Top 10 Dropshipping Supplier Directories

What is a Dropshipping Supplier Directory?

A dropshipping supplier directory combines the product offers of a range of suppliers into one big product offer with which eCommerce dropshipping platforms can put together their stores’ virtual inventory. Because dropshipping supplier directories usually work with many different suppliers, and can easily run in the hundreds of thousands or even millions of unique products. One of the biggest directories, Inventory Source, offers more than 8 million different products divided over many different sectors, servicing many different dropshipping businesses, including stores built with Volusion’s eCommerce platform. Oberlo, a directory exclusively connected to Shopify, lists over 300 thousand products.

The option to use a dropshipping supplier directory is a very convenient aspect of running a dropshipping store. Being able to check a catalog of thousands of products and instantly select the products you want to sell in your store, is potentially a huge timesaver – especially if your store’s virtual inventory comes from many different suppliers. Instead of having to check all the separate suppliers’ product portfolios, you can focus on one enormous, combined catalog to choose your products from.

If you have an idea of the products you want to sell in your dropshipping store, you obviously have to make sure that the dropshipping supplier directory you are thinking of working with actually lists the suppliers of those products, but since directories usually list the suppliers they work with, this should be easy to find out. The alternative is to go with the products available in the catalog of your preferred dropshipping supplier directory.

How to choose a Dropshipping Directory?

Choosing the right dropshipping directory is an important stage in the process of making your dropshipping store a success. With the right dropshipping supplier, you don’t have to worry about the order fulfillment of purchases made in your store. If, on the other hand, your supplier does not fulfill its part of the purchasing process, it can cause problems, frustration, unsatisfied customers, and quite possibly a considerable additional effort to execute damage control. Before you decide on which dropshipping directory to work with, you should take a close look at what the different directories offer. Three crucial elements, both of which likely to influence your decision, deserve special mentioning:

• Available product offer: not every dropship supplier specializes in the niche you’re targeting with your store. You want to make sure you choose a supplier that has a large variety of products available in your niche. A good example of such a niche supplier is Printful, a print-on-demand dropship supplier catering to designers. Dropship suppliers usually focus on one or a few closely related niches, while the dropshipping supplier directories a big part or even the complete market of consumer goods. Always make sure that the dropshipping directory carries the supplier you’re interested in working with.
• Level of automation: some directories offer a very high level of automation, which means that a lot of the processes involved in running a dropshipping store, happen automatically. When adding products to your store happens automatically and only requires you to select the products you want, and the purchasing process (including purchase order notifications, inventory syncing and order fulfillment) doesn’t require your hands-on involvement, you’ll save a lot of time. Dropshipping directories offer this kind of automation through a direct link with an eCommerce platform. The best way to discover if a directory offers full automation of its service is by checking the specifications of the eCommerce platforms.
• Support: especially when your new to the business of dropshipping, but also for experienced dropshippers, quality customer support from suppliers is of the utmost importance. Dropshipping supplier directories do their best to offer their clientele the best suppliers with the best products, the best order fulfillment, and the highest level of support. If a supplier doesn’t measure of to the quality standards, the dropshipping directory can – often based on customer ratings and feedback – decide to drop the supplier from the directory.