"Everything" craft store wholesaler advice and recommendation.

[Belladune]

A friend of mine and I are looking into opening an "everything" type craft store.  yarn, ceramics paints, xstich embroidery etc... everything.  We know there is a need for it locally, as all we have is 3 aisle in Walmart craft section,  quilting store,  and a scrap book store.   It's the everything else  we plan on stocking up on, though we would still carry some of the stuff available at the other stores to. 
I know to be professional and welcoming to everyone. And I have a husband who is a buisness owner himself, who has already provided me with all that type of information.  What I'm looking for is recomendation for wholesalers, suppliers and the like.

We are in the very begining stages of it trying to price out suplies and over head costs and location and the like.  But having a more clear idea of what wholesalers charge we could get a more clear picture of the start up costs and find out if it's even feesible.

Thanks in advance for the advice and recommendations ladies (and gents, there must be some of you out there )

[CraftyChef]

As with any other product, the wholesale price depends on a number of factors; the product and where/from whom it's purchased, brand vs a more generic, popularity/trendiness/rareness, and you have to consider shipping costs into the whole, along with the quantity you order/potential discounts for volume. Typically a retailer like you would double or triple the price of any item depending on your profit margin and what consumers will bear. What you have to do first is find your wholesalers and compare prices. Very tedious indeed, but that's all part of owning the biz.

[Belladune]

Those are a few things I didn't think of... shipping cost, and volume discount....   Thanks for putting out a few things you know about it!  Now to research wholesalers... fun

[MissMalaprop]

Unanimous Craft is a fairly new resource for all things craft related, and they have a list of craft-related companies that sell wholesale. Mind you, some of these might be supplies and some might be finished products, but hopefully it's a start:

http://www.unanimouscraft.com/category/main-topic/potential-consignment/wholesale-sellers

There is a blog called The Crafty Retailer that is all about the type of store you want to open, so I would highly recommend checking it out and reading through the archives. Lots of tips on promotions and other things that will be valuable for your new endeavor!

I would also recommend checking out this blog series, which involves the steps for writing a business plan for a crafty brick & mortar shop: http://www.modishblog.com/biztips/retail-brick-by-brick/

[Belladune]

Thank you MissMalaprop!! That is likely going to be an invaluable source of information!!! THankyouthankyoutha nkyou!

[MissMalaprop]

No problem! I'm slowly working my way towards a brick & mortar store myself (I want to sell finished handmade goods though - sort of a handmade/eco-friendly gift store), so I know it can be difficult to find information about this. There's so much for opening an Etsy shop, etc, not as much to be found for a full-fledged storefront though!

[Belladune]

Oh sweet!  Good luck with your store!  I hope it takes off quickly!

And that was pretty much all I could find, was information on starting an etsy or artfire...

[MissMalaprop]

You could also try looking online for independent craft stores that are similar to what you want to do, but that are in different areas, and try contacting them to see if they'd be willing to give you some tips. It might be a total stab in the dark, and some people might not respond or might act like you're crazy, but who knows, you might actually find someone who is willing to take you under their wing and give you some of their hard earned tips?

[Belladune]

that's a good idea to!  I would never have thought to be so forward about it.  But is worth a try.  The worst that could happen is no response or an Are you nuts? response 

[MissMalaprop]

I've personally had good luck with other people being very open and helpful with their knowledge, which is why I try to pass on any that I have. So hopefully you will have good luck too!

[sugarshoxcrafts]

Craft stores seem to be on their way out with many people, so be sure you do your research and make sure you can find a customer base and make a profit out of doing a venture like this.   Also be sure that your location is profitable--maybe see if you can locate your store near the artsy section of town.  I live in the suburbs of my city (ie "Wal Mart Town"), and many of these areas also have JoAnn's stores to compete with , and I'm not sure if you would want to compete in the "price wars" from those places and the other discounters, and also get the same amount of interest in the 'burbs as you would in an area where art is the thing. 

Good luck!! Come on over to Western New York and open up a shop; we need more craft shops.

[Belladune]

Yeah, the  plan would be to open up on "Main Street"  Which is the buisness district and the arts society meets on main street as well.  The community we were looking at is maybe 6000 population, so the best we have is a walmart.  And their craft section sucks. lol  But thank you for your input! it's much apreciated!

[MissMalaprop]

I think offering a lot of unique craft classes and workshops is one way independent craft retailers can compete with the Joann's, Michael's and Walmarts. I know some of the bigger chains offer some classes, but I think in a lot of places people really do want more hands on training - especially really basic entry level stuff for people who don't consider themselves crafty. They have a few of these new paint-by-numbers while you drink wine and party with your friends places around here, and they're making a killing! People who have professional straight laced day jobs want to feel artistic occasionally. If you can tap into that, I think you'll be on your way to being successful with it.