It’s often hard finding a good wholesaler, and the sector as a whole has to deal with a bad press due to the occasional rogue untrustworthy agents out to scam people. With the shift towards internet trading these concerns over the reliability of wholesalers has intensified – online business is often fraught with risk and the process is easy to take advantage of. With this in mind we have created a checklist that will prove handy in selecting a reliable online wholesaler that you can trust to deliver quality goods on time.

1 - Find the Product you Want

It may seem an obvious first step but selecting the right product to order is key. You must find a category of product that is not already over-saturated (electronics for example) or else you will struggle to be successful in what is in all likelihood an aggressive marketplace. Once you have selected a product category (and presumably if you have wound up here it is wholesale clothing you are after) it is important to research what items you can best sell and profit from. There are a wealth of options in the wholesale clothing market from wholesale polo shirts, t-shirts and jackets to hoodies, sweatshirts and blank clothing. You must also decide if you want to sell cheap clothes such as a plain t-shirt, or branded garments such as Fruit of the Loom polo shirts (you might even decide you want the best of both worlds!). Once you have fully researched the products you want and the prospective marketplace in which to sell it you can then set about the task of finding a wholesaler for your clothing.

2 - Find the Right Price

Often when people get frustrated and complain about a lack of quality wholesalers it is because of their own unrealistic expectations. If you have found the perfect product to sell but are fixated on an unreasonable purchase price you will never find a wholesaler to deal with, and the companies you do find are ones that offer unfeasible prices and turn out to be scammers. It is essential to research the correct pricing for your product and be reasonably flexible. If you must compromise a little on price to secure an outstanding wholesaler the sacrifice might well be worthwhile in the long-term.

3 - Searching for a Clothing Wholesaler (Online)

Finding a decent wholesale supplier to buy in bulk from is often very difficult, but once discovered can provide the stable foundation for a thriving business. As such, you should be prepared to put a substantial amount of time into finding the right wholesaler for you and your business. The internet is a superb resource, but the overwhelming volume of information it holds can be a real barrier to sifting through the unreliable and untrustworthy wholesalers to find the one suitable for providing your goods. Searching Google for ‘wholesaler’ returns nearly 26 million results, so it is a good idea to narrow the search down some through a reliable intermediary. The Wholesale Directory, Wholesale Trade Directory UK and Wholesalers UK are all good sites that have gathered reliable and safe wholesalers in one easy to navigate place. Visiting a Wholesale Forum is also a good idea, as it will be packed with people who have experienced the exact problems you might encounter and can offer valuable advice and tips. There is no shortage of people who will profess to be able to connect you to the perfect wholesaler for cheap clothing so it is important to be wary of all websites, as well as sourcing agents and directories, that offer a quick fix solution to an intricate problem.

4 - Searching for a Clothing Wholesaler (Offline)

If you are really struggling to find a wholesaler from which to buy in bulk, leafing through a paper or local trade magazine might throw up some good leads. Another option is to pay cash for a supplier.  Bear in mind that a paid service is not necessarily guaranteed to provide you with the supplier you need - just because they charge you does not mean they are infallible!

5 - Trusting the Wholesaler

As mentioned before, wholesalers in general often receive a bad press - and in some unfortunate cases this is warranted. As with any business, wholesaling suffers from its fair share of illegitimate transactions and shady characters and the internet is the ideal place for them to hide behind the anonymity they crave. Scammers can be very creative in convincing naïve businesses to part with their money in return for nothing at all. However, following some simple guidelines will safeguard you from even the most devious of con-artists.

• Check their lines of communication

Often a website will be just that, a website – not a doorway to a company but rather a front for a trickster. You can check out the legitimacy of the website online by finding a site that will verify domain names and tell you who registered it. This name should match the one listed on the site as director/owner of the company – remember a scammer will be loathe to reveal their real name. The obvious way to never be fooled like this is to seek a telephone number and address, tangible evidence a real and reliable business is operating behind the site. Make a call or send a letter and see if you get a reply. Another good idea is to check the local directory of the company you are about to approach and see if they are listed.

• Check their knowledge

Scam artists never stock the product they claim to sell, ask your prospective wholesaler intelligent questions about the product they offer. A professional and courteous answer should be forthcoming.

• Check their business credentials

You can perform a simple search of the businesses registration number or VTA/TVA number (there are a number of sites that will do this for you) to ensure that they are trustworthy – you might have to obtain this number from the company themselves but they should have no problem giving it to you, it is not a secret as it is their identity.

6 - Making the Deal

Hopefully at this point you have found a prospective wholesale clothing provider you are interested in and who offers you a price for cheap clothing that you are comfortable with. It is important to remember at this stage and with any repeat business that nothing should be taken for granted. Just because an item such as a Fruit of the Loom polo shirt has been in stock for the last five orders does not instantly mean that it will be for the sixth. When dealing online you should always ensure you are paying via a secure method, this is something you should investigate when studying the prospective wholesalers you might employ.

7 - Making it Last

If you have found a wholesaler you trust and can work with, it is important to get to know them a little so you can build a lasting and fruitful relationship. Meeting face to face is the traditional method of doing this, but if you are a relatively small company with small orders of a few t-shirts regular telephone calls and emails may have to suffice. The advantage of working with an online company is that you will not need to feel you are constantly badgering them with requests for stock levels or price listings as these will be constantly updated via their website.

Hopefully this checklist will have you on your way to finding a good honest wholesale clothing company that can be relied upon to provide quality clothing at reasonable prices. All that remains is to wish you the best of luck in your business venture – although it seems daunting, the rewards are well worth the effort!

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