What do you need before you can buy wholesale?
Register your business with your state and apply for a seller's permit or resale certificate. That certificate is what lets you buy inventory without paying sales tax on it, because you collect the tax when you sell the finished piece. Keep a PDF on your phone. You will be asked for it more than once.
Some suppliers also want a business card, a website or a social account that shows you make and sell jewelry. None of that has to be fancy. It just has to be real.
- State resale certificate or seller's permit, saved as a PDF
- Business name, address and EIN if you have one
- A link that shows what you make and sell
- A shipping address that can receive small insured packages
How do wholesale bead sellers quote and sell?
We import Jaipur cut strands and sell them by the strand, with prices per strand in US dollars. Orders come in by WhatsApp or email, we confirm what we can actually pull for you, and then we send an invoice. That step matters, because a single strand of one stone in one size is not always repeatable.
How many strands should you buy of one stone?
Work backward from what you sell. A 15 to 16 inch strand of 8 mm rondelles holds about 48 to 52 beads, and an 18 inch necklace at 8 mm needs about 52, so that is roughly one necklace per strand. The same strand yields two 7.5 inch bracelets with beads left over, since a 7.5 inch bracelet at 8 mm takes about 19 beads once you allow 1.5 inches for the clasp and findings.
At 6 mm the math shifts. A strand runs about 65 to 70 beads, an 18 inch necklace takes about 70, and a 7.5 inch bracelet takes about 25. Faceted rondelles often come as 13 inch strands, so plan on two strands for anything long.
Buy several strands of the same stone and size when you find one you like. That is how you get a matched run of bracelets instead of one orphan piece.
- 4 mm: about 95 to 100 beads per strand, about 104 for an 18 inch necklace
- 6 mm: about 65 to 70 per strand, about 61 for a 16 inch choker
- 8 mm: about 48 to 52 per strand, about 46 for a 16 inch choker
- 10 mm: about 2.5 beads per inch, about 41 for an 18 inch necklace
What should you ask a supplier before the first order?
Find out what the stone actually is and where it was cut. Ask whether the photo shows the strand you will receive. Drill hole size matters too, especially if you string on leather or thick cord, since a fine hole will not take it.
Buyers on the IGS forums raise the same worry again and again, which is telling glass from stone when you buy sight unseen. The fix is a supplier who answers plainly and takes returns. Anish still buys a single strand from a new cutter before he buys thirty.
- Is this photo the actual strand or a representative one
- What is the strand length and the drill hole size
- Can you get more of this stone in this size later
- What happens if the strand arrives short or chipped
How do you buy at a gem show without wasting the day?
Bring your resale certificate. Many shows run a wholesale section that dealers only can enter, and the license is the door key. We sell at gem shows around the country, and the buyers who do well arrive with a short list and a tape measure.
Speak up in the aisles. As the International Gem Society puts it, shows are set up for experts and plenty of trays go unlabeled, so asking a vendor for a specific stone and size saves an hour of squinting.
- Carry a printed list of stones, sizes and strand counts you need
- Photograph the vendor card next to the strands you buy
- Check strands against a daylight lamp or a window, not booth spotlights
- Keep a small loupe and a tape measure in your bag
Placing your first order with us
Send a message on WhatsApp at +1 408-702-7405 or email tandongems@outlook.com with the stone, shape and size you want and how many strands. We confirm availability, then invoice. US shipping is free once your order passes our order total threshold, which most multi strand orders clear easily.
Start with two or three stones you already sell well. Add one new material per order and see how it moves. That habit keeps your money in beads that turn rather than in a drawer of singles.