82% of Specialty Retailers are Growing and Looking to Brands to Help Streamline that Growth

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Envoy B2B’s independent research of over 1,200 retailers has shown that there is growth within the wholesale market. 82% of specialty retailers surveyed have seen their business grow within the last year.

Grassroots Outdoor Alliance has similar findings. Recently, they reported that member retailers indicated an increase of 5.78% in April, which has grown five out of the last six months.

“These businesses and business owners are truly at the core of local communities across the country, and in many cases are also an important economic engine,” said Rich Hill, president of Grassroots. “You have to tip your hat to the ongoing commitment of independent specialty retailers.” Since Jan. 1, 2019, Grassroots has reported a 3.6% overall growth along with a national increase of 2.53% over the last 12 months.

With this growth, there is an opportunity for brands — and retailers are looking to brands to help merchandise the best assortment of products for their stores. According to Envoy’s research, 9 out of 10 retailers expect brands to provide them merchandising tools to best fit their store.

“It’s a never-ending cycle each season,” says Jon Faber, CEO of Envoy B2B. “This growth within the wholesale market is great, it’s partly fueled by brands and retailers working together to stock stores with the perfect products for their customers.” Adding the right goods in the right stores will continue to be a powerplay for brands and retailers. “All of this is so important because success with specialty retail is only possible by getting the best-fit assortment in each store. It’s what makes specialty retail a unique challenge and opportunity,” Faber stated.

In a recent blog from Envoy B2B, Ryan Dean, General Manager at Bill and Paul’s Sporthaus in Grand Rapids, MI stated “We continue to add unique products that complement our current focused but specialized selection. It’s important for us to continue to represent brands that help us grow, and care for our customer’s needs.”

Empowering brands to provide the best fit assortment to each retailer they partner with is a big factor in Envoy B2B’s software. “When a brand uses Envoy B2B they empower retailers throughout the entire season to best fit their store through robust merchandising features, product and brand education, easy pre-book ordering, and quick replenishment,” explained Jon.

Now, companies like Howler Brothers, OOFOS, and Joules are showing significant growth from focusing on this growing specialty retail market and adopting Envoy B2B’s software tools to support their wholesale channel. With it’s latest release on July 13, Envoy B2B introduces it’s Visualize feature, enabling brands to support their retail partner with the merchandising tools needed to supply the perfect product assortment to the right stores.

“Based on the research we’ve conducted, it is evident that any brand that wants a piece of this growing wholesale market needs to supply well-merchandised items that best-fit their stores,” Jon concluded.

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About Envoy B2B

Envoy B2B is a wholesale content and eCommerce platform for your entire team. Our tools and services are designed to help you create dynamic content, increase your speed of sale, and bring you closer to your retailers. Envoy B2B provides the technology you need to empower your team and support your retail channel. Envoy currently works with great clients like Ducati, LEMS footwear, Howler Brothers, Gogglesoc, Green Lines, Keds, Merrell, Hush Puppies, CAT Footwear, Chaco, Saucony, OOFOS, Joules. Learn more at Envoyb2b.com