Wholesale Price Ladder Calculator
Cost to wholesale to RRP, and back again.
Build the cost, wholesale and RRP ladder from multipliers, or work backwards from a target RRP to the cost a product must hit.
RRP
$52.80
wholesale $22.00 · cost $10.00
A cost of 20 to 25% of RRP is the usual apparel shape. If yours is much higher, either the product is too expensive to make for its market or the ladder leaves no room for a stockist — and a retailer taking under about 50% will rarely commit to depth.
How the Wholesale Price Ladder Calculator works
A brand selling through stockists has three prices, and each is a multiple of the one below. Working forwards from cost tells you what the product will retail at; working backwards from a target RRP tells you the most the product can cost to make — which is the more useful direction, and the one that kills bad ideas early.
Also known as: RRP calculator · wholesale to retail calculator · price architecture calculator
Three prices, each a multiple of the last
A brand selling through stockists has a cost, a wholesale price and a recommended retail price. Wholesale is typically 2 to 2.5 times cost, and RRP is typically 2 to 2.6 times wholesale, which puts cost at roughly 20 to 25% of retail.
Those multiples are not arbitrary. The wholesale multiple has to cover the brand's overheads, sampling, unsold stock and margin; the retail multiple has to cover the retailer's rent, staff, markdowns and the risk of holding inventory they may not sell.
Working the ladder backwards from a target RRP is the more useful direction, because the market sets the price a customer will pay and the cost sheet does not. Dividing down gives the cost ceiling the product must be made for.
A worked example
A cost of 10 at a 2.2× wholesale and 2.4× retail gives 22 wholesale and 52.80 RRP, with cost at 19% of retail. That is a healthy shape.
Working backwards, a target RRP of 40 divided by 2.4 gives 16.67 wholesale, divided by 2.2 gives a cost ceiling of 7.58. If the cost sheet says 10, the product cannot hit that price point at those multiples — which is worth discovering before sampling rather than after.
Where the answer misleads
Squeezing the retailer's multiple is the fastest way to not be stocked. A retailer taking under about 50% will rarely commit to depth, because the margin does not cover the markdown risk on stock they cannot return.
Selling only direct tempts brands to price at wholesale plus a little and be cheaper. It works until you want stockists, at which point they will not carry a brand that undercuts them on its own site. Pricing at full RRP and keeping the retailer's margin yourself keeps the option open.
Finally, the multiples vary by category. High return rates, heavy seasonal discounting or expensive sampling all argue for larger multiples, and a ladder that works for basics will not work for occasion wear.
Not financial advice. Marketplace fees change, and they vary by country, plan and seller status. Every rate here is an editable default, not a quoted price, check the platform's current fee schedule before you price a product against it. This is not tax or business advice.
Frequently asked questions
What multipliers should I use?
Around 2 to 2.5 from cost to wholesale and 2 to 2.6 from wholesale to RRP are common in apparel, giving a cost of roughly 20 to 25% of retail. Categories with high return rates or heavy discounting need more.
Why work backwards from RRP?
Because the market decides the price the customer will pay, not your cost sheet. Starting from a realistic RRP and dividing down gives the cost ceiling the product must meet — and if it cannot, that is worth knowing before sampling.
What if I only sell direct?
You can price at wholesale plus a smaller margin and be cheaper, or price at full RRP and keep the retailer's margin yourself. The second keeps the door open to wholesale later; the first closes it, because stockists will not undercut your own site.
Does the retailer's margin have to be that large?
It has to cover their rent, staff, markdowns and the risk of holding your stock. Trying to squeeze it is the fastest way to not be stocked — and a retailer taking less than about 50% will usually not commit to depth.