In today’s installment of “Proven Techniques that Top Retailers Use to Connect with REAL Wholesalers” we’re going to discuss possibly the most valuable resource for finding wholesale suppliers (as well as for receiving many other incidental benefits) – the Retail Industry Association. Now, I look for wholesalers in a lot of different places. Some require more work than others, and some will seem almost like common sense when you learn them. The point here is that finding real wholesale suppliers is not difficult, and anyone can do it themselves for free if they have patience, a little bit of industry knowledge, and their willing to search in many different locations.

Before you can locate the best wholesalers, you need knowledge of your industry, be it clothing, consumer electronics, auto parts, or any of a number of consumer goods categories. For this reason, I feel that the best place to get started in your supplier search is to join Retail Industry Associations – especially ones that deal with your specific niche. These groups will often give you access to directories of suppliers within the industry. If they don’t, it is easy to network with other members of the association to locate suppliers within the industry. And there are so many associations out there – from large general retail associations to smaller niche-specific ones.

Finding retail industry associations is very easy. Simply do a Google search for:

Retail Industry Associations
Retail Industry Organizations
Retail Industry Associations for Consumer Electronics, Jewelry, any specific niche
Retail Industry Organizations for Consumer Electronics, Jewelry, any specific niche

The reason that I recommend retail industry associations first is that they offer so much more to their members than just wholesale sources. The biggest advantage, even more so than connecting with wholesale distributors, is access to education. Retail industry associations often hold seminars and conventions, or they will keep you abreast of other organizations that are holding seminars and conventions. (By the way, conventions are another place where you can hook up with wholesalers.)

Retail industry associations will keep you on top of the latest news from within your industry. It is very important to keep up to date with what is going on in your industry, or else you may get left in the dust as your competitors pass you by. You will often receive valuable tips and tricks to improve your profits, and we could all use a little more profit, couldn’t we?

Finally, many of these organizations are great places to network with other business owners in your industry. It will give you a chance to meet new people with similar interests, but more imporant, there’s a great chance that you can get some support from business owners with more experience than you. Access to support is something that new business owners need more than anything, and this reason alone is enough reason to get involved with a retail industry association.