Wholesale vs. Retail: What’s the Difference?

Wholesale is when a business sells products in bulk to other companies, often at a lower price per unit. Retail is when a business sells directly to individual customers, usually at full price.

Knowing the difference matters if you’re starting or scaling a product-based business. Your choice between wholesale and retail will shape your pricing, inventory, marketing, and how you connect with customers.

In this guide, we’ll cover the key differences, the pros and cons of each model, and when to choose wholesale, retail, or a mix of both. Let’s review the key differences to help you make the right call for your business.

So, while wholesale and retail can get your product into customers' hands, they work in entirely different ways. Let’s now dive into the details of each.

Wholesale is when you sell your product in bulk to other businesses, which then sell these products on to customers. Here’s how wholesale typically works.

• You sell in large quantities.
• You set a minimum order quantity (MOQ).
• The price per item is lower, but the total order value is higher.
• You might sell 1,000 units to one buyer instead of 10 units to 100 customers.
• Your buyer (the retailer) handles the final sale, branding, and the customer experience.

Wholesale is a faster way to grow. You get stocked in stores, reach more people with less marketing, and avoid managing hundreds of small orders. Retailers often buy in bulk and reorder regularly, which helps smooth out your cash flow.

However, it’s not always simple. Margins are lower, you lose control over pricing and presentation, and the upfront costs are higher. You’ll need warehousing, packaging, and stock ready before you even land your first order.

Wholesale is usually the better path if you’ve got the inventory to sell in volume, but you don’t want to build a full retail setup, and you’re happy focusing on a few key accounts rather than individual customers. It also helps if your product fits naturally into existing store categories.

Good examples of wholesale businesses are skincare, pantry goods, homewares, candles, stationery, or anything you'd expect to find on a boutique shelf or in a lifestyle store.

Retail is selling your product directly to the end customer through your store, website, or another direct channel. You’re the one running the full customer experience, from purchase through to support. Here’s how retail typically works.

• You sell in smaller quantities.
• Customers buy one or a few items at a time.
• Each item is sold at full price (or with a small discount).
• You handle everything, the sale, brand experience, packaging, fulfilment, and customer support.

You choose how your product looks, how it's priced, and how it's positioned. Every part of the brand experience is in your hands. It also offers higher profit margins per unit, since you're not discounting for bulk.

The trade-off is effort, as retail is slower to scale. You’ll need to put in more work (and budget) upfront for marketing, content, social, and ads to attract individual customers. Inventory can be harder to manage, too, since you’ll be tracking stock across multiple sizes or SKUs and fulfilling one order at a time.

Retail is better if you want to build a direct relationship with your customers, have complete control over your pricing and branding, and prefer to grow your audience over time. It’s a good fit if you’re comfortable handling customer service, fulfilment, and marketing yourself.

Good examples of retail businesses are clothing, digital products, beauty brands with strong founder stories, handmade items, or anything that benefits from a personal brand or curated experience.

The right model will depend on the kind of business you’re building. Here are a few key factors to weigh up before you decide.

• What’s your business goal? Are you pursuing fast growth, a strong brand, a steady income, or all of the above?
• How much capital do you have to start? (Wholesale usually needs more upfront investment.)
• Do you want full control over how your product looks, feels, and is priced?
• Who’s your target customer – individual shoppers or retail buyers?
• Is your product best explained through storytelling or packaging?
• Are you set up to handle fulfilment and customer service?

Wholesale is usually better for businesses with high volume, who want to reach customers faster. Retail is a better fit for brands that want complete control, care about customer experience, or are building something founder-led or community-focused.

If you’re unsure which way to go, start selling as a small retailer, then decide if you want to move into wholesale when demand builds.

Wholesale and retail are very different ways to get your product into the world. The right choice depends on your goals, resources, and how you want to manage inventory. Wholesale gives you scale and volume, while retail gives you control and direct connection.

Regardless of the path you take, tools like Salesforce Commerce Cloud can help you manage inventory, automate sales, and improve the customer experience. They can support your business growth, whether you’re selling to a few big accounts or thousands of individual shoppers.