“We are a DTC brand. We don’t do Wholesale.” This was the mantra of the 2010s. Warby Parker, Casper, Allbirds. The thesis was: “Department stores are dying. Middlemen eat margins. We own the customer.” The thesis was half-right. Department stores are struggling. But the conclusion was wrong. Every major “DTC” brand is now aggressively pursuing Wholesale. Warby Parker is in stores. Harry’s is in Target. Why? Because DTC has a ceiling. Customer Acquisition Costs (CAC) rise as you scale. B2B (Wholesale) has no ceiling. It is the Sleeping Giant on your P&L. This article explains how to wake it up.

Why Maison Code Discusses This

We build B2B Portals. We see the backend of high-growth brands. We often see that 40% of revenue comes from B2B, but it receives 1% of the engineering resources. The B2C site gets the gorgeous animations, the AI search, and the AB testing. The B2B site is a password-protected PDF list. This is madness. B2B buyers are humans too. They shop on Amazon at night. They expect a frictionless, digital experience.

1. The Economics: DTC vs Wholesale

Let’s bust the myth that “Wholesale kills margins.”

Scenario: You sell a luxury candle.

MSRP: $100.
COGS: $20.

The DTC Math:

Revenue: $100.
COGS: -$20.
Ad Spend (CAC): -$40. (Average for luxury).
Shipping (Pick & Pack): -$10.
Net Profit: $30.

The Wholesale Math:

Revenue: $50 (50% Wholesale Discount).
COGS: -$20.
Ad Spend: $0. (The retailer brings the customer).
Shipping: -$2. (Bulk pallet shipping is cheap per unit).
Net Profit: $28.

The verdict: The profit is almost identical ($30 vs $28). But the Risk Profile is completely different.

In DTC, you risk the Ad Spend upfront. If the ads fail, you lose money.
In Wholesale, the Order is a contract. You get paid (eventually). Wholesale provides the Cash Flow Floor. DTC provides the Brand Ceiling.

2. The Digital Showroom (NuORDER / JOOR / Shopify)

Stop sending Excel spreadsheets and PDF Line Sheets. It is 2026. Your buyers are millennials. They hate email threads. You need a Digital B2B Portal.

The Stack:

Shopify Plus B2B:
- One backend, two storefronts.
- Specific Price Lists (Gold Tier: 50% off. Silver Tier: 40% off).
- Net Payment Terms (Net 60) integrated at checkout.
Visual Buying:
- The buyer sees the grid.
- They click “Add to Order”.
- They download the invoice instantly.
- They see “Ship Date: Oct 15”.

If you make it easy for a buyer to spend $10,000 at 11 PM on their iPad, they will. If you force them to fax you, they will buy from your competitor.

3. The Faire Strategy (Marketplace dynamics)

Faire is the “Amazon of Wholesale”. It connects brands with 500,000 independent boutiques. It is a powerful discovery engine, but a dangerous master.

The Pros:

Discovery: Access to thousands of shops you could never find manually.
Factor Financing: Faire pays you upfront, but gives the retailer Net 60. They hold the risk.

The Cons:

Commission: 25% on first order. 15% on reorders.
Data: You don’t own the relationship fully.

The Strategy: “Dip and Flip”.

Use Faire for Lead Generation. Let them find you new accounts.
Pay the 25% “Bounty”. It’s cheaper than a Sales Rep.
Once the retailer is a loyal partner, invite them to your Direct Portal (Shopify).
- “Order direct for exclusive SKUs and priority shipping.”
- (Check Faire’s Terms of Service on non-solicitation, but generally, you can market your own brand).

4. Corporate Gifting: The Hidden Channel

This is B2B, but not “Wholesale”. It is “Bulk Direct Sales”. Scenario: Google wants to buy 500 branded hoodies for their engineering team.

They pay full price (or small discount, 20%).
They pay upfront.
They need custom embroidery.

