How to Get Inventory for a Clothing Store (2024)

No matter what the shape of the economy is, people always need clothes. If you are running a clothing store, it is important to know how to get inventory. It will depend on both your brand and type of people who shop at your store. Below are a few things to consider when buying inventory for your clothing store.

Get a License

Like any business, to run a clothing store you need the appropriate licenses such as your seller's permit and your business license. The process to get them varies depending on where you live. Make sure to check your state and city websites for more information.

Choose Your Niche

This will allow you to specialize in a certain type of clothing as opposed to carrying a huge variety of merchandise. For example, you can focus on selling discount junior's clothing, vintage bridal dresses or gently used children's clothing.

Define Your Purchasing Strategy

One of the first things you will have to decide is if you want to use domestic or overseas clothing manufacturers. In general, buying wholesale clothes from overseas manufacturers means that you will pay less. However, it also generally means that you will have to buy in larger quantities, have more issues with communication and have to deal with the logistics of shipping from overseas.

On the other hand, working with domestic manufacturers means you will have to pay more, but will have better lines of communication and it will be easier to manage quality control.

Where to Get Inventory

There are several places to find inventory. Look at online clothing directories such as Maker's Row based in the United States or Alibaba based in Asia. If you want to buy wholesale from a specific brand, go to their website and find their wholesale contact information.

Also, many stores need to sell their last year model clothing in order to make room for the next year's clothes. You can take advantage of this and buy wholesale clothing on liquidation websites such as closeoutcentral.com. Another great place to look is local fashion schools as they tend to already have great contacts with wholesale clothing manufactures.

If you want to be able to see and talk to a lot of manufacturers in a short period of time go to trade shows such as dg expo or Kingpins Show. These shows can be found in places such as Dallas, New York, Miami and San Francisco. Lastly, if you are going to be selling used or vintage clothing, shop at estate auctions or garage sales. Websites such as Bulk Vintage Warehouse or A&E Clothing Corporation can source the wholesale vintage clothing you need.

Visit the Manufacturer

Once you have found your manufacturing supplier. Make sure to visit them before you start production as it will allow you to check the quality of your future inventory. Even though you may have talked with them on the phone or sent hundreds of emails back and forth, it is always best to talk face to face with the people who are making your products.

Properly Storing Clothing

An important aspect of getting inventory for a clothing store is knowing how to store it once you have it. If you are well organized and know the proper way to store clothing it can both help your company's efficiency and reputation.

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