The basic tenets of a content life vests in simple joys and simple living. As we grow up, we dream of having a good home and no home is complete without a good kitchen. While food staples form the most essential part of the kitchen, the role of kitchen utensils cannot be overstated. Such importance lies in kitchen utensils, that in almost every Indian marriage, kitchen set or dinner set or a complete set of stainless-steel kitchen items form the bulk of the gifts received from the relatives and families. The reason is fairly obvious. Once a newly married couple begins a journey together, the kitchen forms an integral part of a happy married life. If one dwells upon the vast population of India, and relates the number of marriages that happen in India, it becomes fairly simple to conclude that business based on kitchen utensils offers a lucrative market to explore. Kitchen utensils form the requirement of every household, and irrespective of the strata of society one belongs to, there is always a need to buy kitchen utensils.
Uses of utensils
Kitchen utensils are used for storing, for cooking, for eating, for special occasions and also for gifting. One simply has to make a visit to their kitchen and look around. There would be a steel drum, housing wheat flour, another steel drum for daily rice storage. A kitchen sink, which mostly would be made out of stainless steel, a steel storage rack for keeping all items like plates, bowls, spoons, and not to forget another part in the kitchen where we keep the expensive dinner sets, to be taken out only when important guests come visiting. In most Indian households, the kitchen utensils are made up of stainless steel while the expensive crockery is of bone china, crystal, melamine or glass. In olden times, when stainless steel was not predominant, one could easily find heavy bronze or copper-based utensils. As times modernized, they have been pushed to novelty kitchen items as stainless-steel kitchen utensils and tools gradually flooded the market. With this simple introduction, one can understand the vast market that kitchen supplies and utensils command.
Buying and selling of utensils
It is one safe business that can be recommended to every entrepreneur. A business chain essentially consists of four important stakeholders, namely, the manufacturer, the wholesaler, the retailer and the most important, the customer. Every product is catered to ensure customer acceptance and thus, profits for the other three. The chain of operation of any business stems from the manufacturer producing the goods, which are in turn, procured by the wholesalers. These wholesalers procure goods from a range of different manufacturers. The retailers buy their wares from the wholesalers, and then the goods are sold to the customer at the retail price printed on the goods.
Starting a wholesale kitchen supplies business
In order to start a wholesale business of kitchen supplies and utensils, the first and the foremost thing is to understand the density and opportunity of the market. To understand this, one must choose a location of setting up their wholesale business. The profits raked in depends on where the business is located. If one sets up the business in a small town, it is evident that the number of retailers would be limited. This in turn, will hinder the business. Therefore, it is recommended to set up businesses in big cities, with a larger volume of clientele. Before setting up the wholesale business, one must ensure that they get the trade license by applying to the concerned government agency. This is a fairly simple process, as long as the papers are in order. A copy of this licence must always be on display in the business premises. The license warrants the procurement and sale of the goods as per the trade laws and it ensures the legitimacy of the business.
Connecting with utensils manufacturers
Once the location is selected, then comes the part of connecting with utensil manufacturers to become their wholesalers. This is a fairly easy process, given that utensil manufacturers are always on the lookout for new sale opportunities. One can simply approach them to get their dealership. It is not uncommon to find wholesalers linked to multiple utensil brands. The reason for this is that they want to ensure that they house products of all price ranges and diversity of products in terms of quality, quantity and offers. A wholesale business requires a larger capital to start with, as compared to starting a retail business. This is so, because the wholesaler is expected to have multiple ranges of products, to ensure delivery to various small and big retailers. As such, most wholesalers have a large sized warehouse available with them.
Also, read: Top 10 Premium Quality Kitchen Equipment Manufacturers, Suppliers & Exporters In India
Developing customer centric relation
The last but the most important step is to develop customer centric relations with a plethora of retailers. After all, they will be the ones buying the goods off you, and having a long list of retailers will ensure that your goods are always moving out from the warehouse to the retailer premises. For the same, you should visit as many retailers as possible, connect with them, find out who their existing wholesalers are, the profit margins and also be aware of potential future retailers. In this phase, the utensil manufacturers also offer support by providing a list of their retailers.
Importance of logistics
Logistics play a vital role in the success of your business. This means that when the demand or order is placed by the retailer, you must be in a position to deliver the goods in the quickest time possible. Therefore, at the start, you can explore hiring public goods transport vehicles such as auto rickshaws, mini delivery vans, etc. As your business grows, you can also purchase your own minivans for ensuring timely deliveries. Retailers appreciate a fast turnaround time, and it gives them confidence to place more orders with you.
Understanding the current trends
Another vital point to note is that you must be aware of the current trends in the market. Although stainless steel utensils are an evergreen product in the kitchen supplies domain, the end customers are also on the lookout for trendy utensils. These could be made out of a variety of raw materials such as glass, melamine, bone china, bronze, copper, or even clay. In the last few years, utensils made out of clay have been in demand amongst the metropolitan consumers owing to their aesthetics, neutral behaviour with food and also to promote a green image. There is also a belief that food cooked in earthen pots taste much better than the one cooked in stainless steel utensils.
Get multiple payment options available
Although it has been observed that many retailers prefer to pay in cash, for ease of doing business, it is important to offer multiple payment options. Therefore, you must link your business through your bank for online mode of payment, credit card and debit card swiping, UPI interface payments, as well as other payment wallets like Phonepe, Amazon pay, Paytm etc. Providing this range of options to select would enable greater transparency in business and easier for account keeping.
Make an online presence
As the world is rapidly going digital, it is all the more essential to have an online presence. Therefore, you must also make your business have good online visibility. Google maps is an important destination where you must upload your business information. Every tech savvy customer looks at your review ratings before placing orders. Therefore, a strong feedback system will ensure that you not only keep improving your business but also become popular with online buyers. To this effect, you should always listen to your customers and request them for feedback and review on google. It must be important that when a potential buyer searches for “utensils shop near me”, your business should reflect in the search results. The reputation of a business is supreme and therefore, avoid anything that will bring a bad name to your business. Customer focus, timely delivery, high quality products, easy replacements are all important facets of business that must be promoted by your organization.
If you have all of these covered, it can be rest assured that your wholesale kitchen utensil business will emerge to be resilient and profitable as the years roll by.
Conclusion
Kitchen supplies are a necessity for every household. Thus, there is always a space for opening up a wholesale business in this field. This article provides a detailed approach to how to start a kitchen supplies business, and would be fruitful for every entrepreneur.
FAQs: Kitchen supplies business
Q. What are kitchen utensils?
Ans. Kitchen utensils are a range of kitchen-oriented products that is required by every household. Ladle, drums, containers, plates, spoons, bowls, etc are all examples of kitchen utensils.
Q. What are kitchen utensils made of?
Ans. Generally, kitchen utensils are made up of stainless steel. However, they can also be made up of bone china, bronze, crystal, melamine, clay or glass.
Q. How much capital do I need to start a wholesale kitchen supplies business?
Answer: There is really no answer to this. But it requires a larger capital than what you need for a retail business. As a rule of thumb, the capital needed to start 10 retail businesses is what is needed for one wholesale business. You can always start small, but you need to keep expanding with time.
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