Business

A collection of 61 posts

Business

PR for Small Businesses - The DIY Option

PR is something that many small businesses struggle with. If it is not your area of expertise, you have three choices; outsource, hire-in or add it to the list of things that you have to learn (and execute) yourself. Some experts suggest that, until you have a PR budget of

Business

3 Golden Rules to Make Life Easier For Your Stockists

The title could just as easily have been '3 Golden Rules to Make More Profit'. You see, the easier it is for your stockists to work with you, the more orders they will want to place. If they come up against too many obstacles, unless your offering is

Orderspace

Volume Discounts

Volume discounts are a popular sales strategy for wholesale businesses. They act as an incentive to encourage buyers to purchase goods in larger quantities. Our volume discount feature allows you to reduce the price of an item based on the quantity ordered. Discounts can be calculated as a percentage off

Wholesale Featured

How To Manage Pre-orders Efficiently

Pre-orders are orders that are taken for products or services that are not yet available. Many wholesale businesses operate a pre-order system, as they release seasonal or yearly collections. Pre-orders allow businesses to plan production effectively. When providing information to your customers about a pre-order, you need to provide the

Stock

Six Expert Tips For Successful Stock-Taking

The stock-take. Certainly not my favourite pastime, but one that is crucial if you hold stock. Here are my tips for successful and easy stock-taking: 1. Make sure the stock-room is tidy and well organised before you start. Stock-takes need to be systematic and thorough. 2. Ideally you should lock

Wholesale

Getting Started With Wholesale - Your First Retailers

For a new brand, reaching out to retailers can feel intimidating, so the more prepared you can be the better. Hopefully you have read our post How To Approach New Stockists, but if not I strongly urge you to do so! Here are some great ideas to help you feel

Business

Working With Subscription Commerce Businesses

Subscription businesses are nothing new, Readers Digest launched their first issue in Feb 1922, but it is in far more recent times that we have seen the rise of the subscription box. There are hundreds of different types, from pet food to underwear, cosmetics to craft supplies for children. This

Wholesale Featured

Why your retail website won't work for your wholesale customers

In my previous life as a lingerie buyer, I came up against all manner of ordering systems. I use the phrase ‘came up against’ because this is how it was: a battle to place orders. A frustrating, stressful, daily fight that only became worse as time went on. You see

Wholesale Featured

Getting Started With Wholesale

It is a big decision to start wholesaling your products, and some small businesses approach the concept with great trepidation. However, as with most things in life, with some consideration and planning you can enjoy a smooth transition into the next exciting phase of your growth. I've answered

Inventory

What To Do With Surplus Stock

Surplus stock can be a real headache as it takes up space and locks up cash that could be used elsewhere. It is a common issue at the start of the year, after the holiday period is over. Your strategy will depend on the nature, shelf-life and seasonality of the

Business

Efficient Order Processing in Five Simple Steps

Let me start by saying this is firmly aimed at the smaller business. If you are operating with a big warehouse and lots of staff, this probably isn’t the post for you! Head on over to ShipStation for some fantastic resources for larger operations. So, with that disclaimer out

Wholesale

Keeping Your Online Retailers Happy

I write this from personal experience in online retail for the best part of a decade. I spend a lot of time talking about how wholesale businesses should define the perfect retailer, well here is my idea of how a perfect supplier might have looked to me when I was

Wholesale

How To Build Strong Supply Chain Relationships

Building solid relationships with your suppliers is crucial to running and efficient business. Here are some of the key ways you can create, and maintain good partnerships within your supply chain: 1. Make sure you get to know your key suppliers. Ideally, meet with them regularly at their location so

Wholesale

Understanding Wholesale Supply Chains

Managing your supply chain is a crucial part of running a successful wholesale operation. Stripping away all of the business jargon, in essence, this just involves building and maintaining a good relationship with every organisation that supplies or serves you, or receives goods or services from you. So, depending on

Wholesale

Combatting Stock Control Problems

In this new series of posts I will be looking at some common problems faced by small to medium-sized wholesale businesses when processing their orders, and suggesting ways to address the issues. Today's focus is stock control because this is at the core of any wholesale business. Scenario

Wholesale

How To Minimize Backorders

If backorders are a recurring problem for your business, we have some helpful ideas on how you can minimize them. 1. Keep a closer eye on inventory Monitoring your inventory closely will give you a better feel for any products and line items that are consistently selling out. You may

Business

Wholesale and Retail Customers - Are They Really That Different?

As part of my mini-series looking at the move from wholesale to retail, I am looking at the differences between supplying wholesale and retail customers. If you are making the move from pure wholesaling to retailing, or indeed the opposite shift, knowing these (sometimes subtle) differences will help you to

Trade Show Tips

Five Tips For Following Up Trade Show Leads

If you are exhibiting at trade shows and events, following up leads is an absolutely vital part of the process. According to Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR), 80% of tradeshow leads receive no follow up. This is a terrible statistic because it is a waste of time and money

Business

The Pros and Cons of Retailing Direct To The Consumer

If you are a purely wholesale brand thinking about adding a retail channel to your business, we have some points for you to think about. Like any big decision, there are pros and cons to doing this. Let's first look at the benefits. Retailing direct to the consumer

Business

Protecting Your Wholesale Relationships If You Start Retailing

We have covered the transition from retail to B2B, but as yet we haven't considered starting to sell directly to the consumer after an initial period of pure B2B sales. As usual, what follows comes from my experience with suppliers, some of whom made the leap to direct

Business

OrderSpace - Stripe Add-On

We now offer card payment via our integration with Stripe. Historically, we did not offer payment as many wholesale transactions involve invoice terms and bank transfers. However, we are always looking for ways to offer more flexibility, and the ability to take card payments is going to help lots of

Business

Small Businesses Spend 10% Of Their Time Chasing Invoices

Xero recently undertook some research that showed small businesses in the UK are spending 10% of their day chasing invoices. This works out at 2 days per month! 64% of invoices are paid late, with the average overdue invoice paid 14 days late. This is crippling for small businesses, and

Wholesale

How Orderspace Cuts Down Seasonal Admin

Businesses with seasonal ranges can find certain times of the year stressful and overwhelming. It is one of those factors that often gets worse the more successful you become. Once your products have been designed and/or sourced, you next need to prepare all the information for trade shows, press,

Wholesale

Delivering Excellence To Your Wholesale Customers

A major part of the wholesale order process is delivery, and I want to explore it from the retailer's perspective. Let's look at some simple ways you can make receiving stock as easy as possible for your stockists. 1. If there are any items missing from

Wholesale

Hiring (or Out-Sourcing) a Wholesale Sales Representative

If the time is right for you to hire a Wholesale Sales Representative, whether that is in terms of direct employment or out-sourcing to an agency, it is so important to appoint the right person for the job. They will often be the first contact a business has with your