Wholesale suppliers in Pakistan: how to find and vet them

Lists of wholesale markets are easy to find. What costs new sellers money is everything after the list: a supplier who sends a different colour, a rate that changes on the second order, a full advance that never turns into a parcel. This guide covers both: where to look, and how to check a supplier before you trust them with your money.

Manufacturer, wholesaler or dropship supplier

Before you go looking, know which of the three you need.

• Manufacturer. Makes the product. Best rate, biggest minimum order, and often the only way to get your own label, print or design. Good once you know what sells.
• Wholesaler. Buys from many manufacturers and sells to shops and online sellers in smaller lots. Higher rate than the factory, but you can buy a few designs, a few pieces each, and test what moves. This is where most online sellers start.
• Dropship supplier. Holds the stock and ships each order for you. No money tied up in stock, but a thinner margin and no control over quality or speed. Our guide to dropshipping in Pakistan covers how that works with cash on delivery.

Many shops in wholesale markets are a mix: they make some lines themselves and resell the rest. Ask directly: “Yeh aap ka apna maal hai ya aap bhi kahin se lete hain?” The answer tells you whether a better rate is one step up the chain.

Wholesale markets by city

These are the markets with a public record as wholesale centres. Each has hundreds of shops, so treat the market as a starting point, not a supplier.

Lahore

• Azam Cloth Market, which the Walled City of Lahore Authority calls the largest wholesale cloth market in Asia. Unstitched suits, fabric by the metre, lawn in season.
• Kinari Bazaar, which the same page says supplies embroidered cloth to markets across the city and other cities. Laces, borders and trims if you stitch.
• Shah Alam Market, nearly 10,000 shops by the Authority’s count, with accessories, cosmetics and general goods. Check cosmetics carefully: our Urdu guide to the cosmetics business explains how to spot fakes.
• Hall Road, described on Wikipedia as Lahore’s hub for electronics and one of the largest markets for imported electronics. Phone accessories, chargers, small gadgets. Our mobile accessories business guide covers what they sell for online.

Karachi

• Jama Cloth Market on M.A. Jinnah Road for fabric and clothing.
• Boulton Market in Saddar, a wholesale market dating from 1883. Plastic goods, kitchen utensils, jewellery and accessories, among others.
• Paper Market and Urdu Bazar for stationery, cards and printing. This round-up of Karachi’s wholesale markets lists what each one sells, Boulton Market included.
• Jodia Bazaar for food commodities: flour, rice, sugar, pulses. Useful if you sell packed dry food.

Rawalpindi, Faisalabad and Sialkot

• Raja Bazaar, Rawalpindi’s largest wholesale market, split into sections such as Kapra Bazaar for cloth and Sarafa Bazaar for jewellery.
• Faisalabad, called the Manchester of Pakistan for its textile industry. If you sell fabric or bedsheets in volume, this is where you go looking for mills and makers, not just shops.
• Sialkot, known for sports goods, surgical instruments and leather. A manufacturer city: expect larger minimum orders.

For a product-by-product list of what to sell and which market to stock it from, see online business ideas in Pakistan.

Buying from another city by WhatsApp

You do not have to live in Lahore or Karachi. Most wholesalers sell to shops in other cities by phone, and an online seller is just another customer to them. To get the right numbers:

• Go once if you can. One day in the market, walking the shops for your category, gets you a pocket full of cards. Everything after that can be WhatsApp.
• Read the packaging. Bags, tags and boxes on products you already buy often carry the maker’s or packer’s name and number. That is one step closer to the source.
• Ask your local shopkeeper where they buy. Some will not tell you. Some will, especially if you are not selling in their area.
• Treat Facebook groups and random WhatsApp numbers with care. They are where most supplier scams start. Use them to find names, then check those names properly.

Before ordering, ask for a live video call from the shop, not a forwarded video. You want to see the actual stock, the shop, and the person you are paying.

What to ask before you order

Send these in one message and keep the replies. They are your written agreement.

1. Rate per piece, per dozen or per set, and whether it changes with quantity.
2. Minimum order, and whether you can mix colours, sizes or designs inside it.
3. Whether packing and delivery to you are included, and who books the cargo or courier.
4. How long from payment to dispatch.
5. What happens with a damaged, wrong or short piece: replace, refund, or credit on the next order.
6. Whether the same design will be available again in a month, so you can restock what sells.
7. Payment terms: how much in advance, how much on dispatch, and to which account.

Ask for the rate list as a message or a photo with a date on it, not a voice note. Rates in wholesale markets change with the season. A dated list settles arguments on the second order.

