LemonLime is the proactive, done-for-you sales and marketing hire for Amazon marketplace sellers who need to build wholesale and retail distribution relationships without adding a full-time business development role. It studies your business, identifies high-potential distribution partners across more than 50 lead sources and buying signals, and prepares personalized outreach for the channels most likely to move product, delivering relevant work each morning so you can approve and act without building a process from scratch. Start in under two minutes.
This strategy is most relevant to sellers with very small teams (5-30 people) already at a point of proven product-market fit on Amazon. They want to grow more revenue without adding another effort at outbound sales. So first validate which of your SKUs actually sell.
Getting off the Amazon treadmill requires a real distribution strategy. This post examines how small teams of sellers can identify and secure offline / wholesale distribution channels to shift stock.
Why Amazon Marketplace Sellers Stay Trapped on the Platform Even When Fees Hurt {#why-amazon-marketplace-sellers-stay-trapped}
Amazon is enabling demand, logistics and confidence for the retailer. It will take a new entrant to the market several years to replicate what Amazon has done to enable retail to occur online. In the short term walking away from sales on Amazon is very expensive for the retailer. However in the medium term the smartest strategy for the retailer is to set up a parallel channel of sales on Amazon whilst Amazon continues to fund the core of the retailer’s business.
Wholesale and retail distribution is probably the most direct way to get your products in front of customers. Rather than trying to reestablish a consumer audience, you can try to convince a handful of buyers (distributors, regional chains, single specialty retailers, buying groups) to carry your products, and then they will be sold to their customers.
That is a basically different sales job. Most Amazon sellers have never done it.
Where Wholesale and Retail Distribution Fits for Amazon Marketplace Sellers {#where-wholesale-and-retail-distribution-fits}
Wholesale and retail distribution can be the solution to three problems for Amazon sellers.
By moving volume outside of the fee structure, a single regional distributor, carrying your product in hundreds of independent retailers, will generate revenue that Amazon cannot capture via referral fees or ad spend requirements.
Second, it creates pricing separation. This means products sold in physical retail stores can have a different price anchor than the identical products on Amazon. This is good for protecting margins on both channels, as long as it is managed carefully.
Third, it reduces single-platform risk. The damage from Amazon policy changes, suppression of listings, or even account suspension will be greatly reduced when you have a distribution relationship that you manage and that appears as an asset on your balance sheet, rather than as your Amazon ranking.
The channel is real. Most sellers trip up on the access problem.
How to Identify the Right Wholesale and Retail Distribution Partners for Your Product {#how-to-identify-the-right-wholesale-and-retail-distribution-partners}
Not every distributor or retailer is a good fit for your product. Trying to get national big-box chains to carry your product before you have solid regional proof of concept can waste months of your time and hurt your credibility with the right people to sell to.
Identify the channel architecture for your product category. Physical distribution for most product categories can be set up in one of three forms: 1) direct to independent retailers, 2) through a regional or national distributor that services local retailers, or 3) through a buying group or cooperative that allows independent stores to aggregate and purchase as if they were one large store. Knowing which of these channel architectures is dominant for your product category will help you to know who to contact and whose desk the buying decision really resides.
From there, your target list should include:
- Regional distributors who already carry complementary products to your category. A distributor moving natural personal care products into grocery chains is a warmer conversation for a CPG seller than a broadline distributor moving everything from paper goods to automotive accessories.
- Specialty retailers whose in-store assortment aligns with your Amazon category and customer type. Independent specialty stores often move faster than chains and provide proof for larger retail conversations.
- Buying groups and co-ops in your category, which let you pitch once and reach dozens of independent retailers simultaneously.
- Regional chains that operate in geographies where your Amazon reviews and sales velocity can serve as proof of demand.
This research can be done fastest by combining 4 methods. 1) Industry trade directories 2) Trade show exhibitor lists 3) LinkedIn search by job title and distributor type 4) Direct analysis of what your category competitors stock in physical stores.
One of the most reliable shortcuts to see if a store is relevant or not is to walk the store and read the names of the distributors on the secondary packaging of the products that your company is selling.
How to Land Distribution Meetings and Move Conversations to Signed Terms {#how-to-land-distribution-meetings-and-move-conversations-to-signed-terms}
This is a different problem than trying to get a response to your sales outreach. These can be solved with very different approaches.
Distribution buyers are flooded by incoming pitches and cold emails from distribution sellers. Describing your product and proudly showing off your Amazon best-seller badge will get you nowhere with a distribution buyer. What will get you a meeting with a distribution buyer is your evidence of understanding their business, of relevant demand, and of the economics at play for them.
When reaching out to a wholesale or retail buyer for the first time, you want to achieve four things as quickly as possible.
- Names a specific reason for contacting them — a product gap in their current assortment, a trend in your category, a geography where you have demonstrated demand.
