Sooner or later a local shop, cafe or boutique asks whether you sell wholesale. It is a great sign that people like your work, and it can mean bigger orders with less selling effort. It also raises a pricing question: how low can you go for a shop, and still be glad you said yes?
This guide explains the difference between wholesale and retail pricing using the same margin idea as the pricing calculator. It does not give you a magic ratio, because there is not one that fits every maker and every shop.
The figures below are example numbers, not market prices. Wholesale terms vary and must be agreed with each shop.
Retail and wholesale, in plain terms
- Retail is when you sell to the person who will use the item: on Etsy, at a market, or on your own site. You set the price the buyer pays.
- Wholesale is when you sell to a business that resells your item. The shop pays you a wholesale price and sets its own retail price for its customers.
- Consignment is a third option: the shop displays your items and pays you a share of the price after each one sells. You keep ownership until then.
The key point is that your costs do not change. The blank, the vinyl, the ink and your minutes are the same whether the item ends up on Etsy or on a shop shelf. What changes are the fees, the shipping and the margin.
Start from your cost, not from your retail price
It is tempting to take your retail price and knock a fixed share off for wholesale. The problem is that your retail price includes costs a wholesale order may not have, like Etsy’s fees and the shipping on a single order, and it may not include costs a wholesale order does have, like the time to pack a large order or the shop’s payment terms.
It is clearer to work from your cost per item, which is what the calculator does.
The worked example
Take worked example A from the sublimation mug guide: $6.00 of materials, 15 minutes of labor at $20 an hour and $0.50 of overhead, for a cost per item of $11.50.
Sold on Etsy with $6.00 shipping charged, $6.00 shipping cost and a 30% margin, the suggested retail price is $23.67.
Now imagine a shop orders the same mug. You invoice the shop directly with no platform fees, and the shop collects the order, so there is no shipping. In the calculator:
- Choose In person or other.
- Enter 0 for the percentage fee and 0 for the fixed fee, or the fees your invoicing or payment method actually charges.
- Enter 0 for shipping charged and shipping cost.
- Keep the same 30% margin.
The suggested price comes out at $16.43, with $4.93 of profit per mug.
| Retail on Etsy | Wholesale to a shop | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost per item | $11.50 | $11.50 |
| Fees | $3.27 | $0.00 |
| Shipping charged and cost | $6.00 and $6.00 | none |
| Suggested price | $23.67 | $16.43 |
| Profit | $8.90 | $4.93 |
| Margin | 30.0% | 30.0% |
| Earnings per hour | $55.61 | $39.72 |
Same margin, lower price. The difference comes from fees and shipping, not from giving anything away. Profit per mug is lower in dollars because it is 30% of a smaller total, but you are selling several at once with no listing, no messages and no single-item packing.
Know your floor
Before you talk numbers with a shop, know the lowest price you would accept. Set the margin to 0% in the calculator: the price it suggests covers your costs and pays your hourly rate, with nothing left over for the business. For the mug as a wholesale order with no fees or shipping, that floor is simply the cost per item, $11.50. For comparison, the same mug sold on Etsy with the same shipping breaks even at $13.84.
Anything above the floor is margin. Decide in advance how much of it you are willing to trade for a larger, steadier order.
Agree the terms in writing
Wholesale terms vary from shop to shop, and every one of them affects your real price. Agree these before the first order:
- Minimum order: the smallest quantity per design or per order you will accept.
- Payment terms: paid on order, on delivery, or within a set time after delivery.
- Shipping and delivery: who pays to get the order to the shop.
- Reorders and exclusivity: whether the shop wants a design no one else nearby sells.
- Damages and returns: what happens to items that arrive broken or do not sell.
If any of these adds cost, such as you paying for delivery, put it into the calculator before you agree a price.
Your retail price and the shop’s price
The shop will set its own retail price, usually above what it pays you, because it has rent, staff and its own margin to cover. Think about how that price sits next to yours. If your Etsy price is far below the shop’s shelf price, the shop’s customers may buy from you online instead, and the shop may stop ordering. Keeping your own retail prices close to what shops charge means everyone sells at a similar price, which gives the shop no reason to stop ordering.
Consignment
With consignment, the shop’s share works like a platform fee. Choose In person or other in the calculator and enter the shop’s commission as the percentage fee. The price that comes out is the shelf price that leaves you your target margin after the shop’s share. Agree in writing what happens if items are damaged or unsold, and how often you are paid.
Questions sellers ask
Is there a standard wholesale discount?
There is no standard that fits every maker. Work from your cost per item and the terms you agree with the shop, and use the calculator’s margin to see what each price leaves you.
Should I offer wholesale if it lowers my profit per item?
It can still be worth it. You may sell many items at once with less time spent on listings, messages and single-item packing. Compare your earnings per hour across the whole order, not just the profit per item.
Can I use different margins for wholesale and retail?
Yes. You might accept a lower margin for wholesale in exchange for larger, steadier orders. The calculator shows the price and profit for any margin, so you can see the trade-off before you decide.
