for their resale certificate, business license or state tax resellers permit. You should politely ask for more information about their business, not only to see if they are "legit," but to make sure your work will fit in with their customers. If they are local, go and meet the owners in person. If not, make sure you have a look at their website, photos, blogs, etc. Remember, this is your business and you set the rules. If something feels odd, investigate! 

When a buyer comes to you wanting wholesale information, make sure you set your terms. We have talked about some of these conditions already, such as minimums. You may also want to set a separate minimum for reorders (i.e. $200 first time wholesale minimum, $100 reorder minimum). 

Next, let them know what your shipping fees are for wholesale orders.  Definitely include the price of tracking and insuring your packages.  

You may also like to mention your return policy in your terms.  Many artists will only return defective or damaged merchandise for a certain period, such as within 90 days. This is, of course, up to you.  

Lastly, let the buyer know how to order from you. If they have found you via Etsy, let them know you can create a reserved, customized listing in your Etsy shop just for them. (Here's how!) It is perfectly acceptable to ask for complete payment up front! By creating a wholesale listing for them through Etsy, you have a transaction record and more resolution options should the agreement go sour.  

Tip: Creating a listing through Etsy for your wholesale buyers can increase your feedback and also serve as a small advertising to other shops who are looking to buy wholesale from you! 

Packaging

Packaging is just as important when sending out a wholesale order as it is with an Etsy order. Make sure you have tagged your items with your business name! This way your buyers (online and offline) will connect your work with your brand. Cute, thoughtful packaging will impress your wholesale buyers and their shoppers.  

Hopefully, this has shed some light on the sometimes daunting topic of wholesaling!  It can be an intimidating step for small business owners, but if you are prepared, this can take your business to the next level. You can find out more about wholesale and consignment in the following Storque articles: 

The Art of Pricing: Preparing for Wholesaling |  The Ins and Outs of Consignment | Let's Trade: Behind the Scenes at the National Stationery Trade Show

We'd love to hear your wholesaling tips in the comments below or live at our Holiday How-To workshop in the Virtual Labs this Wednesday, September 17th, 2008 at 4pm. 

Tags brick and mortar, business, help, Holiday, Holiday How-to, HOW-TO, minimums, Seller Handbook, sellers, selling, terms, wholesale, wholesaler, wholesaling, Your Shop 101
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67 comments     Login to add your own!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:09 p.m. BululuStudio

Great Article Danielle, nice tips to keep in mind.

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:21 p.m. hullabalooboutique

Thanks for the article! Very helpful and informative.

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:22 p.m. redyellowandblueink

thank you so much for this article-I really need business and technical information, tips, and help with this whole business.....business. thanks!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:24 p.m. bubblegirlknits

Good info Danielle...I just had a wholesale request this week. I'm going to try to make it to the lab today.

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:32 p.m. NMdesign

This is a perfectly timed article for me...i'm just getting around to some local shops, and it's great to know what the standard practice is. Always hard to figure out the fine line of wholesale/retail pricing. Thanks!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:34 p.m. solidio

great article w/ lots of useful info. thanks!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:39 p.m. StyleDiva

I hope to make it to the lab! Thanks for the tips! xo

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:42 p.m. jellybeans

great article, and very very helpful :)

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:49 p.m. LittleBitShabby

Thanks for this information. I just had a lady ask me about this at a craft fair I just did. She is opening a new store and now I will be able to make a deal. :)

Sept. 17, 2008 at 12:54 p.m. CrowbirdieBeads

Perfect timing! Great info, now I'm hitting up the links in it to see what else I can glean. I just had a request and now, rather than being so intimidated by it, I can try to figure things out with more logic and less panic :D

Sept. 17, 2008 at 1:16 p.m. KalliopeGifts

Excellent article, thank you for this information! I'm starting to make the rounds at local shops, and this is so helpful. Thank you Danielle and Etsy!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 1:17 p.m. LieblingDesigns

Awesome article. Thanks for laying everything out for us!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 1:47 p.m. WickItDesigns

Great article! I wanted to mention the "will you send free full size samples" to me before I purchase your products? Of course they will offer to pay the shipping most of the time. I did some research to see how experienced wholesalers usually respond when I first started wholesaling and this is the answer I received the most. Offer to ship what they are interested in at regular price explaining that they will receive a credit with their first wholesale order reflecting the wholesale price quoted. I have only had one buyer respond negatively, most are perfectly fine with this response. Here is something to consider, if they ask 100 sellers to send 3 items (of course they'll pay the shipping-the product is free), they have received 300 free products less shipping. Don't be surprised to see your items listed on ebay or at the local flea market!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 1:51 p.m. littlepurls

Thank you so much for this!!!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 2:16 p.m. Mimiandlola

Thank you for the great article!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 2:19 p.m. SeaSideSupply

Great article Danielle! Word for word these are pretty much my policies! DEFINITELY get proof of resale!!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 4:06 p.m. dogties

Great,
Thanks for sharing.

