Spring is just around the corner and when a fresh season comes along it means a brand new opportunity for customers to spruce up their home.

Online shopping is a quick and convenient way for customers to get the items they want or need. Products can be at their door at the click of a button! But when it comes to sourcing home goods for your retail store, it can become a bit trickier. 

This article will share the top shopping tips to keep in mind when sourcing home décor items such as decorative throw pillows for your store.

Find a Supplier that Matches Style and Budget

Your first step is to find a home décor manufacturer or supplier that sells products that match your customers’ aesthetic and budget. 

As a retailer, you can avoid making any mistakes by doing your due diligence and researching the product. You can even get in contact through email or phone to ask the manufacturer any questions you might have. This can give you the confidence you need when deciding to purchase or not.

Choose Style and Substance

When your customers are purchasing decorative cushions to spruce up their room, your retail staff may tell them to choose a cushion that is both stylish and high-quality. The same can be said when ordering wholesale stock from a manufacturing company.

Keep several considerations in mind before making your order: upcoming season style trends, product quality, and the expectations of your customers. These factors will guide you in ensuring that the wholesale cushions you purchase are right for your store’s brand and your customers’ needs.  

Remember, you should never have to sacrifice style over substance. A reputable home décor manufacturer will work with you to ensure that each product is produced to a high-quality standard.

Understand the Manufacturer's Order Policy, Lead Time, and Manufacturing Capacity

Each manufacturing company will have set policies in terms of order numbers and lead time. If you are a smaller store, this is an important consideration to factor in before partnering with a supplier. For example, here at Westex, we operate with a minimum order requirement of $5000.

Additionally, lead time and manufacturing capacity should play into your decision. If you know that you’ll be making large orders at a time and will be expecting a short turnaround time, make sure to discuss this with a supplier before completing an order.  

At Westex, we can manufacture over 8,000 decorative cushions every single day. While the lead time for orders may vary depending on the time of the year, our policy states that it will be no longer than two weeks.

Consider Cushion Fabric and Inserts

While this may not be a concern on all of your customer’s minds, there will be those customers that prefer to buy decorative cushions and throw pillows that are made using certain fabrics or filling. 

Although most suppliers for retail distributors will offer multiple modern decorative throw pillow options, getting a full brochure detailing the fabrics that they use can be beneficial.

Additionally, allergies can often play a role in a customer’s buying decisions - that means filling options such as Down and feathers may not be their first. Choosing a supplier that offers alternative cushion insert types such as recycled microgel can be a smart choice.

Ask About Their Quality Assurance Process

It’s important to do your due diligence when speaking with a home décor manufacturing company and ask them to explain their quality assurance process. After all, you want to ensure that the products you stock in your store will satisfy your customers.  

Here at Westex, we have Quality Assurance managers at all stages of the manufacturing and shipping process and our QA process has been audited by Bureau Veritas.

Read Product Reviews

If you happen to know of other distributors that are working with a particular home décor supplier, read any customer reviews of the products that you’re considering stocking. Not only can you get a great idea of the quality, e.g whether the item is true to colour or how durable the fabric is but you will also get a sense of how satisfied your customers will be.

Are You a Retailer Looking to Stock Our Wholesale Decorative Cushion Collection?

Westex is your go-to home décor manufacturer. We stock only the best products in home interior design. We are a 100% proudly Canadian wholesale bedding, throw cushion and home textiles company. For more information, fill out our contact form here.