Selling patches for the first time: what we would tell a friend

Most first patch launches trip over the same few things, and hardly any of them is the patch. It is the pack, the paperwork and the order in which decisions get made. Our sales team answers these questions every week, for brands in the US, the UK and Europe, so here they are in one place, the way we would put them to a friend who asked.

What do people get wrong before the first order?

A minimum is smaller than it sounds

Fifteen thousand patches sounds like a warehouse. It is 500 packs of 30. In the US our Ready Made Collection starts at 500 sheets, which at the 32 × 32 mm size (about 1¼ inches square) is 7,500 patches: 250 packs of 30, or 500 packs of 15. Turn the minimum into packs before you decide whether you can sell it. Packs are what you will actually be selling.

Every printed product carries its own minimum

On the Ready Made Collection one minimum splits across products. Outside the US a typical first order is 15,000 patches split three ways, 5,000 of each formulation, and in the US the 500 sheets can be split across products too. Once you print on the patch itself, as on Your Brand, Our Formula, each product carries its own minimum. Three printed products are three minimums, not one shared between them.

Patches and packaging are two separate jobs

When you hear a minimum or a lead time for patches, it covers the patches alone. Many first-time buyers assume the pouch or carton is part of it. It is a job of its own: designed separately, printed separately (our pouches come from a specialist press in the Czech Republic) and run to its own timetable. We can do both and hand you a finished product, but plan them as two things. The packaging is nearly always the one that holds a launch up. Ready-made patches in stock can leave us within days; a printed pouch cannot.

Decide who packs before you order

Loose patches, pouches and inserts are three things that someone has to put together. We have seen customers take their patches loose, meaning to pack them themselves, and still have them sitting on a shelf six months later. Unless you already run a packing line, have the product arrive finished. Large brands with their own line are the exception, and they already know it.

Start the brand concept first

The artwork on the patch is quick: there are only so many colours to choose from. The concept for the whole brand is what goes back and forth. With a concept in hand, expect two or three rounds of proofs. Without one, concept design can run for months, and nothing later in production wins that time back.

Most first orders end up ready-made, whatever the first meeting was about

Nearly every first conversation opens with a bespoke idea: a formula of your own, your own print, your own scent. Most first orders are Ready Made Collection in the buyer’s own packaging. That is not a compromise. A new brand does not yet know which product its customers want, and the quickest way to find out is to sell several before making one of them unique.

Know what a ready-made patch cannot do

You cannot put your logo on a Ready Made Collection patch, and its scent is fixed. Your own print comes with Your Brand, Our Formula, and so does a scent of your choosing, which is independent of the formulation: the same actives can carry lemon, peppermint, lavender or coffee. A sample of a formula developed for you cannot carry your logo either. Printed patches only come off a full production run.

What catches people out once the patches arrive?

A patch is thin, so the pack has to carry the value

People judge what they are buying by its size. A bottle of oil or a tub of cream has weight in the hand; a sheet of patches is wafer thin and can look like a sheet of stickers. The format you choose, and how many patches go into it, decides how the product reads on a shelf far more than it would for a capsule.

Fifteen in a pack is often better than thirty

Packs run between 15 and 30 patches. Thirty, one a day for a month, is the usual maximum. We lean towards 15. It leaves room for multi-buys and multipacks, and since people rarely wear one every single day, a large pack slows the next purchase.

The pack has to explain the patch

Someone holding a patch for the first time does not know where it goes or what to do with it once it is out of the packet, which is not true of a capsule or a cream. Samples show it most clearly: the first question from almost everyone who receives one is what to do with it. Whatever else is on your pack, it has to answer that in a few plain steps.

Decide whether the patch should be seen

Some brands want their patch noticed, and print it in strong colour so it reads like a small tattoo. Others make products people would rather not advertise they are wearing, and want the patch as discreet as it can be. Both are print decisions, and they are easier to make before the artwork starts than after the first proof.

What will a retailer want from you?

