Wholesale and UT Kilts - Why we don't do it.

Why UT Kilts does not and cannot do Wholesale

Over the years I have been approached by lots of different businesses asking to be able to sell my kilts. This would always be followed for a list of the wholesale prices that I offer. It usually is a big surprise to most when I say that I don’t have wholesale prices. While UT Kilts does offer discounts on large orders of utility kilts and traditional kilts, it is just not possible to do wholesale. In this post I want to explain why wholesale is not possible for the products sold by UT Kilts and how that helps you, the average consumer.

What is Wholesale?

I think it is a good idea to define what wholesale is for those that are not very familiar with it. It is more than just buying things at a discount. While what I am about to present is not necessarily true for all wholesalers, it is typical for most. Wholesale basically means you get a special rate of a certain product so that you can resale it to make a profit. This is typically based on what is called keystone pricing. Keystone pricing says that if the suggested price is $50 for any given product, then the wholesale price should be 25 dollars. While I have seen some wholesalers give lower than that, the keystone price seems to be the more common way to base wholesale pricing.

Wholesale at UT Kilts? Just not possible.

While this question is never asked by those looking for wholesale at UT Kilts, I do know they probably want to ask it: Why does UT Kilts not offer wholesale pricing? That is the question I want to answer for you right now. Wholesale pricing depends on there being enough markup for both the original seller and the person purchasing at wholesale. Let’s go back to the $50 example we used to explain keystone pricing. If the wholesale is $25 and we assume the original company is using keystone pricing, then the cost for that product would be $12.50. This is just an assumption and in most cases the price is probably lower than that. You can see from this pricing structure that both the original wholesaler and the purchaser make a good profit. It is important to note that the purchaser does make more money because they are taking on all the responsibility of the product (storage, marketing, shipping, returns, etc.)

So what does that have to do with UT Kilts and wholesale? The pricing structure at UT Kilts is not at all traditional or what is recommended by keystone pricing. Let’s go back again to the $50 example and use the Standard Utility Kilt as our product. This would mean that to have wholesale pricing this utility kilt would need to be made for 12.50 (in some cases lower than that). You cannot have the quality that UT Kilts has in our kilts for that price. Are there other kilt companies that do it? Yes, there are lots. You can find their kilts all over. However, they fall apart easily and their customer service is nonexistent.

Now, let’s look at our Standard Utility Kilt and how the price would have to change if wholesale was offered. After doing kilts for as long as I have, there is a certain price you have to pay for good, high quality products. I believe we are at that point. So, with that assumption being correct, let’s look at how the price would change if we had wholesale based on the higher amount UT Kilts pays to have these kilts made. The regular price of the Standard Utility kilt would have to go up from $50 to $90-$100 to accommodate wholesale pricing (most of the prices on our products would have to double to accommodate wholesale pricing). Using $100 as the assumed new price, that means the wholesale price would be $50. Using keystone pricing as our guideline, $25 should then be the price it costs UT Kilts to make the utility kilt (actually it is much higher than that).

Now let’s look at what you, the everyday consumer, can learn from this. First, to be a wholesaler, you must position yourself and your pricing that way in the beginning. I have never had that desire for UT Kilts. I like to provide a great product that goes straight from me to the purchaser. Second, all items sold by UT Kilts (only Grip6 belts being the exception) are priced at or below wholesale pricing for everyone. That means if you are buying any item from us, you are getting it at or below a wholesale price. That gives you peace of mind knowing you are getting a great product at a super low price.

These are the reasons why every single person or company that emails me looking to buy wholesale, never actually buys anything. Once I reply with a condensed email containing the info above, I never hear back from them. And you know what? I think that is ok with us. Yes, that does mean I will not sell as much as some other people or have my kilts in some store somewhere. However, it does mean that you will always get the best price there is for the best quality kilts for sale out there.