2026: The Year of Curious Wholesale
You’re not imagining it: it’s especially hard to run a business right now. There is so much happening in the world around us – and the world inside our homes – that makes it difficult. The challenges are unique to each of us. But my sense is that they’ve compounded over the last couple of years in a way that’s more severe than in the past.
When we feel scared or uncertain, it’s natural to go into survival mode.
We hunker down.
We prioritize immediate coping over long-term decisions, complex projects, and taking on risk.
But this is the reality: People in survival mode do not flourish. Small businesses in survival mode do not flourish.
Running a business – in a generous, ethical way – is one of the most important ways you can spend your work hours. I’ve run businesses in good times and bad. I’ve parented in crisis and in calm. And something I’ve learned is this:
“Life must be lived and curiosity kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn their back on life.”
— Eleanor Roosevelt
Curiosity is not frivolous. It’s not a luxury for when times get easier. It is one of the only ways we shift out of survival mode.
So instead of bracing and tightening around the fear, what if we got genuinely curious about things like…
Our real goals right now and where wholesale fits.
Whether the goals we’re working toward still fit this season, or whether “success” needs a new definition.The landscape we’re operating in.
What has actually changed, what’s steady, and which signals deserve our attention.What store owners are facing.
Their risks, margins, timelines, and hopes – and how those shape their choices.What makes our product land (or miss).
Where it shines, where it confuses people, and what happens when it lives on a real shelf.Marketing that feels human and specific.
Clearer stories, honest experiments, and approaches that don’t feel generic.Opportunities unique to right now.
Openings that exist precisely because this moment is different.Pricing and margins that support everyone.
Where the money actually comes from… and whether it sustains the business and the people.Collaboration over isolation.
What becomes possible when we share, partner, and learn together.Our own patterns and capacity.
The places we rush, freeze, or avoid – and how curiosity can gently create new options.
Those questions naturally lead to one of the most powerful prompts we have in business: “How might we…?” How might we adjust? How might we experiment? How might we build something resilient, human, and workable – right now?
When you need results, curiosity can feel like the last thing on your mind. But curiosity is a practice. It’s something we choose, again and again.
So this year at Wholesale In a Box, we’re focusing on curious wholesale.
“Curious” can mean:
An eagerness to know or learn.
A willingness to try new things and experiment.
Something that’s unique, odd, or unusual.
We mean curious wholesale in all three of those ways, because all three are crucial to wholesale success.
As you know, in the Wholesale In a Box course, we guide you through the 6 pillars of wholesale growth. Those foundations are essential – and if you don’t get them right, you won’t succeed. But they are necessary, not sufficient. Without curiosity woven through everything, wholesale stalls.
So we have a lot planned this year to help you develop and apply that kind of curiosity – whether you’re a Wholesale In a Box course/coaching client or part of our broader community.
All we ask is that you get curious.
More to come soon.
How We Can Help You Grow Wholesale:
Wholesale In a Box
Our beloved comprehensive course and coaching is your all-in-one way to grow wholesale fast, steady, and long-term. Learn more here.
Getting Started With Wholesale
A free 4-part email course covering the basics of how wholesale works, keys for success, whether it’s right for you, and how to get started. Sign up here.
The Wholesale Reset
Our free email course for more advanced brands — we’ll help you reset your approach to wholesale and take concrete steps forward to change your results. Sign up here.
Line Sheet In an Afternoon
Our minicourse that gives you a 39-page comprehensive line sheet template to mix, match, and modify — along with the guidance, motivation, and help you need to make a great line sheet fast. Sign up here.