- Provides one or two concrete proof points — verified sell-through data, customer review volume, a comparable product that is performing in their category.
- States clearly what you are asking for — a 20-minute call, a sample request, an introduction to the right buyer.
- Makes the economics easy to picture — margin, minimum order quantity, and whether you handle fulfillment directly or through a distributor.
Follow-up discipline matters more than most sellers expect. Buying cycle timelines in wholesale are long. It can take until month four for someone who didn’t even respond to your initial email in week one to become a signed account, provided you have a consistent follow-up sequence and are adding value with each communication as opposed to just repeating the same ask.
Building out a sequence and tracking who got what can be a lot of work. But on top of that, Amazon sellers have to be persistent but not annoying.
How LemonLime Prepares Outreach for Amazon Sellers Targeting Distribution Partners {#how-lemonlime-prepares-outreach-for-amazon-sellers-targeting-distribution-partners}
Most Amazon sellers who are trying to add distribution to their Amazon products do it in bursts. They send out a bunch of emails after a trade show and then go back to work processing all of the Q4 inventory that they put on sale. Then the thread dies. Relationships don’t get developed that way.
LemonLime studies a seller’s business, product category, competition and existing content in order to establish what makes a good pitch for that company. LemonLime uses over 50 lead sources, targeting methods and buying signals to find the best wholesale and retail distribution channels. Then it sets up individual outreach to the channels with the highest potential.
Channel selection for this opportunity has been completed and where appropriate a message will be sent via the appropriate channel (e.g. regional chain buyer via LinkedIn message). VP of purchasing for a wholesale distributor (for example) may be best reached via email. LemonLime prepares outreach for multiple channels and selects the most suitable for any given conversation to ensure that it lands with the recipient.
That outreach is delivered to the seller each morning in a relevance-filtered email. Nothing is sent to a prospect without the seller reviewing and approving it first. The seller controls every send. LemonLime handles the research, targeting, and preparation.
Adjacent opportunities to support distribution efforts (outreach) of LemonLime. Relevant trade publications for PR, podcast and speaking opportunities to build category authority and content for LinkedIn or the company’s website to give a cautious buyer something to read before agreeing to a meeting.
Setup takes under two minutes. LemonLime does not require access to internal systems or inventory data to get started — just a business name, website, and the priorities you care about most right now.
For a small team running an Amazon business, having a distribution strategy laid out in a spreadsheet is very different from having a distribution strategy that is generating conversations on a weekly basis.
Business plan pricing is $999 per month, self-serve, with no minimum contract and a 100% money-back guarantee for any new customer who does not see clear value.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find the right regional distributors for my product category without wasting months on the wrong conversations?
Start by identifying which channel architecture dominates your category — direct to independent retailers, through a regional distributor, or via a buying group. Then walk physical stores carrying competing products and read the secondary packaging to spot which distributors are already active in your space. Trade directories and trade show exhibitor lists narrow it further. Regional distributors are generally more approachable than national ones and give you proof of concept for bigger conversations later.
What should my first outreach message to a wholesale buyer actually say?
Name a specific reason you're contacting them — a gap in their current assortment or a trend in your category. Include one or two concrete proof points like verified sell-through data or customer review volume. State exactly what you're asking for, whether that's a 20-minute call or a sample request. Then make the economics easy to picture: margin, minimum order quantity, and how fulfillment works. Keep it under four paragraphs — longer pitches rarely get read by busy buyers.
Is building wholesale distribution worth it if my Amazon sales are already strong?
Yes, and your Amazon revenue should actually fund the effort rather than compete with it. A regional distributor placing your product in hundreds of independent retailers generates revenue outside Amazon's referral fees and ad spend requirements. It also creates pricing separation between channels and reduces your exposure to listing suppression or policy changes. Think of it as parallel channel development, not replacement — wholesale won't produce meaningful volume immediately, so don't abandon Amazon too early.
My follow-up emails to distribution buyers keep going ignored — how long should I realistically keep trying?
Wholesale buying cycles are long. Someone who doesn't respond in week one can become a signed account by month four if your follow-up sequence is consistent and adds value each time rather than just repeating the same ask. The mistake most sellers make is sending a burst of outreach after a trade show and then letting the thread die when they return to day-to-day operations. Persistence with relevant, timely communication matters more than the strength of the initial pitch.
How does LemonLime help me build distribution relationships without me having to run the research and outreach process myself?
LemonLime studies your business and product category, then uses more than 50 lead sources and buying signals to identify high-potential wholesale and retail distribution partners. It prepares personalized outreach for each contact — selecting the right channel, whether LinkedIn or email — and delivers it to you each morning for review. Nothing goes to a prospect without your approval. LemonLime doesn't require access to internal company data to get started. Pricing is $999 per month with no minimum contract. Start at https://lemonlime.com/signup