Starting wholesale from scratch
If you’re opening a wholesale program for the first time, the hard part isn’t software – it’s the dozen small decisions you’ve never had to make. This page makes them for you; change any of them later as your book grows.
The recommended setup
Section titled “The recommended setup”At install, choose “Recommended setup (UK wholesale)” and Transactful configures everything below in one step:
| Decision | Recommended default | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Application form | Business details, VAT number (required, validated), 2 trade references, terms checkbox | Enough to make a real decision; short enough that good buyers finish it |
| Payment terms | Proforma (pay first) for the first order, Net 30 after | You learn they’re real before you lend to them; buyers accept this readily |
| Starter credit limit | £500–£2,000 depending on order size | A limit you’d be relaxed losing once; raise it on payment history |
| Safety buffer | 5% | Absorbs timing edges without anyone noticing |
| Overdue reminders | 3 days before due · due date · 7 days over | Polite, automatic, and earlier than you’d get around to it |
| Automatic holds | Off (turn on at ~10 active accounts) | With three stockists you’ll know; with thirty you won’t |
Nothing here is exotic – it’s what an experienced wholesale manager would set up, ready before your first applicant.
Welcome to Transactful
· Terms: proforma first order, then Net 30
· Starter limits £500–£2,000 · 5% buffer
· Reminders on · automatic holds off
Where do the first stockists come from?
Section titled “Where do the first stockists come from?”Transactful gives every “can I stock your products?” conversation a destination: your application link. Put it
- in your store footer and navigation (“Wholesale”),
- in your email signature and Instagram bio,
- in your reply to every inbound retail enquiry – the DM asking “do you do wholesale?” gets a link, not a PDF.
Buyers applying through a proper form with VAT validation also signals that your wholesale operation is serious – worth trusting with a first order the other way, too.
Growing into credit
Section titled “Growing into credit”A common first year with Transactful:
- Months 1–3: everything proforma. The form and approvals are doing the work; the credit engine is idle. That’s fine.
- First repeat buyers: switch your reliable ones to Net 30 with a starter limit – one click on the company, the calculator suggests the number.
- From ~10 accounts: turn on automatic overdue holds and let the reminder sequence chase for you.
Wholesale on terms is a flywheel of small, well-recorded trust decisions. Start smaller than feels impressive; the ledger makes raising limits easy and defensible.
Learning the trade
Section titled “Learning the trade”New to the concepts themselves? Start with What is trade credit? and Net 30 on Shopify – written for first-time wholesalers.