Seeing your product on a shop shelf is one of the best feelings in a maker's life. It's also where many small businesses quietly start losing money.
When I worked in chocolate retail, I saw how shops buy from suppliers. When I ran my own shop, I sat on the other side of the table. Here's how to price and pitch so that wholesale actually works for you.
Why your retail price has to work for wholesale first
Shops need their own margin to pay rent, staff and VAT. A common starting point in UK gift and food retail is that the shop sells at roughly double what it paid you. So if your product sells for £12 in a shop, expect to be paid around £6.
That means your wholesale price, not your retail price, must cover your costs and leave you a profit.
A worked example
Per jar
Ingredients and packaging
£2.20
Your time (10 minutes at £12.71/hour)
£2.12
Labels, delivery and fees
£0.68
Total cost
£5.00
Wholesale price to shop
£6.00
Your profit
£1.00
Shop's retail price
£12.00
A £1 profit on a £12 product is too thin. The fix is rarely "charge the shop more". It's usually to reduce costs (buy packaging in bulk), increase the product's perceived value (better size or presentation), or raise the retail price across all channels.
Note the time cost uses the National Living Wage of £12.71 an hour from April 2026 (GOV.UK). If you don't pay yourself at least that, you're subsidising your customers.
Keep your retail price the same everywhere
If you sell online for £8 what a shop sells for £12, shops won't stock you for long. Set one recommended retail price and stick to it on your own website, at markets and in shops.
What to send a stockist
Shop owners are busy. Make it easy for them to say yes with:
- A one-page line sheet: product photos, wholesale price, RRP, pack sizes
- Your minimum order and delivery terms
- Payment terms (for example, 30 days from invoice)
- A short story about you and why customers love the product
- For food, your allergen information and shelf life
Wholesale or sale or return?
With wholesale, the shop buys your stock outright. With sale or return, you're only paid when it sells, and you carry the risk. Sale or return can be a way into a hesitant shop, but agree it in writing and set a review date.
Your next step
The paperwork is what stops most makers pitching. My Sell to Businesses: Wholesale, Stockist and Trade Templates for Creative Start-ups gives you ready-to-edit line sheets, stockist terms, order forms and pitch emails for the UK and Scotland.
Get Sell to Businesses for £19.99
Need to cost your products properly first? The costing workbook in Essential Templates does the maths for you.
Read next (link once published): How to start a food business from home in Scotland · HACCP and allergen records made simple