I know you have a lot on your plate right now. You've got products to make, orders to ship, and about a hundred decisions that you're making every day.

I do not take it lightly that you are spending time with me today and I want to thank you for being here.

Today's episode is a short, focused, throwback episode designed to give you one thing that you can do today to move your business forward.

No fluff, no filler, just ideas that we've shared in the past that will benefit you today.

Let's dive in!

You can listen to the full episode with Jessica Totillo Coster of eCommerce Badassery here: http://prooftoproduct.com/416

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

How do you make spending decisions that keep a product business sustainable and profitable year after year? In Part 2 of my conversation with Katie Wilson of The Good Twin and Crush and Touch Art Supply, we talk about money.

Katie walks through her yearly budgeting process, from projecting sales to setting aside funds for new products, and explains why she treats her budget as a living plan rather than something to set and forget. She also shares why she keeps her team small and well-paid, and why she believes the world needs more good small business jobs.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How Katie projects her sales for the year ahead
• How she allocates money for new product development
• How she sets her non-negotiable expenses
• Why she’s paid herself through payroll since day one
• Why your budget is a plan that may need adjusting throughout the year, not something set in stone
• Why she keeps fulfillment in-house instead of using a 3PL
• Why she believes in keeping her team small and well-paid, and creating good small business jobs

Listen to part 1 at http://prooftoproduct.com/466 or wherever you get your podcasts. Katie talks about product trend cycles and creative fulfillment, and explains why your bestsellers deserve to stick around.

Today's episode is brought to you by our Retailer Roundtable interview series.

To make a strong first impression with wholesale buyers, we need to do a few things well.

• We need to make it easy for stores to purchase from us
• We need clear pricing and terms and conditions
• We need to build strong relationships with our customers

All of that gets easier when we listen to our customers. This on-demand interview series gives you a window into what buyers want and need from you, and it's only $27. You can get access to it at prooftoproduct.com/roundtable.

You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/467

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

I know you have a lot on your plate right now. You've got products to make, orders to ship, and about a hundred decisions that you're making every day.

I do not take it lightly that you are spending time with me today and I want to thank you for being here.

Today's episode is a short, focused, throwback episode designed to give you one thing that you can do today to move your business forward.

No fluff, no filler, just ideas that we've shared in the past that will benefit you today.

Let's dive in!

You can listen to the full episode with Arianne Foulks of Aeolidia here: http://prooftoproduct.com/114

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

How do you run a high-volume wholesale business with a tiny team, and still make room for the work you love? Katie Wilson has been in the greeting card and gift industry since 2008, and her brand, The Good Twin, is 95% wholesale and stocked in more than 1,500 independent shops around the world.

She and her partner Scotty also run Crush and Touch Art Supply, a neighborhood art store and gift shop in Los Angeles. You’ve heard Katie talked about the shop side on the podcast before in episode 129, episode 316, and episode 317.

This time she focuses on the brand: why wholesale is still her main revenue stream, how she keeps orders moving, and which products she’ll never cut. This episode was so juicy, we had to split it into two parts!

In part 1, you’ll learn:

• Why Katie chooses to keep wholesale as The Good Twin’s primary revenue stream
• How a tiny team handles high-volume wholesale orders with strong systems, and why she keeps fulfillment in-house
• How to spot trends in product cycles and categories
• How to balance making money from your work with projects that fill your creative cup
• Why you should think twice before discontinuing a bestseller, even if you’re tired of looking at it years later

Today's episode is brought to you by our Retailer Roundtable interview series.

To make a strong first impression with wholesale buyers, we need to do a few things well.

• We need to make it easy for stores to purchase from us
• We need clear pricing and terms and conditions
• We need to build strong relationships with our customers

All of that gets easier when we listen to our customers. This on-demand interview series gives you a window into what buyers want and need from you, and it's only $27. You can get access to it at prooftoproduct.com/roundtable.

You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/466

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

One pattern I've noticed time and time again after working with thousands of product brands across lots of different categories, is that while our products might be different or our tools and platforms might change, all of our core business foundations and fundamentals are not changing.

