Below wholesale prices for clothing are advertised on thousands of websites such as those that are listed through WholesaleCentral.com, CloseoutCentral.com, Doba.com, TopTenWholesale.com, ad WholesaleDir.com. While buying your suits and dresses below the regular wholesale prices is definitely a great way to ensure that you can work on a high profit margin, how do you ensure that really are purchasing your inventory at the price point that the wholesalers claim?
I remember when I first started purchasing closeout inventory at bankruptcy auctions I ended up paying close to the actual wholesale price that I would have paid if I bought the goods directly from a distributor. Often in the excitement of procuring liquidation merchandise we overlook what the regular cost is and are swayed by the adrenaline of participating in a Liquidation.com auction or from visiting a closeout warehouse. If you want to prosper in the retail business you need to ensure that you are purchasing your overstock products at the best possible rate, or not only will you have a hard time attracting shoppers, but you will be unable to compete with larger established national chains, whether they are department stores such as Macy’s or closeout retailers like National Wholesale Liquidators.
The following tips can help you make sure that you are buying your wholesale fashion at what are true rock bottom prices.
1. Call up the brand directly and obtain their prices for the clothes which you would like to stock up for your store with. For example, if you are looking to stock your store with Tahari office suits for women, you would want to find out how much Tahari charges for their women’s suits when they supply them to boutiques. Once you have this information you can either purchase the corporate outfits directly from the brand, or you can source the designer fashion from wholesalers such as my company, Closeout Explosion.
2. Research and compare closeout prices online. You can utilize free online wholesale directories like the ones listed at the beginning, or you can purchase a membership from a site like SaleHoo.
3. Make appointments at local fashion showrooms to see what the actual prices are that they charge to resellers. You might see Nine West office dresses being sold online at $30 each, only to discover that the showrooms actually have them for only $25 each, and will even allow you to negotiate a lower price in person. If you don’t have any clothing showrooms in your area I strongly recommend that you visit an area that has them, such as the New York Fashion District. This is an important time to remind you that all legitimate clothing suppliers should allow you to visit their showrooms or warehouses. Some might allow you to make your own selection like in the warehouse of CloseoutExplosion.com and others might allow you to see the overstock fashion pallets before making a decision, such as by ViaTrading.com
4. Although I am listing this tip last, this is perhaps the most overlooked piece of advice that I can recommend to all resellers, whether they are a professional apparel boutique owner in Abuja or a dress wear importer in Port of Spain. You need to visit stores that are selling the goods you are interested in and see what the actual retail prices are for those items. Remember, shoppers are very savvy and are always doing their own shopping research, and will compare you to your competition.
