Thread: wholesale markets

im coming to bangkok in june to spend 3 months buying wholesale.

does anyone know what bo pae is like and what the quality is like....is it as cheap as they say it is.
any other ideas for buying wholesale...into t shirts kids stuff girly gear u know the drill im sure.....looking for stuff to take home to sell via my importing business

cheers
paul

You could probably get stuff a lot cheaper in China.

^ but the bargirls are not as nice

Originally Posted by Carnwadrick

but the bargirls are not as nice

and they know everything there is to know about wholesale

^

Originally Posted by Panda

You could probably get stuff a lot cheaper in China.

thanks panda but if i was going to china id post in a chinese site.

i think i mentioned bo pae rite......anyone know about that place at all

its thailand im coming to trade with cos in china u generally have to buy in the 1000,s
and im just starting out so want smaller purchases to start with..

ive seen enough cheaps shit in reatail to justify even those prices but i want cheaper so i can sell cheaper...and thai stuff seems to b made a little better

My MIL has a small retail clothing shop in downtown Korat. She does most of her wholesale clothes shopping at Bo Bae market and ships the stuff up here by bus. But this is really low end gear. She typically buys a blouse, shirt or pair of shorts for from 40 to 60 baht and sells for 99 baht.

^
You can do that online

The only one I know is Pratunam.

I went to Bo Bae two years ago and bought several dozen T shirts at an average of 45 baht per item. I had expected an open air market but it was all located in a multi storey building. Lots of stalls on many floors. I walked around a little on three floors, then just decided on one outlet as most were very similar with similar goods. I received good, courteous service and came away with another positive Thai experience. Do a Google search on Bo Bae and you'll find plenty of links which will give you a better idea.Good luck on your venture.

Pratunam has slightly more upscale and fashion type stuff. Bo Bae is really bottom end basics, for the most part.

Originally Posted by buad hai

Pratunam has slightly more upscale and fashion type stuff. Bo Bae is really bottom end basics, for the most part.

Is that where you bought your flip-flops? (things for our US brethren)

Originally Posted by paulspad2002

Originally Posted by Panda

You could probably get stuff a lot cheaper in China.

thanks panda but if i was going to china id post in a Chinese site.

Funny, I never thought of that.

I can buy things like T shirts made in China cheaper at retail prices here in Australia than I can buy them retail in Thailand. Footwear was something I noticed was much more expensive in Thailand than the imported Chinese stuff back home.

Maybe its different in US or Europe. Not sure what sort of import tariffs they have there. But unless you can substantially undercut the prices in the big supermarket chains I doubt you will find a market niche back home.

Originally Posted by friscofrankie

You can buy Chinese made, India Made, Bangladesh made and even Thai made goods at BoBae. Quality is all over the map. Low-end stuff mostly but there are some better quality factories with small presence there. You can buy outright or order.
There are always western shop owners wandering around looking for deals. last time I was there there were a couple freight forwarders with small offices, they can help with shipping maybe even help with quotas if need be. Couple of shope specialize in labels and hook you up with some one to sew 'em in even. Across the street is a rabbits warren of alleys and shops that sell clothing and handicrafts and this is where many of the small neighborhood shop owners go for the cheapest goods. The street itself is lined with factory shops and independents.

The off-price market is a cut-throat one, it can be profitable and BoBae is a nice place to get a toe in. You can do better by contacting the factories in and around Bangkok and trying to buy up stock lots, I've been offered everything from one box of baby clothes to a container of "unlicensed" YSL accessories.

Bo Bae is geared to the small to mid size purchases and if you are a retailer this would be the place to go. many of the items in BoBae are subject to quotas and these may be hard to come by if you are going after things like cotton tee-shirts, no matter how cheap the shirts are if you can't get them into the country there ain't much profit. Since you have an import business you should know about that and have contacts to help get what you need.

BoBae is about as inexpensive as small quantity purchases get in Thailand. So in answer to your question yeah it's cheap. it is also a one-stop shop, if you want it to be, goods labeling and shipping all under one roof. Pratunam is another place I have seen foreign buyers there as well. My first year and half here I spent a good deal of time in both places and think I visited damn near every factory in the central region. My ex had 20+ years in the apparel industry here; I could see the potential in it, just didn't want to open a shop or live stateside.

yeah great info man, im a small trader doing importing to sell at markets here in new zealand. on thisrts my duty is 12.5% so if i buy at $4 a shirt its costing me double to land it here so i sell at $20 and make a good profit. the supermarket chains dont sell what im going to be selling so i dont have a problem here and no one is importing tshirts here hardly so i have an almost open market...
ill bebuying in dozens so bo bae wud be perfect esp if i can do other shopping as well and maybe hook up with factories, im setting up a shop for two friends and im supplying them with my goods i get. so for myself ill ahve a bout $3000 to start with and for the shop about $20,000 so i have a lot of things to set up hence the reason im staying 3 months......

just wanna say more info would be welcome n i just wanna say thanks to the guys posted so far all info is worth having so thanks

Originally Posted by paulspad2002

on thisrts my duty is 12.5% so if i buy at $4 a shirt its costing me double to land it here

Tell C & E that they only cost $1 a piece then. It's not rocket science.

