Wal-Mart is the largest corporation in the world, and every year, thousands of businesses compete to get their products on Wal-mart’s shelves. Wal-Mart’s goal is to find the lowest prices possible on retail products for its customers, so this means that businesses that want to sell to Wal-Mart must be able to sell their product for very little compared to what they might get in other retail stores. Some products yield as little as one cent profit, but the volume in sales can be huge. Here are some tips on how to sell to Wal-Mart.
In order to have a shot at selling to Wal-mart, you must ask yourself if Wal-mart customers are going to want to buy your product, and whether or not you can price this product low enough for Wal-mart to sell it in their stores. If you cannot produce your item for a low enough price, you won’t be considered. You also need to have a large production capability. Suppliers need to be able to produce massive quantities of merchandise to meet the demand of placing products on shelves around the world. Wal-mart demands that every shipment be on time. Therefore, you must be able to meet a very specific schedule in delivering your goods.
The first step to take if you want to sell to Wal-mart is to go to the website www.walmartstores.com. Click on the “suppliers” link to get all of the information on the submission process. You must first submit a “proposal packet”. This is where you must submit all of the financial information about your business. Wal-mart wants to see the profit margins of suppliers, and they require that the supplier not go over a certain percentage of profits. The goal is always to sell the product to the customer at the lowest price. Sometimes this can hurt businesses. Instead of increasing the price they pay businesses each year for a product, Wal-Mart often asks manufacturers to decrease their cost year after year. In order to reduce prices, many companies end up sending jobs overseas to cut costs. This can lead to job losses in the United States. In order to avoid this pitfall, you need to be innovative and come up with new products each year that consumers need. With no market history available, or competition, you can make more money and have a better shot at getting Wal-Mart’s business.
If you are lucky enough to get an in-person interview after you apply on-line it is essential that you do not overdress. Men who are successful usually wear khakis and a polo shirt or button down, and women usually wear a skirt and blouse. The interviewers do not like to see suits. When you go into the room for your interview, you must be able to pitch your product quickly. This means that you have a short time to convince them that something is missing on Wal-Mart’s shelves, and describe to them how your product will fill this empty spot. This is where your display comes in handy. Your product packaging must be desirable to a potential customer. You need to quickly grab your interviewer’s attention in order to have a shot in selling your product.
You absolutely must be flexible. Wal-mart often recommends changes in everything from the product packaging to the price. You must be able to negotiate, and be amiable to change. Wal-Mart is receptive to new businesses, but the key is to come up with a new product that Wal-Mart’s consumers need at a competitive price.
