In January 2001, a woman
told me she wanted to sell gift baskets to stores. She
also wanted to know how to find store contacts to approach with her
sales plan.
Taking on such a project
is a major hurdle for any business in terms of time and money. It’s
a task that designers have tried and will never do again.
Yet,
others have succeeded through trial and error, which ultimately led
to profits that keep them in the million dollar ranks.
Selling to chain stores
is not something you think about one night and start doing the next
day. It takes careful planning, lots of space, outside help, and
enough money to finance your dream. Here’s my response to the woman.
“If you rent or own a
warehouse-type space, employ at least 10-12 individuals and have
thousands of dollars to buy inventory (and can wait 30-45 days or
more for payment), then you're ready to approach chain stores as
potential clients.
“You'll have to do your
homework to find the corporate headquarters of chain stores you
believe are interested in buying gift baskets for the major holidays
- Valentine's Day (too late now, but keep it in mind for next year),
Mother's Day, etc. Your contact is the buyer for the particular
section that buys gift baskets (candy, housewares, gourmet, etc.).
“For example, Costco is
a chain that sells gift baskets. The buyer is located at their
headquarters in Washington State.
"Some grocery stores also sell gift
baskets. Your contact will always be the buyer within a specific
department.
“You must first sell
yourself and your product by phone. If the buyer is interested, you
must travel to where the buyer is located to make your presentation.
These buyers are a no nonsense group. You have to know everything
about the store before you get there -- the number of stores in the
chain, how many gift baskets you can provide them with when they
want them, and much more than can be explained here.
“You also must
graciously accept all returns, which will be credited to your
account before you see one penny of revenue.
“If you're ready, then
don't waste another minute of time. Go out and make your mark.”
Some things have changed
since writing this response in 2001, such as client payments
arriving in 120 days or more rather than 30-45 days, and the need to
employ more than 10-12 people if multiple wholesale orders arrive at
the same time.
Large chain stores
aren’t the only ones buying multiple gift baskets. Card and gift
shops, convenience, and other neighborhood and mall stores search
for products that customers buy often. Gift baskets fit that
category.
Years ago, designers
were encouraged to work with stores on consignment, leaving gift
baskets for customers to buy and then returning to the store to take
the goods that didn’t sell.
Today, gift basket makers are taking a
different approach. They’re selling baskets wholesale rather than on
consignment. That allows them to sell the baskets outright, never to
return to the store to fix torn cellophane or replace missing
products that disappeared from a basket design.
Selling on a wholesale
level takes time to master, and that makes sense. If it was easy,
everyone would be selling wholesale gift baskets.
Here are 10 tips to
consider if you believe that selling your gift baskets to the
wholesale marketplace will become part of your business.