Samples and minimum orders

Always buy a sample first, and pay for it if you have to. It is the cheapest test you will ever run. When it arrives, check it the way a buyer would: stitching, fabric weight, colour in daylight, smell, packing. Wash or wear it if that is what your buyer will do. Then keep the sample. When the bulk order comes, you compare every piece against it.

Minimum order quantities are set by each supplier, so there is no standard number to quote. They are often softer than the first answer. Ask to mix designs within one minimum, or offer a slightly higher rate for a smaller first lot. A wholesaler who expects you to come back every month will usually bend for the first order.

Your first bulk order should be small enough that losing it would hurt but not end the business. Scale up only after the second order arrives matching the first.

Paying without getting cheated

• No full advance to a stranger. For a first order with someone you have not met, pay part in advance and the rest on dispatch, with a photo or video of your packed parcel and the cargo receipt.
• Check the name on the account. The bank or wallet account should match the shop or the owner you spoke to. Be careful if they ask you to pay a third person.
• Pay by bank or wallet transfer, not cash through someone. A transfer leaves a record with a date, an amount and an account.
• Get a bill. In the market, ask for a pakki parchi with the shop’s name, items, quantities and rates. Over WhatsApp, ask for the same as a photo. You need it to claim a short delivery, and later to work out your costs.
• Be wary of rates far below everyone else. A price no other shop can match is either a different quality or a trap.

If you are cheated online, keep every message and transfer receipt and report it to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), which took over the FIA’s cyber crime wing.

Checking stock when it arrives

1. Record a video as you open the parcel, from the sealed tape onward.
2. Count pieces against the bill, by design, colour and size.
3. Check every piece against your sample, not a few from the top.
4. Set aside anything damaged, stained or wrong, and photograph it.
5. Message the supplier the same day, with photos and the video, and ask for what you agreed in point 5 above.

Do this before you list anything. A defect you catch now is the supplier’s problem. A defect a buyer catches is a refused cash on delivery parcel and a courier charge on you.

Then add the good pieces to your stock sheet by size and colour. Our guide to inventory management for a small business covers the sheet, weekly counts and when to reorder.

Your real cost per piece

The wholesale rate is not your cost. Add the cargo or courier charge from the supplier to you, divided across the pieces, plus packing, plus anything you lose to defects. That is your landed cost. Put it into the profit margin calculator to set a selling price, then into the COD profit calculator to see what you keep after courier charges and returned parcels. Our guide on how to price products walks through the whole calculation with an example.

For clothes in particular, our Urdu guide to the online clothes business covers sizes, photos and which pieces come back most.

Importing, briefly

Much of what sits on Hall Road is already imported. Importing yourself cuts out the middle, but it adds customs duty, clearance and the risk of a shipment you cannot inspect until it lands. Commercial imports are declared through Pakistan Single Window, and duty depends on the product. Learn what sells from local wholesalers first, and import only the lines you already know move.

Questions sellers ask

Where can I find wholesale suppliers in Pakistan?

Start at the wholesale market for your category: cloth markets in Lahore, Karachi and Faisalabad, Shah Alam in Lahore for accessories and cosmetics, Hall Road in Lahore for electronics, Raja Bazaar in Rawalpindi for a bit of everything. Visit once if you can, collect cards and WhatsApp numbers, and order by phone after that.

Can I buy wholesale without going to the market?

Yes. Many wholesalers take orders on WhatsApp and send stock by courier or cargo. Ask for a video of the actual stock, a written rate list, and a sample first. Do not pay a full advance to someone you have never met or bought from.

What is MOQ in wholesale?

MOQ is the minimum order quantity: the fewest pieces a supplier will sell at the wholesale rate. It is set by each supplier and is often negotiable, especially if you ask to mix colours or sizes or accept a slightly higher rate for a smaller first order.

Is it better to buy from a manufacturer or a wholesaler?

For a new online seller, usually a wholesaler. Wholesalers sell smaller quantities and many designs at once. Manufacturers make sense once you know which products sell and can order larger runs, or want your own label or design.

How do I know a supplier is genuine?

Buy a small order first, ask for a live video call from the shop, check that the account you pay matches the business or owner’s name, and ask other sellers who have bought from them. A supplier who refuses a sample or will not put rates in writing is a warning sign.

Once your stock is in, put it in a store of your own. Storelala is the Shopify alternative in Pakistan: your store at yourbrand.storelala.com, cash on delivery built into checkout, no marketplace commission, and free to start with no card needed. Start your store from your phone today.