Trade Sofa Suppliers: A Beginners Guide

Finding good trade sofa suppliers is not always an easy task as retailers will always be keen to keep their trade contacts close to heart.  Finding reliable and competitively priced suppliers is vital to the success of your business.

How to find trade sofa suppliers

Apart from searching directly for sofa suppliers online it is not unusual for sofa and furniture retailers to source directly from the manufacturer and also offer their products on a trade or wholesale basis for bulk or repeat orders. Sourcing trade sofas from retailers is most suited to sellers who are offering their products through different sales channels or locations to that of the retailer as it is unlikely that you will be able to compete with their prices in the same marketplace.

There  are many established furniture trade shows held in the UK every year featuring suppliers of all types of furniture, sofas included. These are a great opportunity to find new trade contacts with the added bonus of being able to see the products first hand and meet the trade suppliers face to face.

Online wholesale directories  are also a great source of trade sofa suppliers however, in many cases you will have to pay for this information, usually by way of a subscription.  There are also wholesale forums which specialise in trade sofas, again most competitors will be unwilling to share their contacts  but occasionally wholesalers will post their details to such forums.

Choosing  the best trade sofa suppliers

Choosing the right trade sofa suppliers involves much more than scanning price lists. Your choice will depend on a wide range of factors such as value for money, quality, reliability and service. How you weigh up the importance of these different factors will depend on your business priorities and strategy.

Negotiating the best sofa price

Promises  of buying large quantities of sofas and furniture in the future is not likely to secure you a good price for a smaller first order, you may need a few hassle free orders before being able to negotiate the best trade sofa prices. Suppliers with exclusive product lines are harder to negotiate with than those that have competitors offering  the same or similar sofas.

Building relationships

It pays to invest time in building good relationships with your key suppliers. If you can save money or improve the quality of the goods or services you buy from your suppliers, your business stands to gain. Meeting suppliers face to face, paying them on time and communication are all good starting points in building the foundations of a good relationship with trade sofa suppliers.