If it’s not going to sell in 30 days, it’s not going to sell. So I might as well box it up and send it back.

[presumably returning it to someone who can sell it rather than it being thrown away]. She also said in the sentence previous, that this is why she wants a small minimum to start if she doesn’t know how it will sell for her -to minimize her risk in picking up a new line (of gifts etc, she doesn’t sell clothes which age faster).

I’ve a number of items which are time-intensive to make so I sell them on my website but won’t sell them wholesale. I have another set of items which are very easy to mass-produce and which I’m willing to sell wholesale. So, would this be a good compromise: having a website-based retail line and a wholesale line? People who come to my online shop wouldn’t find the same things that they find at a store and shop owners wouldn’t have to worry that shoppers might get something from me cheaper. It’s something I’m considering to straddle this line and I’m curious what you and others think about it.

I think that’s a great idea! I think that’s a terrific example of finding a compromise that makes everyone happy, and will (hopefully) allow everyone involved to be successful without stepping on each other toes or causing any conflicts.

I’m a hypothetical DE, so these are hypothetical questions
1) How do you feel about DE’s with retail websites that do not sell directly to a customer that is within a certain # of miles of a retail outlet? Say, if she wanted to order, she had to submit a zip code, and if she’s close to a store that carries my stuff, I tell her to go there, but otherwise I’ll retail direct?

I only had one experience with that, and it didn’t work as promised. Even though I had a fair amount of product in stock, the site never did put me on their list of retailers. That was one of the last straws for me, and I quite dealing with suppliers who retail.
Of course that’s a “one-off” scenario, and I’m not saying it couldn’t work. And I’m not saying that all retailers mind if you retail, too. If you notice, big companies like Amazon and Target don’t care if you sell direct; they carry as many products as possible, regardless of how many other places they are available. Customers often pay a tiny bit more per product, just to be able to buy it all in one place or pay reduced shipping (witness “superstores”).

2) Or what if she wants an item you don’t carry? If I told her to request it from you, would you make a re-order in order to get it for her? Even if you had to order a few other items, too?

Hmmm….I don’t think I mentioned that one of the ways I made extra money was by taking special orders. Sometimes, the problem was that someone wanted one book, and I would have to make a full minimum order. If the stuff didn’t sell, I would have to send it back, paying shipping and restocking fees. I did charge a surcharge for the service, so even if I didn’t make a nickel I didn’t lose anything, either. And it was great customer relations.

3) Do “freebies” work for clothing?

I don’t know why not.

4) This is really more for other DE’s with an exchange program: what do you do with the stuff that’s been exchanged out? Especially if (to foster excellent relationships with your retailers), you don’t sell direct to the customer, and therefore can’t easily get rid of things-traded-out?

As far as I know, that was never a problem for any of my suppliers. Several times I’ve received books or other items with another store’s stickers on them. Usually the suppliers say they won’t take them that way, but I’m sure no one really has the time to make sure every last one of them has been removed.

5) Yowza, some of the suggestions you make would be very difficult to implement. We may not have stores, but we still have to maintain spaces, equipment & supply inventories, and while a store owner can work on their taxes and man the store at the same time, the time I put into developing my clothes is not multi-taskable. I can’t even check my e-mail or get my fashion-incubator fix unless I go off the clock. And I still have to do all that stuff… I know too many DE’s for whom success has meant sleeplessness; it makes me hesitate, for sure.

Most manufacturers/distributors can only implement one or two of them. A very small percentage is able to do several; but they have well-known brands that are proven sellers. Just remember, you can do a lot in the name of “customer service” but you just can’t give the store away! The point is to find something that works for both you & the retailers.

Again, I appologize if this is wonky. I can’t use reply forms at all without crashing my computer -don’t know why.

1) How do you feel about DE’s with retail websites that do not sell directly to a customer that is within a certain # of miles of a retail outlet? Say, if she wanted to order, she had to submit a zip code, and if she’s close to a store that carries my stuff, I tell her to go there, but otherwise I’ll retail direct?

2) Or what if she wants an item you don’t carry? If I told her to request it from you, would you make a re-order in order to get it for her? Even if you had to order a few other items, too?

3) Do “freebies” work for clothing?

4) This is really more for other DE’s with an exchange program: what do you do with the stuff that’s been exchanged out? Especially if (to foster excellent relationships with your retailers), you don’t sell direct to the customer, and therefore can’t easily get rid of things-traded-out?

5) Yowza, some of the suggestions you make would be very difficult to implement. We may not have stores, but we still have to maintain spaces, equipment & supply inventories, and while a store owner can work on their taxes and man the store at the same time, the time I put into developing my clothes is not multi-taskable. I can’t even check my e-mail or get my fashion-incubator fix unless I go off the clock. And I still have to do all that stuff… I know too many DE’s for whom success has meant sleeplessness; it makes me hesitate, for sure.