How to Choose the Right MOQ for Your Retail Business
Minimum order quantity decides how much capital you lock up per style. Here is how to size it against your shelf space and turnover.
Minimum order quantity is the first number every wholesale buyer negotiates, and the one most often got wrong. Order too little and the per-unit price never reaches a margin worth having. Order too much and you are financing inventory that sits on a shelf.
The useful question is not "what is the lowest MOQ available" but "how many pieces of this style will I sell in one season". A school bag that moves 40 units a month across three stores justifies a 120-piece run. The same quantity of a niche laptop sleeve may take a year to clear.
Start from your own sell-through rate, not the supplier's price ladder. Work out the monthly units, multiply by the number of months you are willing to hold stock, and only then look at which price tier that quantity lands in. If the next tier down is within reach, the extra units are usually worth it. If it is double, it is a discount you are paying for in warehouse space.
Split your order across styles rather than deepening one. Four styles at MOQ each will teach you more about what your customers want than one style at four times the quantity.