# 17 - Toward a New Model of Wholesale

Toward a New Model of Wholesale

By Chris Maher

Wouldn't it be great if a gallery owner who could only afford to buy a few of your pieces could still show your whole line? Not just samples, but actually all the pieces you have in your studio today? And be the first to know that you have new designs, new colors, or just don't do the old styles anymore?

The Web is perfect for that kind of immediacy. Here's the setup I envision. A gallery owner has a computer with a Internet connection in a corner of their shop. The artists and craftspeople that they represent have web sites showing current works that they have in inventory at their studios.

When a customer expresses interest in a piece, but states an objection, ("I need something larger", or "too bad its not in blue...") the gallery can quickly bring up the artists web site and show the prospect exactly what the artist has. This would be especially helpful if the artist works in one of a kind pieces, or due to the process has large variances of color or tone in their work.

Information about the process, and a biography of the artist could also be printed out for the client. Today's inexpensive ink jet color printers do a beautiful job of printing web pages, and can produce a great looking handout. (One gallery owner told me they never have enough handouts on their artists, putting that information on a web site would insure that a limitless supply was always available.)

The galleries advantage is they get to sell merchandise they don't have to stock. That means they can carry more variety, and will be selling the most current designs that an artist creates. Eventually, I could see this as real competition for wholesale shows.

The possibility does exist that the client would feel that they could log on to the net any time and buy directly from the artist. If this is a major concern, part or all of the crafts persons site could be password protected.

The value that the gallery adds is that they are the trusted intermediary. This removes one of the big barriers that stops people from buying online. Clients can deal with the folks they know, the gallery, and if they are not happy with their selection they know that the galleries regular exchange or refund polices will protect them.

A web connection would allow the gallery to be much more experimental in the kind of work that they displayed, even showcase work that they could never afford to actually buy up front. It could truly allow the customers to direct what kind of work that the gallery carried.

Purchase, shipping, and refund arrangements would have to be worked out between the gallery and the artist. The traditional 100% markup could be negotiable, as the galleries expenses would be much lower without any inventory costs.

Even the cost of setting a computer up in the store is getting less every day. This might, in fact, be an ideal use of a WebTV setup. A 30" or larger TV and a WebTV set top box would cost under $500, add a $200 color ink jet printer and you have a great point of purchase display unit.

Do you wholesale your work? How receptive do you think the galleries that you deal with would be to this idea? E-mail me with your comments, and let's see if we can encourage some galleries to begin carrying our web pages in their shops, and see what that can do for our online sales.

This page last updated: 09/02/04

[ Article Index ] [ Home ] [Information ] [ Search ]

If you would like to contact me directly, e-mail me at advisor@1x.com
Your comments are always welcome.