A guide WITH THE BEST KNOW-HOW AND TIPS FOR the 8 golden rules of successful wholesaling during the holiday seasons

We at FAIRLING have the mission to connect brands and retailers from all around the world and to make the world of wholesale a better and more sustainable place.

 

In our How To & Tips guide on this blog we want to give you the best possible advice for your business so you are ready for takeoff with the most important tips and advice. Today’s advice will be all about the 8 golden rules you should look out for during holiday seasons preparation in wholesale.


wholesale during holiday seasons

There are many holiday seasons that are an intense time for brands and makers. The pressure for targeted marketing and in time production is higher than ever. In addition to that, while customers start to shop for holiday specific products during the holiday season, brands and makers have to start their preparations at least three months prior to that. In this article we want to talk a little more about the most important things during the holiday seasons in wholesale.

1. holiday seasons are more popular than ever

Holiday themed products, such as for Easter, Valentines day, mother’s day, Christmas and so on are gaining popularity every year and both retailers and the producing brands have to take that trend into account for their own products and marketing strategies. Retailers must become more flexible and be able to react quickly, for example, constantly redesigning their retail spaces in order to set up appropriate displays. In addition, for example, all employees must be informed about the respective upcoming occasion-related activities, and the interaction with marketing must be set up at an early stage and function smoothly. And, of course, it must be clarified as early as possible how the products for the special occasion can be integrated on the shelves.

2. start early with your wholesale preparations

So first things first. If you want to be fully prepared for the next busy holiday season, it is usually recommended to start with your preparations early on and to work on a project plan for that time. As a brand you have to understand the point of view of a retailer who is currently planning for a new holiday season. From ordering the holiday themed products to decorating their local store to working on targeted marketing campaigns. The list goes on and the more preparation time they have, the better.

What does that mean for you as a brand and maker? Start early and plan ahead. Of course this also depends on what products exactly you are making since not all products fit every holiday season. However you would be surprised how many products are adaptable in relation to the different themes of our holiday seasons. That means: Be creative! Think about which seasons would fit your brand the most and if it would make sense to start working on specific designs for that.

3. contact your retailers eARLY ON

What you can always remember in general: It is never too early to contact your current retailers and potential new ones. The first contact should always happen earlier than you think to have enough time for working out the ideal deal. Of course the general preparation time varies from store to store. However, you shouldn’t plan for a specific time of contact for every store but more so start contacting your retailers at an early date at the same time. Different retailers prepare their orders and preparations at different times. However the biggest mistake you can make is being too afraid that you are contacting your retailers too early and end up with too little time.

The overall rule of thumb is to plan three to four months in advance. So if you are currently thinking about stronger business during the famous Christmas season, then contacting your retailers in July or August is nothing unusual. Contacting your retailers early will also give you a better overview about how many of your products (plus the holiday themed ones, if you have any) are being requested by retailers and how much preparation time you need yourself to prepare and finish your products.

4. building partnerships is the most important thing

At the same time, you shouldn’t stress too much about the ideal timing of contacting retailers. As long as you are prepared and reach out to your retailers in time, you are doing everything right. Even in the case of a retailer not immediately placing an order – the first step was made by you: To contact the retailer and to let them know about your new or added product range. By contacting them you showed interest and engagement in the retailer and in the partnership between you two which is just as important as planning ahead of production.

5. focus on existing partnerships

Of course it is important to grow and expand as a brand into different markets and to slowly but surely implement new partnerships with new retailers. However, your main goal, especially during the holiday season preparations, should not be to find as many new retailers as possible but to strengthen the partnerships that you already have with your retailers. That doesn’t mean that you should not keep your eyes open for new opportunities entirely, however contacting your current retailers will show them that you are highly invested in the partnership and care about them. Contacting them in advance to the holiday seasons also shows that you are a well organized brand, thinking ahead and that you are including your current retailers into your preparations.

6. keep your eyes open for new retailers at the same time

As mentioned before, your main focus for the most popular holiday season should be on your current retailers. Nonetheless it is always important to keep an eye open for potentially new retailers at the same time. Keep in mind that building a partnership with a new retailer can take a little bit longer, especially during the holiday seasons. However it is still very valuable for your brand to include new retailers into your holiday and overall selling preparations, so don’t be afraid to contact potential new retailers and reach out to them with your product range. On FAIRLING you, as a brand, have the opportunity to interact with retailers that are interested in your brand and vice versa. Take the initiative and contact new retailers that you think would be a great match for your brand.

7. do you need to create holiday themed products?

In general it depends on the brand if they should create holiday themed products. If you as a stationery brand have the possibility to create Christmas themed notebooks, then of course that would be a great idea and would fit perfectly into the Christmas themed decorated shelves of retailers. However brands usually don’t design products specifically for a holiday season since this would take a lot of time, planning and is connected with a high risk and high costs. What brands should focus on in general is the holiday themed presentation of their products and a marketing strategy specifically focused on the upcoming holiday season. This means presenting your products in a fitting way for the holiday season and working on holiday themed promotions. Even your contact message to retailers can be adjusted to fit a specific holiday season.

8. stay focused

Planning ahead for months, keeping track of your products and being on the lookout for new retailers can be overwhelming at times. Especially during the holiday seasons the pressure is high. However, don’t lose your focus. Start with small steps and the first preparations and write down a roadmap for the next main goals that you as a brand want to achieve for a specific holiday season. Starting with preparations early on is the best thing you can do and it will save you a lot of stress later on when orders are rolling in. And lastly: You are running a successful brand, so there already is something that you are doing right. Keep going with that motivation.

And keep your eyes open for our next article in which we will talk more in depth about which holiday seasons you should look out for.

Even if there are times when wholesaling seems more difficult, it’s still important to be visible and tell the shops about your great products. Maybe you got some ideas from this article and found inspiration on how to make your ads on FAIRLING interesting.

If this was an old hat for you, you are probably searching for some resellers for your products. We would love to help you find those. Just book a free demo call and we will be very happy to talk with you about your possibilities or answer your questions!


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