How to Buy Wholesale Clothing: Frequently Asked Questions for Startups | 07.Dec.2021

How to buy wholesale clothing really depends on how you’re planning to sell them. So when you search online the topic of buying wholesale clothing seems to be overlooked in a generalized fashion in many blogs. Some bloggers even state to buy wholesale clothing from a wholesale business! I know sounds ridiculously comical. But hey! Unfortunately these days the amount of junk information available online is horrendous. This could make it a little difficult to find straight-up answers to your questions. This is why we decided to answer some frequently asked questions with do’s and don’ts in plain English no BS.

Let’s shed some light on a frequently asked question with over 21 years of expertise actually been trading in the fashion industry.

Here we go:

Question: Do I need to open a business or be an existing business to buy wholesale clothing, and start trading?

Answer: Firstly I presume when a person asks such a question it means:

A) You are planning to start-up
B) You are planning a part-time small business
C) You actually didn’t seek any expert advice

Now there is nothing negative about this if you fall in these categories. It’s just obvious that most of the time when you’re asking such a question you are not planning to invest a substantial amount in a start-up which is perfectly fine!

You see, if you’re planning to open an outlet investing (substantial amount) 30k-100k your answer would be “YES” you need to open a business of your choice a sole trader or limited company. Get it registered, establish your premises, finish up with your shop fittings and then buy your wholesale clothing as a final step. In this case, also the question becomes irrelevant.

However, if you are:

A) A student
B) Made redundant and have some savings to become your own boss
C) A single parent looking for extra income
D) Want to work from home
E) Want to earn part-time or extra income

You do not need to rush to register a business to buy wholesale clothing. Firstly get a feel of it, do a little test run. Even if you registered as a limited company or as a sole trader your accounts would not be due before 12 months (in the UK). So give yourself a chance, run a 3-month trial. Make sure you keep a record of all your income and expenditure to hand over to your accountant when you register. See the outcome and then make your decisions with more clarity being a business startup.

As a business startup, you should try to spend every penny on buying (wholesale clothing | fashion) and selling (tools: platform, online marketing, and website). Try to avoid spending on unnecessary things such as renewing your laptop, buying the latest camera equipment, excessive stationery, etc. Use what you have and generate some income first.

So you haven’t registered as a business yet but you’re ready to buy wholesale clothing. Okay so first you will be using your personal details. This means if you ordered wholesale clothing from Top Down Trading you will be invoiced to your name and address. At a later stage when you register your business you can still hand over those invoices to your accountant. For example, Top Down Trading is a business-to-business wholesale clothing supplier. Although invoicing to your name doesn’t necessarily mean selling to the public as the products are sold in job lots with bulk orders only.

Now some wholesale clothing suppliers can be strict on asking for business details. In that case, you can give your personal details and explain you’re a startup so you will follow up with your business details probably with your second order to buy wholesale clothing. If they did not accept let it be, there are plenty of wholesale fashion suppliers and clothing distributors out there that will be more than willing to gain you to the fashion industry as a fashion startup. Feel free to contact us for any support. Best of luck!

Hope you found this article informative and fun to read.
[This article is not intended for any legal advice]
Levent Sonmez
Co-founder | Ceo