Trade shows are exhausting. By hour four you've talked to thirty exhibitors, you've forgotten which line sheet came from which booth, and the only thing you remember clearly is the third coffee. Here are the twelve questions we ask at every booth — they take about ninety seconds per stop and they're the difference between coming home with a stack of catalogs and coming home with three real leads.
1. 'How long have you been wholesaling this line?' If the answer is less than a year, that's not disqualifying — but it means you're an early account, and you should price the risk accordingly. If it's over five years, ask the next question.
2. 'Who else carries you in the Northeast?' You're listening for two things: whether they can name accounts (signals they care who their buyers are), and whether any of those accounts are competitive with yours.
3. 'What's your lead time on a typical reorder?' Not the first order — the third order. That's the real lead time. First orders often get rushed; reorders show you the steady-state pace.
4. 'What's the minimum opening order?' Get this in writing. Booth conversations have a way of getting ambitious; the line sheet's minimum is the one that matters when the PO goes through.
5. 'Do you offer net-30 to new accounts?' If the answer is no, you have a credit-card-only relationship and you should size the order accordingly.
6. 'What's your damage and short-shipment policy?' Every wholesale shipment eventually has either, and the supplier's stated process tells you a lot about how they'll handle the first one with you.
7. 'How do you handle exclusivity in a market?' Some suppliers will give you territorial protection (no competing accounts within X miles); most won't. Worth knowing on the front end.
8. 'Which of your SKUs are your best sellers?' Booth merchandising often features new or aspirational pieces. Real best-sellers tell you what your customers will likely actually buy.
9. 'Do you have a Cash & Carry program or a buyers' market we can visit?' Smaller, regional markets in your area often beat the major national shows for actually placing orders.
10. 'What's your case-pack flexibility on a first order?' Some suppliers will break case packs for opening orders; some won't. The 'we usually don't but we can for first-time accounts' answer is the most useful one.
11. 'When will I have samples in hand?' Get a date, not a 'soon.' Then write the date on the back of the line sheet so you remember when to follow up.
12. 'Who picks up the phone when there's a problem?' You want a name, not a department. The supplier who says 'call me directly, I'm always at this number' is the one whose first order is going to go smoothly.
Pin a sticky note inside the front cover of your buyer's notebook with these twelve. After two or three shows it becomes muscle memory and you'll cycle through them in under a minute per booth.
Written by Amy Burdick for WICE. Questions or pushback? We read every reply. Write to us.