Line Sheet
The wholesale catalog every retail buyer expects, your products, prices, minimums, and terms on one clean document, and the thing brands are asked for first.
A line sheet is the wholesale catalog a brand sends to retail buyers: every product, with its wholesale and retail prices, minimum order quantities, and ordering terms, laid out cleanly on one document. It is the single most-requested thing when a brand approaches a store, and a buyer often decides in seconds whether a brand looks ready based on how professional its line sheet is. If a sell sheet is the marketing pitch for one hero product, the line sheet is the practical catalog a buyer orders from.
Unlike a consumer-facing lookbook, a line sheet is built for the person writing the purchase order. It is plain, complete, and easy to order from.
What to Put on It
A strong line sheet includes:
- Product images, clean and consistent, ideally on a white or neutral background.
- Product names and SKUs, so each item is unambiguous.
- Wholesale price and retail price (MSRP) for every item, the two numbers a buyer needs to check margin.
- Minimum order quantities and case packs.
- Variants: sizes, shades, or colorways, with swatches where relevant.
- Ordering terms: minimum opening order, payment terms, lead times, and shipping.
- Brand basics: a short about line, logo, and clear contact and ordering details.
Many brands add a brief cover and about page, but the buyer’s attention is on the product grid and the numbers.
Why It Matters
The line sheet is where the wholesale math becomes real. A buyer scans the wholesale and retail columns to confirm the standard keystone margin works, checks the minimums against their budget, and decides whether to place an order. A messy, incomplete, or amateur line sheet signals a brand that is not ready for retail, no matter how good the product is. A clean one signals the opposite, which is why it is worth getting right before pitching a single store.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a line sheet?
A line sheet is a wholesale catalog a brand gives to retail buyers, listing every product with its wholesale and retail prices, minimum order quantities, variants, and ordering terms on one clean document. It is what a buyer uses to place an order, and it is usually the first thing a store asks a brand for.
What is the difference between a line sheet and a sell sheet?
A line sheet is the full catalog a buyer orders from, with every product and its prices and terms. A sell sheet is a one-page marketing pitch for a single hero product, designed to build interest. Brands often use a sell sheet to open the conversation and a line sheet to close the order.
What should a line sheet include?
Product images, names and SKUs, wholesale and retail prices, minimum order quantities and case packs, variants like sizes and colors, and ordering terms (minimum opening order, payment terms, lead times, shipping), plus basic brand and contact information.
Do I need a line sheet to sell wholesale?
In practice, yes. Almost any retail buyer will ask for one, and wholesale marketplaces expect the same information. A clean, complete line sheet is a basic sign that a brand is ready to sell into stores.
Sources
- Brandboom, “What Is a Line Sheet, and How Are Line Sheets Used in Wholesale?”. Definition and the key details buyers expect on a line sheet.
- Wholesale In a Box, “Wholesale Line Sheet 101”. What to include, how to format it, and common mistakes.
- PandaDoc, “What Are Sell Sheets?”. The distinction between a line sheet (catalog for buyers) and a sell sheet (marketing one-pager).