# Wholesale



## jdranch (Jan 31, 2010)

I attended a webinar tonight on wholesaling. One thing the presenter said that I am not sure I am in line with was the suggested number of scents. She recommended going with 3 to 5 scents (for wholesale). I know there are quite a few of y'all who do wholesale. Do you offer more than 3-5 scents?

One other question I have is regarding inventory. A mp soaper can crank out the soap a lot faster than a cp soaper. It isn't as big of a deal if you get a big order in, because you don't have to cure. For those that do cp, how do figure out inventory? Do you make a goal of how much you want to sell and make that amount of soap? Do you say it will be 4-5 week wait time after the order is received? I kinda got that most stores order around $250-$300 of product. Would you agree?

Thanks for any replies.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

There is no way I could be successfull only carrying 3 to 5 scents for stores to choose from. Most order 10 bars of each of their best sellers, and then a few of each they want to try new. It sounds really good to have just a few scents, but if you think about it realistically it's impossible. You have to carry unscented, vegan (and that means at least 3 or 4 bars for just this group to choose from), facial soap, the top fragrances, essential oil bars, mens bars, bars aimed at kids and specialty bars...more bars come from special orders that soon become part of your line you offer to all stores. You constantly add and subtract scents.


Would you be happy if your product you paid for or ordered took 4 weeks to get to you? Neither are your stores who usually order as the last bar of several of their best sellers are out. I keep inventory, which also means at times making newer customers just ordering a few bars waiting so I can keep soap on hand I know one of my stores will be ordering in a week or so. At the very most I have to wrap soap to fill most orders by the Monday or Tuesday after I receive payment or the order is called in (since I do bill a few of my largest stores, it's simply how it's done).

$144 is the lowest order for wholesale with most orders being multiples of $200. Most of my re-orders are $344 or $400.

Nobody is going to be able to help you with this, the webinar gal only can share with you what works for her, perhaps she only does essential oil bars. 

I have privacy agreements with 2 of my stores, and 2 of my unwrapped soap resellers, I have contracts with several of my smallest stores, while a chain just orders soap and pays me with a check with their order, while a mid size store makes me wait nearly 120 days for payment, many times payment comes in and the very next week they are reordering. Another chain of 3 stores simply has each store contact me themselves. Vicki


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## Kalne (Oct 25, 2007)

I have 30 scents right now. On my wholesale order form I list 16. Those are the ones I keep a large enough stock of to handle store orders. They can order any of my 30 that they want, they just know I may not have enough to fill the order (hasn't happened....yet). (When I started I had 12 to choose from.)

I try to keep way ahead of my orders as far as inventory goes. I have a good idea what I'll be selling at the markets and try to have a 6 weeks supply ready to go at all times. Then I add in what I might expect to sell wholesale. When my inventory looks like it won't last six weeks then I make more of what is lacking. It's worked for me so far.

I have a low minimum I think for wholesalers.....40 bars. That's what fits comfortably in the reg. flat rate box so that's what I went with. Most order more than that.


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

For those of you who keep a lot of soap on hand for large clients, do you wrap it and store it or leave it unwrapped and in boxes? I'm working on drastically increasing my inventory, which will mean curing for a week or two in the "fan" room and then storing in cardboard boxes that breath a little. I'm thinking that if I wait to wrap them until I need them, I won't have to worry about shrinkage, and then loose packaging.


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## tmfinley (Feb 21, 2008)

I wait to wrap. I shrink wrap and if left wrapped too long they get crappy looking.


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## adillenal (Feb 6, 2009)

I leave everything on the curing racks and wrap as needed. I do a small amount of wholesale but that still means I HAVE to have the soap ready to ship when ordered so I keep adequate bars ahead of scents I offer wholesale. I offer more than 3-5 too.


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## jdranch (Jan 31, 2010)

Thanks for the replies and for sharing your personal info. I am relieved to know y'all don't have just the 3-5 scents either.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Half of the batch goes into boxes for storage unwrapped, the other half is wrapped. I store soap in the large flat rate boxes because they hold 50 and also are easy open and close and they are free. My unwrapped sales to those who resell is almost equal to my wholesale wrapped bars. You do not want to leave you soap longer than 3 weeks on the cure racks, you loose scent on the outside of your bars. Pull them and at least keep them in rubbermaid (I keep a rubbermaid box full of each scent in my soap room for milk customers to buy from, also have a display with wrapped bars. Vicki


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## Jenny M (Nov 21, 2009)

Good info here! 

I'm a much smaller producer than some of ya'll. And will stay that way. But I do have some very nice small wholesale accounts that I can easily keep supplied. After reading comments here i think really should up my min. It's been 20 bars for years now. Anyway, I don't think I have an account that orders less than 40 at a time.

I try to keep 350 to 400 bars ready to go all the time. Some of those are curing & some are wrapped. I have about 20 fragrances year round with extra ones at the holidays. And I will do special order scents for a store but they do understand they are obligated to buy the whole batch & that I need lead time to make it. Customer service is so important to me & I ship or deliver ASAP. 

How do you all handle your invoicing? I used to let cuustomers kind of slide. Hey, just send a check when you can. But that's a real bad business policy I figured out. I'm offering two ways to pay with cc & debit - PayPal or ProPay. And they can send a check & then I'll ship. Or collect when I deliver. Still, I have a couple of old accounts that think they can let me wait. I know corporate accts can't usually pay on the spot so I'm just not persuing them. Just fits in with my plan to stay small & fluid. I'll let you all know how that turns out. :/

Jenny


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Jenny I also wanted to stay super small, mostly goat customers who picked up milk...until I was in my 60's and moved to a much smaller herd....unless you are going to say no, this business has a way of expanding when you weren't noticing! Vicki


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## Jenny M (Nov 21, 2009)

Vicki, that is so true! I really don't have to go after accounts that much. I learned to make real good soap here! And people like it. It sells well in the stores I'm in. 

I'm 59 now & have just about sold off all my goats. I milked this spring till my freezer was full so have enough to work with till fall at least & then I've made some connections with other herds to buy milk. My husband who is disabled has finally agreed to move back closer to a town. This place has just gotten too much for me to handle on my own & I don't have family nearby to help. I have plans to re-organize when we are settled elsewhere. Probably over near Las Vegas. There are great markets there & I have an expanding customer base in the area. So we'll see what happens in the next year. I hope I have 5 to 10 more years to work at this.

Jenny


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## oh2bejoy (May 20, 2010)

I am mainly a lurker, but I just wanted to tell you all that I have learned SO much on this forum! It is only now that I feel confident and able to help all the other newbies. I have started to sell at a farmer's market, and so far things are going well. I am looking into wholesaling or doing school fundraisers, so this thread is very very interesting to me. I hope this discussion will continue. Thanks again.

Joy


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