Where do retail/online businesses buy their stock?

[Pen & ink]

This one intrigues me!
I pride myself at being pretty good at googling for most information on the net, but I'm struggling with this one. I've tried using the wholesale forums but you get few quality replies on there about this. Most google searches generally hit Alibaba! An unfortunate name it itself, as he was associated with 40 thieves, and to reinforce that concern, you do hear mixed views about it, and some of its traders! I've looked on there but I don't really want to buy a container load of one product, and you do struggle to find quality names!

So where are the UK businesses buying there stock from?

My interest at the moment is in quality balls (small balls, like tennis balls, lacrosse balls, solid balls, rubber balls, dog balls) so where do I buy them from, at wholesale rates for a manageable quantity? Do established businesses keep this information to themselves, and is that why the companies that distribute them are hard to find? Having stated that, its in the interest of the distributors to advertise their products but they don't seem to be doing that, as they can't be found, and presumably they don't have to!

I'd appreciate any pointers on this one, as I'm at a loss on how to find my potential suppliers.

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

1 go to google
2 search for sports wholesales

many links appear!

 

[Pen & ink]

I tried doing that but found only one that link that may be of some use. Most of the links (because of the search word wholesale) seem so give you links to esources, or other wholesale directories, but not the actual wholesale companies. I did some further searching today, and I found an article which confirmed that wholesalers are notoriously difficult to find, and most don't have websites.

Perhaps I need to approach it from a different angle!

Does anyone happen to know if distributors and wholesalers happen to attend any trade shows in the UK?

 

[pen2670]

I know what you mean, it's a pet peeve of mine when you search for something and a few dozen online directories (usually with little or no information) come up before the thing you actually want.

Trade fairs are usually really good - I made most of my contacts there.

The other option is to pick a couple of brands you definitely want to sell and contact them directly. I did this with one of my "must haves" and they emailed straight back with their UK Distributor details.

At the trade fair a couple of the big names passed on their local wholesaler's details too (the same one) which opened the door to a few more product lines too. So it was definitely invaluable.

hth
Penny

 

[Rhyl Lightworks]

If you are buying enough, get them from the manufacturers, but they will insist on selling you a lot. If you don't want to buy this amount, they will tell you wholesalers that sell their products.

Barrie

 

[Pen & ink]

I know what you mean, it's a pet peeve of mine when you search for something and a few dozen online directories (usually with little or no information) come up before the thing you actually want.
Penny

Isn't it strange in this day and age, that despite many retailers going down the pan, that distributors and wholesalers seem to be immune from the effects of any downturn in business, that they still don't feel the need to advertise or promote their businesses via a website or other means!

 

[deniser]

Isn't it strange in this day and age, that despite many retailers going down the pan, that distributors and wholesalers seem to be immune from the effects of any downturn in business, that they still don't feel the need to advertise or promote their businesses via a website or other means!

They aren't immune but often they haven't really grasped that things are done differently nowadays. You would be amazed how many of my suppliers still operate without any web presence and employing travelling salesmen with a suitcase full of samples.

I think it's an age thing - the few manufacturing companies which still exist in the UK and those which have been going for many years and they are stuck in a bit of a time warp doing business how they have always done it.

And yes, we keep supplier details very close to our chests!

 

[Nord20]

I wouldn't write off Alibaba - it can be a fantastic resource and as Rhyl says, as long as you are happy to buy in bulk, going straight to the manufacturer reduces costs a lot. Yes, it can be time consuming finding the 'right' manufacturer, but when isn't it? The beauty is that once you have an established relationship with a manufacturer, you can use them to introduce more bespoke items just for you - branded merchandise for example.

We have used Aliba very successfully with a number of different manufacturers, and we are essentially a service based business (we have a retail area where we sell various bits of merchandise).

Most of what you buy, wherever you get it from, comes from China or India, so it's always worth going straight to the source if at all feasible.

 

[Pen & ink]

I'm hoping to find a Uk wholesaler/distributor at the moment, as I don't need a container load of stock. Apart from the costs involved and the storage problems, I'd prefer to follow a low risk strategy initially, until I find my feet.

 

[Talay]

I wouldn't write off Alibaba - it can be a fantastic resource and as Rhyl says, as long as you are happy to buy in bulk, going straight to the manufacturer reduces costs a lot. Yes, it can be time consuming finding the 'right' manufacturer, but when isn't it? The beauty is that once you have an established relationship with a manufacturer, you can use them to introduce more bespoke items just for you - branded merchandise for example.

We have used Aliba very successfully with a number of different manufacturers, and we are essentially a service based business (we have a retail area where we sell various bits of merchandise).

Most of what you buy, wherever you get it from, comes from China or India, so it's always worth going straight to the source if at all feasible.

I wish I could feel happy to deal with Alibaba but the few hours I've spent around their site never fills me with any confidence. Could you perhaps just give out a few bullet points on how you overcame initial worries with Alibaba ?

 

[j600com]

Are wanting branded or unbranded? I have a client who is a sports wholesaler who do a lot of what your asking for (not dog balls though just sports) mainly racket sports but also basketball and baseball etc. let me know if that's any use to you.

 

[Websitehandyman]

I once inquired about selling football shirts online, this was years ago before all the foreign imports. Brands like Addias told me I need to have so much selling space, signage so high and advertising minimum of X. After I got it into them that I wouldn't have an high street shop they said ok then you need to order £50,000 of stock up front :-(

 

[Pen & ink]

Are wanting branded or unbranded? I have a client who is a sports wholesaler who do a lot of what your asking for (not dog balls though just sports) mainly racket sports but also basketball and baseball etc. let me know if that's any use to you.

I'm more interested in branded goods for tennis balls and also baseballs, and I'd be very interested to know the details of your contact. Thank you

 

[j600com]

I'll drop you a pm

 

[number42]

Just to say I've used 7 suppliers from Ali and they were all genuine, just do some due diligence like u do with all company's

Btw have you ever looked in yellow pages? Or trading magazines? China isnt the be all end all dependant on your market, we also buy uk


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Pen & ink]

I can't remember the last time I looked in yellow pages for anything, but I'll check it out.
Thank you

 

[quikshop]

Yellow Pages? Didn't they make big fat coffee cup mats a few years ago :|

So if you wanted to sell Reebok for example, contact Reebok and ask for their wholesale team. They will give you their criteria and terms of business, or point you in the direction of an authorised distributor... works for 90% of brands in my experience.

 

[oldoakey]

Have you thought that they don't want your business - unless of course you are opening a new store and buying lots of stock with their brands at the forefront.