Wholesale shows???

[JDeMoss]

Does anyone know of any good shows that are geared a little more for wholesale. Particularly in the West if there are any. This is mostly for my pendants. But I do wholesale a lot of my other glass as well.

Thanks for any help, and I apologize if there are already threads out there with this information.

[hagstromartglass]

try the east coast..Philly or Vegas is big in the west

[acmegirl]

Hey Jesse!
Just went to your website....you have great things. I really LOVE your finders keepers idea. Would you mind if I did something like it? (just loose beads, not presented the way you do). Your work is wonderful!

[Dennis Brady]

Originally Posted by JDeMoss

Does anyone know of any good shows that are geared a little more for wholesale. Particularly in the West if there are any. This is mostly for my pendants. But I do wholesale a lot of my other glass as well.

Thanks for any help, and I apologize if there are already threads out there with this information.

Here's a list of wholesale only shows (closed to the general public).
http://www.glmshows.com/review/final/calendar.html

If you haven't done a wholesale show, I suggest reading the Class Handout on Selling Wholesale:
http://www.glasscampus.com/tutorials.htm

I'm obliged to warn you in advance that, if you're selling glass pendants, your chances of being accepted are exceptionally low. There's a HUGE oversupply.

[hagstromartglass]

Wow depressing.....

[Dennis Brady]

Originally Posted by hagstromartglass

Wow depressing.....

Some see it as depressing while others find it encouraging. The market supply for beads is saturated but there's still a steadily growing market demand for glass art from artisans able and willing to move beyond balls, beads, and bongs.

Why do you think shop owners travel great distance at great expense to find suppliers at those shows? Wherever they're from, they can assuredly find a supplier at home for glass beads. They go to those wholesale shows to find something the artisans at home don't offer. When I did a show in San Francisco, I met buyers from Australia, England, Germany, and Japan - plus from everywhere across the US. When I did a show in Seattle, I connected with buyers from Alaska that have been significant and steady customers ever since. We do well over $50K/yr in sales to Alaskan shops.

You can piddle about with Ebay in the hope of getting a $50 sale - or do a wholesale show and come home with $50K in orders. I don't think that's at all depressing.

[hagstromartglass]

Congrats on your 50k

[Dennis Brady]

Originally Posted by hagstromartglass

Congrats on your 50k

Whether you do 5K or 50K in orders at a show, if your goal is to make a living selling your work, turn away from the dead end road of the internet flea markets and redirect to selling wholesale through retail outlets.

[evolvingBeau]

Dennis, how long does it take you (and any associates) to complete and collect on the 50K in orders?

[Dennis Brady]

Originally Posted by evolvingBeau

Dennis, how long does it take you (and any associates) to complete and collect on the 50K in orders?

It varies with different items. Ours is a production shop. If we have large orders and a tight deadline, we put in long hours and sometimes take on extra help - but that is very rarely necessary with orders from wholesale shows. Quick delivery orders are rare. A show done in January is likely to collect orders the buyers want shipped in April or May. A show done in August will collect orders to ship late Oct early Nov. We didn't do a wholesale show this year (no need for extra business) but we have a folder full of orders for shipment to various shops over the next several months.

Individual artisans working alone can't produce the kind of volume a production shop does so wouldn't write as many orders. I've been at shows where some sellers were declining all orders the last day or so of the show because they already had all the orders they would be capable of filling. Howver, I've also been at shows where sellers didn't write enough orders to pay the booth rent fee. Wholesale shows are where the hobbyists are rapidly and rudely separated from the pros. It isn't enough to produce an attractive product. If you can't offer it for sale at a price the wholesaler buyers are willing to pay, you've wasted everyone's time being there. If any of you think ebay is competitive, it's a children's playground in comparison with taking on the big players at wholesale shows that expect to collect about $1 million in orders.

How long to collect? Depends on the customer. Some are granted 30 day credit, some we charge their credit card as soon as the shipment is sent. First orders from shows are almost always on credit card.

.....
ETA.....

For any that may not understand the distinct difference between a wholesale show and a retail show - you do NOT sell goods at a wholesale show. That is specifically prohibited.. You take only a display of one of each item and take orders for delivery later.

[VickieLee]

Beau...
Are you guys thinking of doing wholesale? If so, what "type" of wholesale are you considering? By that I mean the gallery, artsy fartsy one of a kind items, or a production line, in the type of shows Dennis mentioned?
Having done the wholesale trade shows with a handcrafted line of glass, that was made solely by myself, I can give you a few things to think about. You need to come up with a "line" of items that can be reproduced from a photo brochure as well as samples. And yes, you only take orders at these shows, so you need to have a good financial lead in time when you first start because it takes time to build up the funds that will be coming in. When I started I didn't take credit cards, so my first orders were COD and then I kept their banking info from the checks with their resale card info and then gave Net 30. Considering the type of buyers it's something you will strongly have to consider because a lot of your show buyers aren't the owners who do the billing and payables. Example: I got an order from the military and the glass was to be shipped to the Guam PX, then billed at Staten Island in multiple copies with the right "numbers in the right boxes" or they wouldn't pay.!!
First thing is to come up with your "line" of products. Keep it simple. Choose items that you are willing to make, day in and day out for 50% of what you would get at a retail show, be competitive, AND STILL MAKE A PROFIT..!!!!
It's a different venue for selling, but I loved it and am working on doing that again. It's great having 8 weeks of orders in front of you with a net 30 of receivables in your office. With Pappashop we have a wholesale page that can be used just for qualified wholesale buyers.
Dennis is very correct about these shows separating the hobbist from the pro. Even if you get reps, they will quickly loose interest in representing you if you don't fill their orders. They only get paid if you fill the orders and get paid yourself. You've got my number Beau, feel free to call if you need any info. Tell Shani hi for me.
Hugs,
Vickie

[evolvingBeau]

Not really considering it just yet no. Just more of a curiosity at this point.
Although I'm open to anything that works and anything that will allow us to continue with what we love to do, I wouldn't work that way (doing catalog production) unless it was truly worth while or because I had to. I feel like we would be taking a loss in doing that, considering travel costs, booth fees etc. but I certainly could be wrong. It's a little bit different if you have a staff to submit orders to, and just different depending on what you make and how you like to work.
We can only work so fast and so many hours a day so I don't see how it would work better for us at this time, I may not be looking at it the right way.
I am always openly assesing new avenues and/or outlets, while continuing to do what works for us, so I've just been toying with the idea is all.
I don't consider myself or Shani hobbyists persay being that we do this for a living 24/7 as you know, but I do understand that perspective in regards to volume and dealing with larger entities rather than individual customers.