Sept. 17, 2008 at 8:07 p.m. retro80s

Thanks for sharing! :-)

Sept. 17, 2008 at 8:09 p.m. PhospheneDream

Great article and good information from WickItDesign.

Sept. 17, 2008 at 8:54 p.m. CorkandCotton

Thanks for the article. Very informative and helpful!

Sept. 17, 2008 at 9:39 p.m. holycraft

Great article--very helpful!

Sept. 18, 2008 at 12:21 a.m. Xenotees

This is so helpful! I'm fairly new to wholesale & I really needed this information, thank you!

Sept. 18, 2008 at 1:39 a.m. happyfamily

Wholesale is just too much fun! We have a few B&M shops + wholesale + Etsy + sell online and are always glad to soak up any info we can find on this subject.

Sept. 18, 2008 at 7:43 a.m. louloubell

I actually do it backwards, and offer a smaller minimum for the initial order, if they want to test the waters in their shop, to make sure it's a good fit... This way the don't have to make a big commitment off the start, most of my wholesale buyers seem to appreciate this, and will return for more again : )

Sept. 18, 2008 at 9:01 a.m. ConstantGalore

This is a great article.
Now if only someone wanted to buy wholesale from me...

Must list more chocolates...

Sept. 18, 2008 at 10:07 a.m. ckloostra

Regarding packaging... as Danielle says, hangtags are a must, and even better if they have a sentence or two that is a "story" about you or the work. (ie "This widget was lovingly made by Susie, who works out of her garage studio in the mountains of Tennessee").

Your packaging, however, SHOULD NOT contain your website, email or contact information. Retailers will remove this information (even if it means removing the whole hangtag), as they don't want their customers going directly to you to make purchases.

By keeping your contact information off the tag, you are showing your support for driving customer traffic to the stores and galleries that carry your work.

Sept. 18, 2008 at 10:14 a.m. autumnsarrival

Wonderful article and very informative. I've had several requests for wholesale orders and only one, so far, has been ligit. Look out for those that want to buy 3 items at "wholesale" price! They don't REALLY want to resell your items, they just want a major discount and you'll never hear from them again. When I sent them my terms, the response I got for 2 of them was, "I don't know what I would do with 20-30 pair". Well, for personal use, I can see that as a problem but if they were going to resell them in their own retail stores, 20-30 pair is not a whole lot and wouldn't have been a problem. Beware of those just wanting a huge discount and keep away from them!

Sept. 18, 2008 at 10:54 a.m. ArleenDesign

Thats sum up the answers to my questions. Thanks for the information.

Sept. 18, 2008 at 11:53 a.m. alexandraleah

Thanks for this very informative article. Well written, well organized, very helpful. Thanks!

Sept. 18, 2008 at 12:59 p.m. TresFleury

Great advice. V. helpful : Thanks!

Sept. 19, 2008 at 9:55 a.m. Ameera

Not only an awesome article but such good feedback comments too. Thank you all so much for sharing!

Sept. 20, 2008 at 10:56 p.m. lildid

I could have definately benefitted from reading this BEFORE my first wholeale sale, rather than stumbling through it on my own. Excellent article, I will bookmark it for next time to refer back.

Sept. 21, 2008 at 3:20 p.m. PamperMePlease

I agree lildid!

Does anyone know where to check the resale certificate, business license or state tax resellers permit to see if the business is legit? Is there a web site?

I had to get a ton of info from my first wholesale client and just trust my gut...not recommended but it worked for me once.

Oct. 1, 2008 at 11:36 a.m. SlinkyCalhoun

This helped so much! Thank you!

Oct. 21, 2008 at 10:46 a.m. maxscentsoycandles

Thank you so much for this article. I don't know what I would do without the Handbook articles. I just received my 2nd wholesale request, and I'm going to memorize this article before I respond.

Oct. 21, 2008 at 12:50 p.m. bugbitesplayfood

Excellent! I just received my first wholesale order & would be lost without it!! thank you daniellexo

Nov. 11, 2008 at 6:23 p.m. quayandco

I'm going to piggy back with PamperMePlease. Where does one confirm the resale info that's given??

Nov. 30, 2008 at 3:03 p.m. maryeb

Thanks for the info. This looks very helpful. Will there be any follow-up articles?

Dec. 23, 2008 at 7:58 a.m. pixiepotions

I disagree. I think it is irresponsible NOT to include your business contact information on the label, and I do believe in certain industries (food, bath and body) not including the business address, site, phone number is a big no no. FDA standards and whatnot.