The paperwork, before anything else

A small independent shop will rarely ask for anything. A retailer of any real size wants the full compliance paperwork before it will list you: the product information file, registration, safety reports and certificates. A good many manufacturers cannot supply that set at all. We produce it for every product we make, and it is broadly the same whichever market you sell into. Whoever you buy from, ask early which of those documents you will hold, and when.

An answer to “where does it go?”

The second question a large retailer asks is where the product sits in the store. Patches have no obvious aisle, and the buyer will expect you to have thought about it before they have to.

What is selling, and what has slowed?

Diet has slowed, and menopause has arrived

Five years ago we made a lot of diet patches. The market has changed since, and they sell more slowly, but they still sell. Menopause has gone the other way and is now one of the most talked-about categories we make for. Sleep, energy and Bio-Frequency sell readily. Brain and focus, and immunity, follow the wider wellness trends, though brain and focus has been slower so far. Bladder is a hard sell, and insect repellent only sells in season.

Our own range has grown over the same five years from about ten standard formulations to twenty-two, most of them added because smaller brands wanted more to choose from without commissioning a formula of their own.

The pre-Christmas quarter is the one that matters

September to November is the busiest stretch of the year for the brands we supply, and the run-up to Christmas is their best quarter. Work back from it, and remember that the pack, not the patch, sets the date.

Who does well selling patches?

Brands that already sell to the right people

The brands that do well with patches nearly always sell health, wellness or beauty products already, online, in their own shops or to retailers. The patch slots into a channel they have built. We rarely see anyone move into patches from an unrelated trade, and when it happens it is a much harder road. The other common route in is a brand already selling patches from another supplier.

You will spend more time explaining the format than beating a competitor

Head-to-head contests with another patch maker are rare. The question a new patch brand hears most is not “why yours?” but “why a patch at all?” Magnesium capsules are sold by more companies than anyone could count, with nothing to tell them apart. Far fewer sell patches, which is both the opportunity and the work.

Why brands move their patches to a new supplier

When a brand moves its patches to us, the reasons we hear are paperwork that was missing or did not fit the market they were selling into, deliveries that did not arrive when promised, and a supplier who took the order and then became hard to reach. Test for all three before you sign. The twelve questions in our guide to vetting a patch manufacturer are written for exactly that.

Reorders are the easy part

The second order is faster than the first. The artwork is already done, so allow four to six weeks once it exists. It is also the practical case for a narrow first range, since every new printed product starts the artwork queue again.

Our published minimums, for every route and both markets, are on minimums and lead times.

Short answers

How big is a patch minimum order in practice? Smaller than it sounds once it is turned into packs. Outside the US, the Ready Made Collection minimum of 15,000 patches is 500 packs of 30. In the US, 500 sheets at the 32 × 32 mm size is 7,500 patches, or 250 packs of 30.

Can one minimum order be split across several patch products? On Vision Meditech’s Ready Made Collection, yes. Outside the US a typical first order is 15,000 patches split three ways, 5,000 of each formulation, and in the US the 500-sheet minimum, 7,500 patches at the 32 × 32 mm size, can be split across products too. Once you print on the patch itself, as on Your Brand, Our Formula, each product carries its own minimum.

Is packaging part of a patch order? It is a separate job. A minimum or a lead time for patches covers the patches alone; the pouch or carton is designed, printed and scheduled on its own, and many first-time buyers assume otherwise. A manufacturer can do both and deliver a finished product, but the printed pack, not the patch, is usually what sets the launch date.

Should I pack my patches myself? Unless you already run a packing line, have the product arrive finished. Loose patches, pouches and inserts are three things someone has to put together, and Vision Meditech has seen customers take their patches loose to pack themselves and still have them on a shelf six months later.

How long does patch artwork take? The artwork on the patch is quick; the concept for the whole brand is what goes back and forth. With a concept in hand, expect two or three rounds of proofs. Without one, concept design can run for months.

