A digital wholesale showroom is a branded collection page that buyers can browse, and order from, without waiting for your next appointment. To build one: (1) import products with sizes, prices and inventory; (2) merchandise with imagery, video and styled looks; (3) set price lists, minimums and delivery windows; (4) control who sees it; (5) capture buyers visiting your website or share it by email link; (6) take orders and follow up when buyers browse but don't buy. A lookbook tells buyers what's available. A showroom lets them commit while they're interested.

Key takeaways

• Buyers are hybrid: in a survey of 949 buyers, 53% sourced both online and in person and 75% expect more than half of sourcing online within two years.
• Platforms: Brandboom's embed widget puts the showroom on your own website.
• The detail that matters: major buyers usually approve orders sent to them, so your team needs an easy way to write and send orders.

Why do brands need a digital showroom?

HKTDC found that 14% of buyers source online only, that 57% of hybrid buyers did more than half their sourcing online in six months, and that 68% source every three months or less. If your line sheet only becomes an order at the next appointment, orders slip a season. The best showrooms prepare buyers before market and capture reorders after it.

For how platforms compare beyond the showroom, see the wholesale ordering software roundup.

Do you need a platform's network to sell to department stores? Not in Brandboom's experience: department-store orders usually go through the retailer's EDI.

How do you build a showroom, step by step?

1. Import products. Upload a CSV or Excel file (help), or sync from Shopify. Add size charts and prepacks.

2. Merchandise it like a showroom. Use lookbook galleries with up to seven images and add product hotspots to them. Buyers hover a hotspot to preview the product, click to view it, and add it to their order if it's in the presentation. Hotspots saved to an image in your media bin reapply when you reuse that image. Add a video section with YouTube or Vimeo for brand and collection stories, attach videos to individual products, and use HTML blurbs for delivery terms. You can also turn on image downloads. Buyers love that all your products sit on a single scrolling page, so they just scroll down to see your entire offering.

3. Set commercial rules. Set up price lists and minimums by value, quantity or size. Choose at-once, pre-book or ship windows, and show "99+" instead of exact inventory if you prefer.

4. Control who sees what. Use share links and access codes. Send private invites from your own domain. You can block a buyer and create regional showrooms with their own language and currency.

5. Capture buyers visiting your website. The embed widget adds a wholesale access portal to Shopify, Squarespace, Webflow or any HTML site. Buyers enter an access code and land on the right line sheet (help). Plans start at $50/month for the Basic plan (see all plans).

6. Make ordering frictionless. Buyers enter an email and don't need an account. Then they browse, add sizes and check out. For bigger accounts, build the order yourself and send it for approval. In Brandboom's experience, buyers from Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's, Harvey Nichols and Kith have received and reviewed orders through Brandboom.

7. Follow up while buyers are looking. Use visitor notifications and chat, and Calendly booking. Export visitor history, and tag presentations to mark order sources such as a market or campaign.

8. Group and measure. Share several presentations as a collection. The analytics page shows sales, top buyers and top products.

What makes a showroom fail?

• It's a lookbook with no order button.
• Prices or stock are out of date.
• Nobody follows up the same day.
• Everyone sees everything; set price lists and access first.

What does Brandboom offer?

Where does Brandboom go further?

Brandboom goes furthest on the work around the showroom. It lets buyers in from your own website, helps your team write orders for buyers to approve, and follows up while interest is live.

None of this replaces the market floor. It keeps orders moving between markets.

FAQ

What is a digital wholesale showroom?

A digital wholesale showroom is a branded, shareable collection page where buyers browse products, see their own prices and place orders without an appointment. Unlike a lookbook or PDF line sheet, it carries live inventory, minimums and delivery windows, so a buyer can commit while interested. Brands share it by link, email or an access portal on their website.

Do buyers need an account?

Not on Brandboom. Buyers enter an email address to open the showroom, then browse, add sizes and check out without creating a login or downloading an app. For larger accounts that prefer not to build orders, your team can write the order and send it for the buyer to review and approve, so the showroom works for both styles of buying.

Can I put the showroom on my own website?

Yes. Brandboom's embed widget adds a wholesale access portal to Shopify, Squarespace, Webflow or any HTML site. Buyers enter an access code and land on the right line sheet with their own prices, so retail visitors never see wholesale pricing and existing accounts can reorder between appointments.

Can I keep prices private from some buyers?

Yes. Use separate price lists per presentation, share links with access codes, private invites from your own domain, or block specific buyers. Regional showrooms can also carry their own language and currency. Set price lists and access before you share anything, because a showroom where everyone sees everything is one of the most common failures.

Does a digital showroom replace trade shows?

No. Buyers still value seeing and touching product. Use the showroom before market so buyers can pre-plan and book appointments, and after it for reorders, add-ons and accounts that couldn't attend. The showroom keeps orders moving between markets rather than replacing the market floor.