Sorry everybody, this one’s a bit long.

If you’re intending to sell your stuff to stores, it’s very helpful to consider things from the boutique buyer’s perspective. Products make it to our shelves in one of two ways: We have either purchased them at a wholesale price from a manufacturer, or we have accepted them on consignment from a (usually local, but not necessarily) designer. When we purchase outright, the product is ours to sell, and ours to keep if it doesn’t sell. It’s always a gamble that we take, so we try to think carefully about the purchases we make, and that thinking involves many things: What do our customers want? What can we offer that will surprise them? What is unique to our location? Is the price point right for our customers? Do we have room to display it? Do we have other things like it? Do we love it? We may like and want lots of things, but we are limited by some of the above criteria. You shouldn’t take it personally when a store says no to carrying your products. You should also learn to edit the advice you receive quite carefully. Success involves both flexibility in the marketplace and integrity; don’t automatically sacrifice either when someone rejects you or tells you to change. All of us must, in the end, find our own way, and no one has a crystal ball.

But when you approach a store with the intention of selling us your knitted baby bibs, it’s important to think like a buyer, and recognize that the above questions (maybe a few more, maybe a few less — this is just how I think, after all) are paramount in that buyer’s mind whenever they are considering carrying a product. We really aren’t thinking about you and how long it took you to make that thing. We aren’t thinking about how much it cost you (financially, emotionally, physically), how many bills you have to pay, or your hopes and dreams at all. We are thinking almost exclusively about ourselves, and whether we’re going to be able to sell your product at the price point you are suggesting. I hate to be mean about it, and I’m not being: But understanding what is going through the mind of the buyer considering your product will help you have more success with the transaction and ultimately more success with your business, I think.

Nevertheless, there are certain things you can do before the buyer even sees your product that will help you curry favor. Here’s one: Research. When people start out selling their handmade things, they usually start with local stores in their city or town. If you’re not a big shopper and you aren’t familiar with your local shops, take a day off and get out there. Look at what they carry, how it’s displayed, what the general aesthetic and price point is. Take a business card. Buy something, and get a feel for the climate of the retail staff, how they package things, what’s emphasized among the product lines they carry. Don’t walk right in to a place you’ve never been before and introduce yourself as a local artist looking to sell your baby bibs! Nothing, and I mean nothing, will result in an icier reception. I can’t say exactly why this happens, but it happens. Resist the temptation to introduce yourself. Pretend you’re Veronica Mars and just spy. You’re doing research here, remember? You’re trying to save yourself the ultimate pain of approaching stores that are completely inappropriate for you and having them say, “Lady, do you know what we sell here?” Some buyers might be nicer than the ones I know, but why find out? Do some research.

I have great compassion for people who muster up the courage to pound the pavement. Trust me when I tell you that no one who loves sitting alone in their studio knitting baby bibs can possibly have the same Myers-Briggs personality type as someone who loves selling . . . anything. You are not alone in not wanting to do this. I promise you. But this is how people start out. And there are certain ways not to do it. I can’t tell you how many people we’ve never seen before come into the shop with a bag full of stuff and expect us to drop whatever we’re doing to consider their offerings. They may be out there, but I don’t know of a single buyer who appreciates this. Please don’t make this mistake — it is the surest way to make a buyer think you are unprofessional. Unless you’ve got some cupcakes for us in that bag, too, we will talk about you behind your back if you do this. On principal, we never buy things from these folks, and I can’t think of any book on business I’ve ever read that suggests it as a tactic. It is an inconsiderate and amateurish approach, and sends up warning flags to your potential buyer that you will be inconsiderate and amateurish to work with in general. Amazingly, it happens all the time!

Instead, try this. Research the stores you think would be potential candidates to carry your products. Make sure they are in different neighborhoods, or that they aren’t in direct competition with each other; stores want to be unique, and they don’t want their customers to feel like they can get the same stuff on every corner. If the store has a web site, go to it and read it. Discover whether or not they are strictly brick-and-mortar or if they also might sell your things on line; be prepared to have an answer if they ask you where else you sell your things, or whether you make them available on-line.Know your pricing. Don’t expect your potential buyer to figure this out for you.

In addition to your wholesale/suggested retail prices, this is what else your buyer will want to know: Where else are you selling your stuff? What is your turnaround time? What are your terms (i.e.: how and when do you accept payment)? What is your minimum opening order amount (i.e.: how much do we have to spend to make it worth your while at all)? What is your reorder amount? If you’re just starting out, I think it makes sense to set your minimums fairly low. This gives a store more incentive to take a chance on you, and reorder when/if things sell without risking a bigger investment. It is lovely if you take the time to think about these things before you make contact with a buyer; it’s even lovelier if you’ve typed it all up along with your contact information, price list and some really good little pictures of your products (also called a line sheet).

Now you’re ready, baby. Put on those walking shoes and hit the pavement!