[katiefoley]

I am trying to start a small retail biz (women's apparel,) but am having trouble finding reputable wholesalers to buy from, other than at the marts. Any suggestions for someone doing their first buying or looking for inventory?

[dfveteran]

Originally Posted by katiefoley

I am trying to start a small retail biz (women's apparel,) but am having trouble finding reputable wholesalers to buy from, other than at the marts. Any suggestions for someone doing their first buying or looking for inventory?

You could call the manufacturer, ask them who their wholesale distributors are. Then call the wholesale distributors and find out who will work with your home based business. Its lots of research but it will pay off. Thats the only way you can find a real wholesale without finding middlemen.

Or if you dont want to do all that research, there is a company who will do the research to find a wholesale distributor for you. World Wide Brands

Hope this helps.

[Xanifur]

I started a series of threads on the topic, in my sig. Check there and read them for more info.

Particularly:

The Definitive Guide III: Finding and Working with Wholesalers

[orange655321]

Are you trying to use suppliers for an online biz or a retail space?

[ltressel]

Katie,

I have not tried this place myself, but I've been doing my research there for 2 weeks now just to observe. It's called liquidation.com. It might serve as a good source for you. It's a bidding site, where you can for garments, electronics, toys, etc. Most garment items are department store pulls.

If you are lucky-you can get garments for dirt cheap and turn them around for good profit. I was mulling the idea of a Big Lots business model in this military town in Texas. They have over 100,000 population and GI wives who love to shop.

Check out the site and observe.


LT

[katiefoley]

Thank you for all of the advice. Yes, this is for a retail space and NOT an online biz. Very helpful suggestions, I plan to chack them out. Any other advice?

[katiefoley]

I am looking for upscale women's apparel (i.e. Stella McCartney) if that helps, and my space is not that large.