I have never seen a client rip labels off of products to keep their shoppers from knowing where/whom they come from. If I did have that happen, they would no longer be my wholesale client.

There is such a thing as private labeling.

Dec. 23, 2008 at 8:02 a.m. pixiepotions

Which would be another topic that would be great to cover! Private Labeling!

Jan. 8, 2010 at 10:37 a.m. BluebirdHandmadeBags

Great information! I've just been asked to wholesale some of my products and I didn't know where to start. Now I do!!!

Feb. 1, 2010 at 12:09 a.m. KamiMono

Thank you very much for this article, two years later, still good advice!

Feb. 9, 2010 at 5:26 p.m. jennytrinh

How do you handle payments? This boutique in Alaska send me money after I send them the goods, just for a few times, then she ignored my calls, stole more than $2,000 of my items.

Feb. 9, 2010 at 5:35 p.m. LAGlass

Terrific information.
I have been wholesaleing worldwide with galleries for 25+ years and have also had some wholesale orders on Etsy since I joined 1 year ago.
My adivise is definitely stick with your policies regarding minimum and re-order $ amounts or as I do when I sell with www.wholesalecrafts.com, those who would like to order less than the minimum will be charged an extra fee, this way you will know who is serious and legit.

Feb. 9, 2010 at 5:55 p.m. thedirtyhousewife

This has helped so much this week! Thanks for bringing it back!

Feb. 9, 2010 at 6:37 p.m. polkadotsandblooms

This is so funny. I just had my first wholesale request in today, so this is super timely!

Feb. 9, 2010 at 6:50 p.m. EightBabyLegs

this really helps with my question, "well, how much should i charge". thanks!!!!

Feb. 9, 2010 at 6:50 p.m. ron987red

Great ideas will try this out I have an item or two I can wholesale.Thanks for info.

Feb. 9, 2010 at 6:51 p.m. royalrugrats

Great information! I did my first wholesale order a few ago and have found that many other wholesale inquires are coming through ETSY!

Feb. 9, 2010 at 7:14 p.m. cayennepeppy

pricing is for sure the hardest part of wholesaling. finding that perfect price that works for everyone.

Feb. 9, 2010 at 7:19 p.m. lovahandmade

Very nice article on wholesaling! I work with quite a few brick and mortar shops off of Etsy but recently started offering wholesale lots right in my Etsy shop and have sold quite a few just in the past few weeks plus gained two more b&m stores in the process! Definitely worthwhile to add a wholesale section to your existing shop!

Feb. 9, 2010 at 10:11 p.m. RomasMasion

My recommendation in regards to wholesale. Be sure you can still provide great customer service to your wholesale customer. It is very frustrating to get lousy service from a seller that is providing great service to its retail customers but can't provide wholesale items in a timely manner. It is nice to get wholesale orders but say no if you have too many excuses why you can't provide product and customer service. Also be wary of people who want to complete the transaction off of Etsy. Then you can't leave negative feedback if you need to....

Feb. 10, 2010 at 8:38 a.m. mapleshoppers

Thanks for sharing the terms of agreement when selling wholesale. Great insight!

Feb. 10, 2010 at 9:49 a.m. NewGalexC

I really appreciate all the info on this subject. I'm actually wanting to approach some shops so I can use all the advice I can get!

Feb. 10, 2010 at 10:09 a.m. BizziBeads

Really interesting information, I shall sit and read it at my leisure. I am new to Etsy but I hope to sell jewellery really soon!!!

Feb. 10, 2010 at 4:31 p.m. whatzits

Oh, my goodness! This was super helpful. Thank you for this article.

Feb. 11, 2010 at 9:31 a.m. littlegreenthings

Thank you for posting this again. It was a great help. Just days ago I got my first request via Etsy for a wholesale order. The buyer asked for a line sheet with pricing. Does anyone here have experience with compiling something like this?

Feb. 15, 2010 at 11:19 p.m. MyWisteriaCottage

Good article and I agree with the wholesale idea that we will send at regular price with a coupon for the same or larger amount with the actual wholesale order. It seperates the wheat from the shaft.

Feb. 16, 2010 at 2:34 a.m. OpusMuse

I've been approached a few times, but didn't take the leap due to lack of know-how for wholesaling. This article helps to open my mind to it. Thank you for sharing this info!

Feb. 16, 2010 at 2:53 p.m. edyodeco

It is really helpful ! Thank you you for sharing :)

Feb. 21, 2010 at 11:30 a.m. DestinysTreasures

Great artical. I have been thinking about wholesailing my items and this artical gave me some good tips about getting started. Thank you:)

Feb. 25, 2010 at 11:43 a.m. foulardthreads

Thanks for all the great info! I'm working on creating wholesale prices and policies, so this was super helpful!