How can I sell to Boots and Mothercare etc?

MotionTouch are often asked by innovators with new baby products how they can get their products into the major retailers. Once the product is designed and the manufacturing is in place, focus turns to sales. Although Kiddicare and Babies R Us are very influential, it is invariably Boots and Mothercare that they are referring to. There are different approaches to selling to these mammoth retailers but by far the easiest is to go to an established distributor with a relationship and existing product range in place. There are a couple of reasons for this. Firstly major retailers do not like setting up suppliers on their system who only offer one or two products. Secondly it takes experience and skills to manage the account properly.

MotionTouch work with our clients to assist them in choosing the right distribution partner. There are several significant companies and a number of niche ones. Depending on the product and the entrepreneur’s ambition, the choice of distributor will vary from product to product. Distributors are often part of informal international networks. This can be useful in establishing sales internationally.

In order to approach these retailers you will require consistent quality control, specific assurance and certifications (usually in additional the statutory requirements) and also social responsibility audits). We will deal with these in later articles.