What Is Fashion Wholesale?
Fashion, like any other product or commodity, is bought and sold among businesses before it is purchased by the public. The same basic rules apply for establishing prices in fashion as they do with any other industry. Within each price printed on the clothing's price tag at the store, there is the wholesale cost that is seldom considered by store shoppers.
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Retail vs. Wholesale
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The market or retail pricing is the full suggested price for the public through fashion stores, catalogs and boutiques. Discounted pricing is a reduction of the retail price that occurs when a store offers a special sale or the clothing is sold at a fashion outlet. Wholesale pricing is the price the store pays for its fashion inventory. The manufacturer prices fashion products to cover the cost of materials, labor, design, storage, shipping, overhead expenses and a competitive profit. Wholesale pricing is also applied to fashion distributors who price the products to cover the manufacturer's wholesale cost and their own expenses and profit when selling to fashion buyers from stores and catalogs.
Fashion Buyers
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Fashion buyer is the name given for the position of individuals working for retail stores and catalogs who seek and purchase fashion that will be sold by the store. According to FashionIndustryBuyers, an online resource for locating fashion buyers, the retail fashion industry is divided into three segments: womenswear, menswear and childrenswear. Buyers from each category purchase fashion apparel direct from manufacturers or distributors to fulfill store inventories.
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Direct Wholesale
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Direct from the manufacturer fashion wholesale also includes fashion designs from a designer or brand that has a contract with a specific manufacturer to produce a line of clothing. Most fashion clothing is produced outside of the United States; however, the manufacturer most often works from an address near a major fashion market such as New York or Los Angeles.
Distributor's Wholesale
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Distributors represent multiple brands, designers or manufacturers of fashion apparel. The various lines of clothing are available to fashion buyers for viewing through showrooms, private catalogs that have been printed or are available online. LAShowroom is an example of a distributor with an online marketplace that only sells to buyers representing a retail shop.
Fashion Week
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Fashion weeks are week long events held internationally each year. Locations include Paris, Los Angeles and New York to introduce designer fashion to buyers from the retail stores. Numerous fashion shows and informational events, as well as parties, are included in the week long events. This provides an opportunity to network and become familiar with new designers. Buyers may place wholesale orders with the designer or fashion house, with delivery to later come from the manufacturing facility.
Wholesale to the Public
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Some manufacturers and distributors will sell directly to the public. The local garment district in major cities such as Dallas, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta, Denver and Charlotte each have an area of town dedicated to the fashion industry. The no-frills showrooms are in an industrial setting that allows for vendors to sell without retail mark-ups. Some online distributors, such as Rue La La, feature deep discounts off retail, comparable to wholesale prices to the public. Rue La La does not impose minimum or quantity orders, but does require no-fee membership for access to the site.
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