Wholesale has changed. It’s no longer just about seasonal orders and show appointments — it’s about building lasting buyer relationships, optimising collections in real time, and treating wholesale like the revenue-driving channel it is. To do that, fashion brands need more than instincts. They need data.

But not just any data.

Too many brands still rely on static order volumes or basic revenue reports, when what they really need is a dynamic view of how buyers engage, how collections perform, and where opportunities lie. Whether you're scaling globally or fine-tuning your current buyer base, these seven KPIs should form the backbone of your wholesale strategy.

Here’s what they are — and how platforms like LE NEW BLACK help you track and act on them.

1. Buyer Activation Rate

How many of the buyers you invite actually place an order? This simple but powerful metric helps you assess the effectiveness of your showroom strategy, the clarity of your assortment, and the strength of your buyer relationships.

💡 Why it matters:
Low activation may point to unclear pricing, poor product segmentation, or missed timing.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Track buyer page visits, showroom activity, and conversion rates from visit to order — all from your dashboard.

2. Average Order Value (AOV)

Knowing how much each buyer typically spends gives you a baseline for forecasting and collection planning. It also helps you identify high-value buyers worth nurturing further.

💡 Why it matters:
An increase in AOV often signals better merchandising, stronger upselling, or improved storytelling.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Visualise order values across buyers, countries, and seasons — and compare trends over time.

3. Sell-Through Rate by Category

How are your products performing at retail? Monitoring sell-through data by category (from partners or reorders) shows which areas of the collection are driving value.

💡 Why it matters:
It highlights overperformers to double down on — and underperformers to phase out or rethink.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Allow your retail partners to place reorders post-production, based on real-time stock levels, so that you can track which products are ordered again and again, even outside the core sales window.

4. Conversion Rate from Showroom Visits

Just like in e-commerce, traffic is only valuable if it converts. Monitoring how many buyers who visit your digital showroom end up placing an order can reveal gaps in your presentation or buying experience.

💡 Why it matters:
A high bounce rate may mean your visuals, pricing, or navigation aren’t working as intended.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Get insight into buyer engagement: time spent per session, product views, lookbook clicks, and more.

5. Time to Reorder

How quickly do buyers return to place a second order? This KPI reflects your ability to keep product relevant beyond market week — and your platform’s capacity to support reorders efficiently.

💡 Why it matters:
A short reorder window suggests high sell-through, excellent buyer confidence, or well-timed drops.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Support reordering with evergreen collections, back-in-stock campaigns, and mid-season product pushes.

6. Order Completion Rate

Are buyers placing full orders, or abandoning carts partway through? Monitoring drop-off points can help refine the experience and identify technical or strategic friction.

💡 Why it matters:
Incomplete orders could signal confusion, pricing issues, or lack of urgency.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Track where orders are stalling, which buyers are lingering without checking out, and assign follow-up accordingly.

7. Buyer Retention Rate

Are your buyers coming back season after season? Retention is one of the most telling indicators of brand strength in wholesale — and a key metric for long-term growth.

💡 Why it matters:
Acquiring new buyers is costly. Retaining the right ones is where profitability grows.

📊 How LE NEW BLACK helps:
Track orders to segment returning vs. new buyers, compare behaviour over seasons, and build reactivation strategies when needed.

Bringing It All Together

Wholesale success isn’t just about the total number of orders — it’s about what those orders reveal. With the right KPIs, your team can:

• Identify and double down on what’s working

• Spot and resolve weak points before they impact sell-through

• Align internal teams around clear growth levers

• Move from reactive sales to strategic planning
  
  

At LE NEW BLACK, every KPI mentioned above is not only trackable — it’s actionable. Our interface is designed to help brands understand and grow their wholesale performance with clarity, not complexity.

Curious how your current setup compares? → Book a demo and we’ll walk you through what success looks like at LE NEW BLACK.