Small retailers payment terms

[JEKP]

Hello everyone,

Can somebody please tell me what is the usual payment terms for small retailers and small suppliers (i.e. not chain wholesalers, just individual suppliers, e.g.- farm shop)?

Is it paying cash/cheque when the goods are delivered?
Or pay the cheque first then deliver?
Or is it by transferring money through the bank?

Do retailers generally accept internet orders and payment? So they order through our website and pay via our website too, then we deliver?

Please help if you know the answers, will really appreciate it!

Cheers,
JE

 

[arcon5]

Supplying to trade customers or the general public?

What method will a typical order be taken? Ie in shop, phone, Internet.

If you are delivering, is there a possibility price may vary depending on weight, when the goods are picked?

 

[JEKP]

I am sorry, I mean the payment terms between small retailers and small suppliers, i.e.- retailers buying from small suppliers (us).

So we are looking to supply goods to small retailers and the best for us is for retailers to order from our website and then we will deliver the goods, but we are not sure how the majority of small retailers will accept this method or they prefer to order from the phone...etc.

The price range will not be affected by weight and we only have a limited range of products at the moment, so they will just pick from our website or our catalogue.

I would like to find out what are the usual ways for retailers to order their goods in the shop and how and when they pay for it (especially if the supplier is new to them).

Thank you for your time and please help!

Cheers,
JE

 

[arcon5]

I'm not sure of your specific industry but in an unrelated industry I found either suppliers would send a monthly invoice for all goods supplied in the month (especially if ordering from regularly) or payment before they sent the goods by either bank transfer or card over the phone.

If the former though, you need to have a credit control procedure in place to reduce the risk of not being paid.

 

[taobaohelper]

if you just need to pay in small payment,maybe you can try to use paypal west union or webmoney,especailly the paypal is safe,you can get goods and then just confirm to send the money to supplier.Any problem you can contact me.

 

[JEKP]

I see. Thank you Acron and Taobaohelper!!

 

[Doodle-Noodle]

We have some suppliers (generally larger ones) who give us 30 days as standard, 60 days for a really big order so long as we ask (and they agree!).

We also get stuff from companies who don't do credit terms at all, we pay via card when we order but they don't take the payment until the goods are actually dispatched. We're happy to do business with them on this basis and it wouldn't put me off from ordering if there weren't credit terms available.

Must admit, I prefer credit as I can pay them once I've sold at least some of their stock so it's less of a gamble.

 

[JEKP]

Thanks Doodle-Noodle!

I gave a thought about credit too, but we are very small business so I do worry about the cashflow and worry about chasing money...

Anyway, thank you very much! It is nice to know more about the general practice, gives me more ideas on what to do!

JE

 

[swankypants69]

From my experience as a small retailer, dealing with large and small wholesalers, small wholesalers tend to want the first few deliveries paid cash or cheque on delivery before offering credit terms, this works fine by me

Larger wholesalers I tend to find are more willing to offer credit

Sometimes it comes down to how much I want a product, and how much I want to deal with a company

Ie. no credit for a product I am not too bothered about, I won't buy
credit for a product I am not too bothered about, I might buy it
no credit for a product I really want, I will buy it anyway as I want/need it

etc etc

Margin and risk tend to come in to it from wholesalers point of view, tighter the margin tighter the credit! From my experience

 

[arcon5]

As an aside, I'd be very weary of using PayPal if you cannot prove delivery as its a common scam to pay by PayPal, collect in person then open an item not received claim and paypal will refund if you don't have a tracking id. The risk will be low in your industry, but still no reason to expose yourself.

As for western union, the second you say them two words to me then alarm bells ring and I'm gone.

 

[JEKP]

Thank you guys!

So definitely no mentioning of western union then! Wasn't going to use it anyway, so it's good

Thanks again for all!

JE

 

[JMRidley]

Hi JE - as others have said, usually pay the first 2 or 3 orders upfront then 30 day terms. Quite a lot of our suppliers are implementing a trade website where you can order online which is really helpful as it is usually quicker than filling in an order form and you can often track the progress of your order (also - and this could be a real positive for you - must admit that when ordering online I end up browsing through all their lines and nearly always buy a few things more than I intended!) They then email an invoice which we pay by BACS either before delivery, or more often on 30 day terms.

 

[JEKP]

Thanks JM!

I think I will offer for them to buy from my website first too, and if some are unfamiliar with it, then I will try to provide some alternative ways. It is nice to know that retailers like ordering form online!

Thank you!! JE