Should a first patch order be bespoke or ready-made? Most first orders are ready-made in the buyer’s own packaging, even when the first conversation was about a formula of their own. A new brand does not yet know which product its customers want, and selling several ready-made formulations first is the quickest way to find out before making one unique.

Can I put my logo on a ready-made patch? No. You cannot put your logo on a patch from Vision Meditech’s Ready Made Collection, and its scent is fixed. Your own print comes with Your Brand, Our Formula, and so does a scent of your choosing.

Can I choose the scent of a patch? Yes, on Vision Meditech’s Your Brand, Our Formula, where the scent is independent of the formulation: the same actives can carry lemon, peppermint, lavender or coffee. On the Ready Made Collection the scent is fixed.

Can a sample patch carry my logo? No. At Vision Meditech, printed patches only come off a full production run, so a sample of a formula developed for you cannot carry your logo.

Why does the pack matter so much for patches? People judge what they are buying by its size, and a sheet of patches is wafer thin and can look like a sheet of stickers, while a bottle of oil or a tub of cream has weight in the hand. The format, and how many patches go into it, decides how the product reads on a shelf far more than it would for a capsule.

How many patches should go in a retail pack? Packs usually hold between 15 and 30 patches, and 30, one a day for a month, is the usual maximum. Fifteen leaves room for multi-buys and multipacks, and because people rarely wear one every day, a large pack slows the next purchase.

What should a patch pack tell the customer? Whatever else is on the pack, it has to explain in a few plain steps where the patch goes and what to do with it once it is out of the packet. Someone holding a patch for the first time does not know, and with samples, what to do with it is the first question almost everyone asks.

Should a patch be printed to stand out or to be discreet? Some brands want their patch noticed and print it in strong colour so it reads like a small tattoo; others make products people would rather not advertise they are wearing, and want the patch as discreet as it can be. Both are print decisions, and they are easier to make before the artwork starts than after the first proof.

What will a large retailer ask a patch brand for? The full compliance paperwork, before it will list the product: the product information file, registration, safety reports and certificates. The second question is where the product goes in the store. A small independent shop rarely asks for either.

Can a patch manufacturer supply the compliance paperwork retailers ask for? Not always: a good many manufacturers cannot supply the full set (the product information file, registration, safety reports and certificates) at all. Vision Meditech produces it for every product it makes, broadly the same whichever market you sell into. Whoever you buy from, ask early which of those documents you will hold, and when.

Which patch categories are growing, and which have slowed? Menopause has become one of the most talked-about categories, while diet patches, a large seller five years ago, sell more slowly than they did, though they have not stopped. Sleep and energy sell readily, and seasonal products such as insect repellent are harder going.

How many standard formulations does Vision Meditech make? Twenty-two. The range has grown from about ten over five years, most of the additions made because smaller brands wanted more to choose from without commissioning a formula of their own.

When is the busiest season for patch brands? September to November is the busiest stretch of the year for the brands Vision Meditech supplies, and the run-up to Christmas is their best quarter. Work back from it, and remember that the pack, not the patch, sets the date.

Who does well selling patches? Brands that already sell health, wellness or beauty products to consumers, because the patch slots into a channel they have already built. Moving into patches from an unrelated trade is much harder, and it rarely happens.

Do new patch brands mostly compete with other patch makers? Rarely. A new patch brand spends more time explaining the format than beating a competitor, and the question it hears most is “why a patch at all?” Far fewer companies sell patches than sell magnesium capsules, which is both the opportunity and the work.

Why do brands move their patches to a new supplier? The reasons Vision Meditech hears from brands moving their patches to it are paperwork that was missing or did not fit the market they were selling into, deliveries that did not arrive when promised, and a supplier who took the order and then became hard to reach. Test for all three before you sign.

How long does a patch reorder take? At Vision Meditech, allow four to six weeks once the artwork exists; the second order is faster than the first. Every new printed product starts the artwork queue again, which is the practical case for a narrow first range.