After starting your own retail business, one of the biggest decisions you must make is which merchandise you will stock in your store. If you’re not sure where to start when it comes to deciding on products, here are some tips for choosing the best merchandise for your retail business.
Ordering Accessibility
When it comes to stocking merchandise for any type of store, whether you run an online or brick-and-mortar retail business, you need to account for the number of orders you’ll be placing. Try to predict the demand for the merchandise you’re ordering—if you constantly sell out of a product, make sure you can place orders to restock it regularly. This will also influence who you order products from. You may want to order popular products in bulk through a wholesaler because you know they sell fast.
Think About Design
Do you plan to customize any of your merchandise? Customizing merchandise with your own brand’s logo or slogan is a terrific way to increase your brand awareness, thus bolstering your relationship with your current and potential customers. Certain types of merchandise are great for adding custom designs, such as hats and t-shirts.
Profitability
While stocking the trendiest big-name products on the market is a great way to attract customers, if you’re paying too much for these big names, you won’t be able to make a profit from them. Remember to order merchandise with long-term profitability in mind just as much as what will sell the fastest. Trendy products may look good on Instagram and social media posts, but they can be expensive. This is another smart reason to shop through a wholesaler—you’ll get a discount for buying in bulk, which means more profit margin for your business.
Order With Display in Mind
Finally, get creative with your product planning. Picture how new products that you’re bringing into the store will fit with the rest of your stock and brand. From a marketing standpoint, imagine how you could display these new products along with the rest of your items. Featuring them in their own display is a fantastic way to attract first-time and returning customers with fresh, new products. When you strategically order new products, it provides a revolving door of new items for returning customers to stay up to date with and attracts new customers.
Choosing the products you wish to stock at your retail store is a difficult choice that involves many factors. Use these tips for choosing the best merchandise for your retail business to make sure you have all the right products to stock your store’s shelves.