And that's exactly why I wanted to share this short clip from the archive, something that I think is worth revisiting because the takeaways still hold true today.

Maybe listening will spark an idea or help you take action on a decision that you've been sitting on. Really, the goal here is to help you take your next intentional step in business. That's what I want for you.

Enjoy this clip!

You can listen to the full episode with Reese Spykerman of Design By Reese here: http://prooftoproduct.com/224

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

"How did you get your products into so many stores?" Melissa Gullatte hears this question often.

Her business, Gracefully Made Art, started with original paintings and wedding invitations.

After her first daughter was born, she pivoted to officially licensed collegiate and sorority gifts.

She took Paper Camp in spring 2023, thinking wholesale would be a nice side channel.

Three years later, wholesale is two-thirds of her revenue and she's in more than 1,000 stores.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How collegiate and sorority licensing works: applying school by school, getting each product category and every piece of artwork approved, and planning six months to a year ahead of launch
• How Melissa landed Ole Miss after two years of rejections
• Why sorority licensing opened up a national market when collegiate products sell regionally
• How she prices for wholesale first, with royalties of 12 to 20 percent built in, then sets her retail price from there
• What tactics got her into 1,000+ stores
• How she keeps retailers reordering, and why fewer SKUs helped her business grow

Today's episode is brought to you by our Retailer Roundtable interview series.

To make a strong first impression with wholesale buyers, we need to do a few things well.

• We need to make it easy for stores to purchase from us
• We need clear pricing and terms and conditions
• We need to build strong relationships with our customers

All of that gets easier when we listen to our customers. This on-demand interview series gives you a window into what buyers want and need from you, and it's only $27. You can get access to it at prooftoproduct.com/roundtable.

You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/465

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

I know you have a lot on your plate right now. You've got products to make, orders to ship, and about a hundred decisions that you're making every day.

I do not take it lightly that you are spending time with me today and I want to thank you for being here.

Today's episode is a short, focused, throwback episode designed to give you one thing that you can do today to move your business forward.

No fluff, no filler, just ideas that we've shared in the past that will benefit you today.

Let's dive in!

You can listen to the full episode with Mei Pak of Creative Hive Co here: http://prooftoproduct.com/265

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

How do you decide what to make next, what to cut, and where to put your limited time and money? For Elizabeth Rees, founder of Chasing Paper, the answer has come from her customers for nearly 13 years.

She shares how customer feedback shaped her product format, her materials, her wholesale approach, and her newest line, and why she checks every instinct against the data before acting on it.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why Chasing Paper sold wallpaper in panels instead of rolls from the start, so a customer with a small project could spend $60 instead of $250 and buy in at any budget
• How launching with two materials, Standard and Luxe, worked like an accidental A/B test, and why Elizabeth discontinued the lower-priced option about nine months in instead of continuing to explain the difference
• How Chasing Paper treats wholesale as a customer acquisition channel, drop-shipping for retail partners and using those placements to build brand trust
• Why the trade program, where repeat rate, average order value, and lifetime value run three to four times higher than direct-to-consumer, became the reason to launch fabric
• Why deepening relationships with the customers you already have can matter more than constantly finding new ones, and why a small team has to be selective about new channels
• How Elizabeth pairs instinct with data, and why one source of truth for attribution keeps her team from cherry-picking numbers to support a hunch

Today's episode is brought to you by our Retailer Roundtable interview series.

To make a strong first impression with wholesale buyers, we need to do a few things well.

• We need to make it easy for stores to purchase from us
• We need clear pricing and terms and conditions
• We need to build strong relationships with our customers

All of that gets easier when we listen to our customers. This on-demand interview series gives you a window into what buyers want and need from you, and it's only $27. You can get access to it at prooftoproduct.com/roundtable.

You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/464

Quick Links:

Free Wholesale Audio Series

Free Resources Library

Free Email Marketing for Product Makers

PTP LABS

Paper Camp

Mentioned in this episode:

Take the free quiz!

Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz