How to get your products into boutiques

I run a small shop, so I'm the person on the other end of the pitch. Most weeks I hear from makers who would be a good fit for my shelves, and most of them make it harder than it needs to be for me to say yes. This guide is the process I'd give a friend who makes something great and wants to see it in independent shops. It's backed by what 81 real shops in New York and Los Angeles say on their own submission pages.

Every shop example below links to its Open Shelf listing, summarized from the shop's own website and verified 2026-10-17.

What 81 shops say on their own pages about how they want to be pitched

• 48 take pitches by email and 35 use an online form. Very few want a phone call, and 3 say outright: no calls.
• 13 ask for a line sheet, and 12 ask for wholesale prices or pricing details as part of a submission.
• 7 specify the exact email subject line they want.
• 29 of 81 publicly state their terms; of those, 18 mention wholesale and 10 consignment. The rest leave it for the conversation.
• 8 mention local makers, local authors or residents in their submission rules, and some accept only local work.
• 10 mention samples, and their rules differ a lot, from "mail only" to "no mailed samples".

Step 1: Get retail-ready before you pitch

A boutique is buying something it can resell. Before you reach out, know your wholesale price and suggested retail price (MSRP). Wholesale is usually about half of retail, so the shop can double it. Run your numbers through the wholesale price calculator and make sure you still make money at wholesale, not just when you sell direct.

When a product shows up ready to put on a shelf, with packaging that protects it, a price that makes sense and a short story I can repeat to a customer, it's an easy yes. When I'd have to repackage it or explain it from scratch, it usually isn't.

Step 2: Make a line sheet

A line sheet is one page (or a short PDF) with a photo, SKU, wholesale price and MSRP for each product, plus your minimums, payment terms, lead time and how to order. It's the document most shops ask for first. Catbird asks for "materials, wholesale prices, turnaround, and current stockists"; Driggs Mercantile wants "clear photos, descriptions, wholesale prices, website and social links".

Get the free line sheet template

Step 3: Find shops that actually take submissions

Cold-pitching every shop you like wastes your time and theirs. Start with shops that say publicly that they want to hear from new brands, then check fit: price range, style, and who shops there. Browse New York City and Los Angeles shops, or filter the full directory by category and terms.

Read the fine print on location, too. The WonderMart stocks only goods made or designed in New York State. The Astoria Bookshop takes consigned books from Queens residents only, through a form that opens in February and August. Vroman's Bookstore's consignment package is for authors within 30 miles of the store.

Step 4: Pitch exactly the way each shop asks

If a shop tells you how to pitch, that's the test. Use their channel and their subject line. These are real subject lines shops ask for:

Keep the email short: who you are, what you make, why it fits their shop (name a brand or two you'd sit next to), your wholesale range, and your line sheet attached or linked. The pitch guide has a fill-in-the-blanks email template.

Step 5: Handle samples on their terms

Sample rules vary more than anything else, so read them every time:

• Catbird accepts mailed samples but says they're non-returnable.
• New York Historical Museum Store takes samples by mail only (include return postage), with no calls, walk-ins or drop-offs.
• The Store at MAD says no mailed samples.
• Pretty Well Beauty asks for no unsolicited samples; if it's a fit, they request product for 8–12 weeks of team testing.
• Burro reviews samples dropped in person, then donates them rather than returning them.

Please don't walk in with a bag of samples on a busy Saturday. Email first, and offer samples if the buyer is interested.

Step 6: Wholesale or consignment? Know the numbers

Wholesale: the shop buys your stock up front at the wholesale price. Consignment: you're paid only when something sells, and the shop keeps a share. Published splits in our directory range widely:

• Rue Saint Paul (Brooklyn): brands get 60% of sales, paid monthly, at no cost.
• Flying Solo (SoHo): the brand receives 85% of the retail price for items sold, plus a monthly membership fee of $3,500 (clothing) or $2,500 (jewelry & accessories).
• South Pas Vintage (South Pasadena): artist tables are $0 rent plus a 30% commission, with a $100/month sales minimum.
• Vroman's Bookstore (Pasadena): the author pays a $298 package fee, and Vroman's pays 55% of sales on consigned books.
• The WonderMart (Greenpoint) prefers to start brands on consignment: a $35/month Brand Partner Fee plus a 50% commission on sales. It buys some local brands wholesale via Faire.

A monthly fee is owed whether or not anything sells, so it can matter more than the split.

Plug any split into the calculator's consignment section to see what you'd actually earn per unit, compared with wholesale.

Step 7: Wait, then follow up once

Shops that publish a timeline give you a sense of what's normal:

• Driggs Mercantile: Response in 3–7 business days.
• Venus in Tokyo: Allow one week for review.
• Luca: Reply in 7–14 business days.
• Chevalier's Books: No reply within two weeks means it isn't a fit.
• Museum of the City of New York Shop: Reviewed four times a year.
• The Store at MAD: Apply once a year.
• Pretty Well Beauty: 8–12 weeks of team testing if it's a fit.

Many shops say they reply only if it's a fit. One polite follow-up after the stated window, with something new to share, is fine. More than one starts to feel like pressure.

Step 8: After the yes

The first order is a trial. What earns a reorder from me is shipping on time, packing carefully, and making it easy to reorder the things that sold. Put your reorder minimum and lead time on your line sheet so the shop never has to ask.

Your checklist

• Wholesale price and MSRP set, with profit at wholesale (calculator)
• Line sheet ready as a PDF (template)
• A short list of shops that take submissions and fit your price and style (directory)
• Each pitch sent through the shop's channel, with its subject line
• Sample rules read before sending anything
• One follow-up, after the shop's stated response time

Find shops accepting new brands → New York Los Angeles

Counts and examples come from the 81 shop listings in the Open Shelf directory, each summarized from the shop's own submission page and verified 2026-10-17.