How to Approach Shops for Wholesale

Landing your products in a shop can transform your sales — steady wholesale orders, new customers, and credibility. But store owners get pitched constantly, and a generic "want to carry my stuff?" rarely works. The makers who get a yes do their homework and make it easy to say yes.

Get your numbers ready first

Before you approach anyone, make sure your wholesale pricing actually works — that you can sell at roughly half your retail price and still profit. A shop will ask for your wholesale price, minimums, and lead times; have real answers, not guesses.

Find the right shops

• Look for stores whose style and customers match your products.
• Favor shops that already carry handmade or local goods.
• Visit (or browse) first, so your pitch shows you know them.

Make the approach easy to say yes to

1. 1Introduce yourself and why your product fits their shop specifically.
2. 2Share clear photos, your wholesale price, minimum order, and lead time.
3. 3Offer a simple first step — a small starter order or a few samples.
4. 4Be professional and easy to work with; shops reorder from makers who are reliable.

A shop isn't buying your product — it's betting it can resell it. Make that bet feel safe.

Be ready to deliver

Getting the yes is half of it — filling the order on time is what earns the reorder. A wholesale order is a bigger batch with a deadline, so make sure you have the materials and the production runway before you commit.

Run wholesale on real numbers

Wholesale only works if you know your true cost, can quote a profitable wholesale price on the spot, and can actually produce the order on time. Hivara keeps a live true cost and both retail and wholesale prices on every product, and turns an order into a work order with the materials it needs — so you can pitch confidently and deliver reliably.