It’s a question nearly every Shopify or DTC brand faces at one point or another: how do I boost sales and scale exponentially? For some, adding new products or categories is a way to expand target audiences (marginally). For others, it’s opening up a brick-and-mortar in their hometown. For many, it’s adding wholesale.
The DTC wholesale transition is a natural progression when wondering how to scale a DTC brand. Of course, single DTC sales are far different from setting up and managing wholesale operations…and the right DTC wholesale strategy is imperative for ultimate success and scaling.
Are you at the crossroads of exploring DTC vs wholesale, or adding wholesale for DTC brands? Then this guide is for you. Here, we’ll explore the topic in depth, exploring why DTC brands are expanding into the wholesale world, the backend differences of managing the operations of each, and how to build a winning strategy.
So if you’re a current Shopify DTC brand, keep reading to learn how to seamlessly add a wholesale component to your operations, to scale exponentially (without extra confusion or complications!).
Why DTC Brands Are Expanding Into Wholesale
Let’s start this complete guide with the “why” behind DTC brands expanding into wholesale. First and foremost, it all comes down to costs. In today’s modern world, the rising costs of customer acquisition in the DTC landscape make it nearly impossible for Shopify retailers to scale. This alone makes adding a DTC wholesale strategy an attractive avenue for growth.
Secondly, wholesale for DTC brands expands access to built-in audiences through retailers and distributors who already have an established, attentive market. This allows for increasing your product’s reach without having to leverage marketing dollars that are required to attract direct sales to consumers.
This diversified revenue stream not only reduces reliance on fluctuating online sales (that rely on your marketing dollars to reach new customers!) but also builds brand loyalty and credibility. As your products are seen on the shelves of trusted stores and retailers, you’ll gain an instant credibility boost, which can also increase your organic search and reach.
DTC vs Wholesale: What’s the Difference?
Now, let’s dive deeper into the true differences between DTC vs wholesale operations and customers. The first difference is the customer relationship. As a DTC brand, your relationship with customers is one-to-one with individual buyers. For DTC wholesale brands, you’ll gain a stream of buyer relationships through retail partners and their established or existing group of customers.
The next most significant difference is the order size and frequency. Think of it this way—would you rather take the time to fulfill hundreds of single, small orders for a marginal profit… or fulfill fewer large bulk orders that are often recurring? With the time saved, adding wholesale for DTC brands allows owners to focus on growing their business and maintaining their wholesale partnerships.
The pricing of products for DTC vs. wholesale customers also differs. Wholesale orders are subject to wholesale discounts for bulk purchases. They will also require you to consider minimum order quantities and margins to make each order as profitable as possible for yourself and the retailer reselling directly to consumers.
Last but not least, the operations of fulfilling DTC vs Wholesale orders vary greatly. DTC relies on fast shipping and direct fulfillment, or, similar to the example given previously, fulfilling multiple small orders on a day-to-day basis. On the flip side, wholesale orders will require streamlined logistics, invoicing, and account management (which we’ll get into how technology can help and support, soon!).
When Is the Right Time to Add Wholesale?
Still not sure if it’s the right time for your Shopify DTC brand to add wholesale to its operations? Here’s a glance at the most common indicators that your store is ready to add a DTC wholesale strategy.
- When the growth of your Shopify DTC site is plateauing, and acquisition costs are high.
- Once your brand has consistent demand and has achieved a proven product-market fit.
- When operational systems and workflows (inventory, fulfillment, customer support) are equipped to handle larger, bulk orders.
- If retailers or distributors are already approaching you about stocking your products.
- When you’re ready to scale into new markets or regions without heavy investment in physical stores.
How To Build A Winning DTC Wholesale Strategy
If you’re already convinced that you should add wholesale to scale a DTC brand, it’s essential to note that success relies on a winning strategy. Operations and reputation can go south quickly when implemented hastily or haphazardly. So next, let’s cover the steps on how to build a winning DTC wholesale strategy, to get you started on the right foot:
- Start with clear goals: Clearly define your goals for revenue growth, brand awareness, or market expansion, as a target to reach with your wholesale operations.
- Define ideal partners: Next, define your ideal wholesale partners that align with your target audience, so you can more easily target them with marketing and sales efforts.
- Establish parameters: From the outset, establish a set minimum order quantity, pricing tiers, and discount structures that can be adjusted over time.
- Implement systems: Be sure your operational back-end has systems in place to manage wholesale accounts separately from DTC.
- Build marketing: Bring in expert support, or build a marketing strategy that focuses on relationship-nurturing strategies for B2B buyers.
- Use technology: Shopify apps like Wholesale Gorilla exist for good reason, and support Shopify DTC brands in automating and streamlining wholesale operations.
The Essential DTC Wholesale Strategy
All in all, the most essential DTC wholesale strategy will prioritize four things: simplicity, consistency, efficiency, and relationships. The wholesale strategy you implement should make it simple for retailers to order and re-order, while aligning your operations to provide consistency, ensuring a positive brand experience with every order.
Efficiency keeps operations on track, alleviates the stress of handling large, bulk orders, and streamlines pricing, shipping, and invoicing rules to make ordering effective for the customer and back-end operations. Lastly, your store will only be as strong as the relationships you invest in, treating your wholesale buyers like long-term partners, not just one-time sales.
Finally, like any newly implemented strategy, tracking the program’s performance and collecting data better to understand order trends, top partners, and profitability is crucial to long-term success. This component not only provides a real-time view of operations, but also enables you to better adapt to shifting market trends and wholesale approaches as your business grows.
DTC Wholesale Strategy On Shopify With Wholesale Gorilla
The founders of Wholesale Gorilla were once a Shopify DTC brand, with the same dilemma. They knew they wanted to implement a DTC wholesale strategy, but couldn’t find an existing app that streamlined all of the things that go into building wholesale for DTC brands. That’s how the app, Wholesale Gorilla, was born.
Referencing the strength of the program for DTC wholesale growth, Wholesale Gorilla is the leading app platform designed by Shopify DTC brand owners for others, just like themselves. It’s chock-full of intuitive features that simplify pricing rules, shipping rules, and customization tools for specific customers, while streamlining the back end of fulfilling the orders for smooth, efficient operations.
Final Thoughts: Helping DTC Brands Scale Beyond DTC
Making the app, Wholesale Gorilla for themselves, wasn’t the final step for its founders, who have a passion for supporting other existing Shopify DTC brands with the same dilemma. Since its creation, the platform has been responsible for over $1 billion in sales, with more than 14,000 Shopify stores utilizing the app for wholesale operations.
So, now that you know why DTC brands are adding wholesale, and the leading Shopify app designed to support seamless transitions…what are you waiting for?
Strengthen your profits and growth by adding wholesale for DTC brands. No matter your niche, from health and wellness, to apparel, to beauty products or accessories…Wholesale Gorilla is customizable to your existing Shopify store and to serve a wide range of wholesale customers and clients. Learn more with a 21-day free trial to explore the app and its advantages for yourself.