If you're looking for accesoires, beads, cheap jewelry etc you better try Sampeng Lane or China Town in general.
Good luck.

It is a good bargain place. We mainly found clothes but we didnt cover the whole place. Its pretty spread out. Dont miss the indoors part. The do have farang sized clothing. Its ok to bargain with them especialy if your buying several.

Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog

Originally Posted by paulspad2002

on thisrts my duty is 12.5% so if i buy at $4 a shirt its costing me double to land it here

Tell C & E that they only cost $1 a piece then. It's not rocket science.

well im told that if my paperwork doesnt match a general pricing and i mean lets face it the customs guys know whats coming in from where they see it all the time and they kow th eprices im sure....they will just calculate my freight duty and tax on the general wouldnt they......not to mention i need proper paperwork to claim all my expenses....ill def be looking for those #$1 shirts but i have what i want in mind i saw it last time i was there in the market places, some rad t shirts and all sorts
of girly shit going on at jatujak....as long as i can get the right prices ill buy....

Either Bo Bae or Pratunam are just fine. My wife can get similar prices at either location. However, I suggest you confine your plans to only children's clothing.

The sizes they offer over here are small, extra small, and so small that they had to do the stitches under an electron microscope. Yes, I have seen farang sized clothing in a store or 2, but as a general rule, these are Thai shops for Thai people (and the XL sizes cost more when they are available).

Unless you are doing a product line for midgets, you won't have too many opportunities. Generally, for shirts, the prices are about 200 - 300 baht for a set of 5, and 5 is usually the minimum qty. For the really cheap items you can sometimes get less than that, and there are items that will set you back significantly more, but that is a good average.

The quality is similar to what you could expect to find at your local landfill, only in this case they charge you per item of rubbish you haul out.

Yes, it really is that bad. But that is what people want. My wife only wears a shirt once and decides it is old anyway, so why pay for quality? If you need designer labels, just buy the label. They're generally available, although they tend not to be displayed. A friendly chat and a good sized order though and the shop keeper can probably arrange with a contact to have the right brand sewn on. That's alot cheaper than paying for the whole shirt. They're pretty careful about that now though, so you it might take some convincing and a good repore with the person you are asking. It's not like the old days.

There are deals to be had, but if it was easy, everyone would be doing it. Plan to spend alot of time looking around. You sound like you understand exactly what you are getting into, so the best I can offer you is my hope that you'll find something you want.

Finally, make sure you have a Thai do the initial negotiating for you. Don't even show your face. You can pop in later after the haggling gets serious and you're ready to pay. Just makes things easier that way.

Originally Posted by altern8life

Either Bo Bae or Pratunam are just fine. My wife can get similar prices at either location. However, I suggest you confine your plans to only children's clothing.

The sizes they offer over here are small, extra small, and so small that they had to do the stitches under an electron microscope. Yes, I have seen farang sized clothing in a store or 2, but as a general rule, these are Thai shops for Thai people (and the XL sizes cost more when they are available).

Unless you are doing a product line for midgets, you won't have too many opportunities. Generally, for shirts, the prices are about 200 - 300 baht for a set of 5, and 5 is usually the minimum qty. For the really cheap items you can sometimes get less than that, and there are items that will set you back significantly more, but that is a good average.

The quality is similar to what you could expect to find at your local landfill, only in this case they charge you per item of rubbish you haul out.

Yes, it really is that bad. But that is what people want. My wife only wears a shirt once and decides it is old anyway, so why pay for quality? If you need designer labels, just buy the label. They're generally available, although they tend not to be displayed. A friendly chat and a good sized order though and the shop keeper can probably arrange with a contact to have the right brand sewn on. That's alot cheaper than paying for the whole shirt. They're pretty careful about that now though, so you it might take some convincing and a good repore with the person you are asking. It's not like the old days.

There are deals to be had, but if it was easy, everyone would be doing it. Plan to spend alot of time looking around. You sound like you understand exactly what you are getting into, so the best I can offer you is my hope that you'll find something you want.

Finally, make sure you have a Thai do the initial negotiating for you. Don't even show your face. You can pop in later after the haggling gets serious and you're ready to pay. Just makes things easier that way.

i like the midget line i would try JJ market in Bangkok on Satuday and Sunday but you have to get there early because of the size of it.

good luck

Becks

^ Just telling you what the smart guys do.

Originally Posted by Becks

i like the midget line i would try JJ market in Bangkok on Satuday and Sunday but you have to get there early because of the size of it.

good luck

Becks

Most of the serious wholesalers are open on Friday at JJ so you're better off avoiding the weekend tourist crowds and going then.

You can also drive in and park in the market on Friday if you have a car.