Private-label Products

Says Schmid, “Private labeling and branding aren’t exactly brothers, but they’re like first cousins. They can work hand in hand.”

Sourcing Strategies

Karen Scott, founder of One Step Ahead and Leaps and Bounds, catalogs for babies and children, offers the following tips:
- Avoid manufacturers that also sell to your direct competitors.
- Find merchandising experts to help you, and be sure they have the manufacturing capabilities you need.
- If you have an idea that’s novel, patent it if possible. Says Scott, “It pays to have solid legal advice regarding whether a new product design does or doesn’t infringe on an existing patent. Sometimes we’ve found it easier to simply license a current patent than try to design around it.”