How to become a distributor

In any emerging market, as demand for a product increases, so does the need for distributors. From craft beer and organic produce to athleisure clothing - on the other side of every new trend is a team of distributors hard at work to find quality manufacturers and help them bring their product to retail. 

What's more, product distribution can be lucrative. Wholesale distributor sales earn the United States $3.2 trillion annually, representing 7% of private industry GDP, reported Entrepreneur. The most successful distributors have experience spotting trends in their industry, as well as with building relationships with manufacturers and retailers. If you're interested in becoming a distributor, use the checklist below to get started. 

One of the first steps to making it as a distributor is to start building relationships with retailers you'd like to work with. To give you a head start, we've done the hard part for you. For a list of more than 1000 natural food retailers' contact information and store locations, download our free list.