This single email is worth $50,000. Do you have a /corporate landing page to capture this? Most brands don’t. Action: Build a landing page. “Corporate Gifting & Customization. Minimum 50 units. dedicated Account Manager.” Capture the lead. Close it via phone.

5. The Hotel & Hospitality Strategy

(See ABM Strategy). Selling to Hotels is the holy grail of B2B.

Volume: 500 rooms x Refill every week.
Visibility: High Net Worth guests trial your product for free.
Prestige: “As found in the Ritz Paris.”

The Trap: Hotels will ask for “Private Label” (Their logo on the bottle). Refuse. The value is the Co-Branding. “Maison Code for Ritz Paris”. If you remove your logo, you are just a commodity chemical manufacturer. Keep the brand visible.

6. Managing Channel Conflict

“If I sell to Nordstrom, won’t it cannibalize my website sales?” Data says: No. It creates a Halo Effect. A customer sees your bag in Nordstrom. They touch it. They trust Nordstrom. They go home. They Google your brand. They see you have the “Red Color” (Nordstrom only had Black). They buy from your site. Wholesale is a Billboard that pays you.

Rules of Engagement:

Price Parity: You cannot undercut your retailers. If it’s $100 on your site, it must be $100 at Nordstrom.
Exclusive SKUs: Keep the “Bestsellers” everywhere. Keep the “Avant Garde” stuff DTC only. This gives super-fans a reason to come direct.

7. Operational Maturity (EDI & ERP)

When you land a “Big Box” retailer (Sephora, Selfridges), Shopify is not enough. They will demand EDI (Electronic Data Interchange).

“Send us an ASN (Advanced Shipping Notice) via EDI 856.”
“Receive PO via EDI 850.” If you don’t know what this means, you need an Ops partner. You need an ERP (NetSuite, Cin7) or a middleware connector. Do not try to manual entry a 10,000 unit order. You will make a mistake. The retailer will fine you (“Chargebacks”). Automation is mandatory for Big B2B.

8. The Inventory Dump Strategy (Off-Price)

Sometimes, you make a mistake. You ordered 5,000 Blue Shirts, and nobody wants them. In DTC, you have to run a “70% Off Sale”. This damages your brand image. In B2B, you can use the Off-Price Channel (TJ Maxx, Saks Off Fifth). You sell the 5,000 shirts to them for pennies. They sell them in a physical store 500 miles away. Your website stays “Premium” (Full Price). The bad inventory disappears quietly. This is a strategic tool for Cash Recovery.

9. The Pre-Order Mechanism (Funding Production)

The greatest risk in retail is holding inventory. Smart brands use B2B to de-risk production. Open your B2B Portal 6 months before the season starts. Show the “Spring Collection” digitally. Take binding Pre-Orders from your 50 retailers. “We have $1M in confirmed orders.” Now you go to your factory and manufacture exactly $1M + 20% buffer. You have effectively used your retailers’ commitment to finance your production. This is Negative Working Capital. It is the holy grail of finance.

10. The Data Feedback Loop (Listening to the Floor)

Retailers are on the front lines. They see what customers pick up and put back down. They hear the objections (“The fabric feels scratchy”). DTC data is silent (Bounce Rate). Wholesale data is vocal. Call your retailers. “What are people saying about the new fit?” “Why isn’t the Pink color selling?” Use B2B as a Focus Group. Feed this intelligence back into your Product Development cycle. This makes your DTC product better.

11. Conclusion

B2B is not “Old School”. It is the foundation of every Billion Dollar brand. LVMH is B2B (Sephora is a retailer). Nike is B2B (Foot Locker). DTC is a great way to launch. B2B is a great way to scale. Don’t choose. Do both. Build a “Hybrid Commerce” engine.

Are you ignoring the sleeping giant?

We build B2B Portals (Shopify Plus) and EDI integrations to Enable wholesale revenue.

Hire our Architects.