3 Tips for Picking a Wholesale Supplier for Your Restaurant

Before establishing credibility as a business, earning loyalty from customers, or inventing uniquely delicious recipes, every food business must find a wholesale supplier.

The distributor a business chooses has arguably one of the biggest effects on the success of a company.

Choosing a supplier that often runs low on supplies, inflates prices, or offers low-quality ingredients directly affects your business.

In this article, we’ll share some of the top tips for picking a wholesale supplier for your restaurant or food business.

Aim for Local Suppliers

The food items and ingredients your business receives from wholesale suppliers must be fresh. After all, the freshness of your ingredients will have a major impact on your recipes.

However, when restaurants and cafés choose to work with suppliers that are not local, receiving fresh ingredients is a more difficult challenge.

To prevent a decline in your supply quality, consider exclusively working with local suppliers instead.

The closer proximity between your business and your wholesale supplier will ensure that you receive the best quality and the most sustainable options.

Focus on Wholesale Bulk Suppliers

Running a food and beverage company is an expensive operation. Between supply costs, labor wages, rent, insurance, and other bills, the cost of owning a food business can quickly eat into your budget.

One of the best ways to save more on supply costs is by buying wholesale ingredients in bulk.

Suppliers are more likely to offer food items at a discounted rate when you invest in larger quantities.

Investing in foods with longer shelf lives, such as wholesale dried goods, will be the best option for your business and prevent food waste. If you haven’t already, consider searching for a wholesale supplier that offers bulk savings.

Prioritize Transparency

The relationship you establish with your wholesale supplier is critical. To have a successful relationship with your wholesaler, your supplier must be communicative, flexible, and transparent.

For example, wholesale suppliers that offer high-quality ingredients at a reasonable rate can sometimes provide poor customer service.

If you cannot contact your supplier or your wholesaler is not flexible, these qualities could cause a major disaster in the future.

Don’t risk the livelihood of your food business by minimizing the importance of your wholesale supplier. Instead, look over these tips for picking a wholesale supplier for your restaurant. 

Once you’ve found a local supplier that offers bulk shipments and is transparent, your business will be one step closer to establishing a long-lasting career.