Save your business money by buying wholesale rather than retail

Are you a small business owner? Did you know that you can trade with wholesalers? You really dont need to be a major retailer to trade with most wholesalers. Sole traders are also able to take advantage of wholesale discounts.

Dont assume that it is a problem if a wholesaler asks you for proof that you are trade. Many will be happy with just a business card or some letter headed paper.

Wholesalers are generally for trade only but mostly for tax advantages and to get discounts from manufacturers.  This doesnt mean you need a limited company to trade with them. Some wholesalers do want to work with the big boys, but you can tell this by the minimum order value which is large in this case. This is not that common though, so you will easily find another wholesaler with a much smaller minimum order.

You will notice quite quickly that there are fewer differences that you might expect between wholesalers and retailers.  Essentially both want your business, and very few wholesalers will make you jump through unnecessary hoops in order to trade with them. You are going to feel a much bigger difference in your bottom line than anywhere else.

So how do you save all this money dealing wholesale? It all really comes down to bulk buying. You would also typically buy in more volume from a wholesaler. In many ways the advantages are similar to buying groups who can make you even larger savings.

If your first dealings with a wholesaler dont work dont be put off. What if the proof of trade status you are able to provide isnt acceptable to them? Well they are mostly like one of the few wholesalers that does only want to deal with large and well established businesses.Talk to other wholesalers and you wont find it difficult to find one who does want to trade with you.

You may also find that trade cards are helpful. It is not uncommon for a wholesaler to insist that you have their trade card in order to buy from them. This is normally just a case of filling out a form with some information about your business, it is rare that you would be expected to pay for it. The card will help you to build relationships with other wholesalers though. This proves to them that one of their competitors has already vetted you and accepted you as a customer. So you definitely dont need to take it as a negative if you are asked to apply for a card when dealing with a wholesaler.