From my experience in running CloseoutExplosion.com I have discovered that the best deals on wholesale fashion are right here in New York. The large customer base that attracts the best wholesale merchandise since New York is an international destination, populated by people who live here year round, to tourists from all over the world, to business people coming to wheel and deal in Manhattan and in its surrounding boroughs. Where the demand is the supply follows, so if you have a large base of potential consumers for your products, you would be wise to send your best merchandise to that location.
NYC, especially the Fashion District, has developed a strong reputation as the meeting place for established and up and coming designers, and the buyers who represent retail outlets such as discount store chains, department stores, and buying offices for foreign companies.
In the midst of all this commerce there are opportunities for resellers to locate extremely good closeout deals. These product offerings can consist of excess production by a dress manufacturer or shelf pulls from an upscale department store. Remember, since New York is such a fashion conscientious marketplace, consumers demand and expect the latest office suits by Tahari, the most up to date dresses by Calvin Klein, and the most current shoes by Nine West. Shoppers want brand name clothing, shoes, and handbags, in the most pristine mint condition. Once these qualifications are not met the fashion is sold to wholesalers and jobbers that work in the off price business.
You can locate the best closeout fashion lots by visiting the New York Wholesale District located in the area around 36th St and 7th Ave. You will want to visit:
Dress Showrooms: There are showrooms that exclusively sell a particular brand, such as a dress vendor that focuses on London Times, or showrooms that are owned by the brands, such as the Eli Tahari showroom located at 510 Fifth Ave. Clothing Manufacturers: You can find clothing manufacturers that produce clothes for their own labels, for boutiques, and for department stores. You can approach these clothing factories and inquire if they have an excess production that they are looking to liquidate. Often these factories will have odds and ends that they used as samples for their previous apparel lines, and left over apparel items from previous orders. The following websites are great online resources that you can use to help you get in touch with fashion factories:
madeinnyc.org, nycfashioninfo.com, nycfashioninfo.com, and americanmanufacturing.org.
Wholesale Warehouses: You will usually find wholesale warehouses in places where the rent is lower than Manhattan, such as in Brooklyn or Queens, (such as the warehouse of my closeout business Closeout Explosion, which is located in Greenpoint, Brooklyn) although you can still find smaller warehouses in the city. These businesses will represent designers, or locate overstock clothing which they then resell to boutique owners who visit them from as far as Nigeria, Trinidad, and Dubai.
For more information that can help you navigate the NYC Garment District you can visit:
savethegarmentcenter.org, garmentdistrictnyc.com, and shopthegarmentdistrict.com.
