Streamlining Tester Inventory on Faire: Practical Workarounds for Handmade Sellers

Avoid Overselling While Keeping Your Wholesale Customers Happy

Have you ever found yourself scratching your head because Faire’s system treats testers differently from regular products—and then subtracts them from your on-hand inventory anyway? You’re not alone.

Testers can be a lifesaver for wholesale buyers who want to experience your product before committing, but they also risk throwing your inventory counts wildly off. We’ve been there, and here’s how we’ve learned to keep everything in line without driving ourselves crazy.

1. The Problem with Testers on Faire

Faire’s platform doesn’t inherently link a tester variant to your main inventory item. That means each tester a retailer adds to their cart can still deplete your overall stock count. If you’re shipping large volumes or don’t constantly watch your inventory levels, you can suddenly find yourself oversold on key products.

Why It Hurts:

• Unexpected stockouts on bestsellers.

• Inaccurate reporting makes demand planning difficult.

• Risk of customer frustration if you have to cancel or delay orders.

  
  

We learned this the hard way when a surge of orders included a pile of testers. Our inventory numbers plummeted, and we oversold by a landslide on multiple product lines. Faire support was helpful but recommended manual adjustments—a time-consuming process if you receive steady orders each week.

2. How We Handle It

We’ve experimented with a few methods. Here’s our current approach:

A. Set Up a Dedicated Tester “Product” in Faire

Some sellers create a separate product listing for testers—something like “Tester - Scent/Flavor.” That way, the system sees it as an entirely different listing with the same SKU so it pulls from your main item’s stock. You can set a quantity you’re willing to offer (like 10-15 testers) and keep it separate from your sellable stock. We link the url in our listing, like this: Need a tester? Order one here (insert url).

Upside: It’s simpler to track, and you won’t risk overselling your regular inventory.

Downside: If you have many variations, you could end up creating a bunch of separate listings.

B. Incorporate Tester Cost into Overall Order

We’ve also tried adding the cost of testers as a line item but not counting them as a physical SKU. For instance, you can add a “Tester Pack” for a nominal fee. Once purchased, we manually ship them along with the rest of the order—no direct link to your product inventory.

Upside: Streamlined approach; one line item covers multiple testers.

Downside: You need to be mindful of how Faire’s reporting system tracks revenue vs. inventory.

C. Manual Adjustments with a Twist

While Faire recommends subtracting tester inventory manually, that can be a pain when orders are flying in. We schedule a weekly check-in on our inventory levels. If we see that testers have dipped our stock, we’ll readjust our totals to ensure it matches the real on-hand amount. Doing it once a week is more manageable than constant daily tweaks.

Pro Tip: Keep a simple spreadsheet or note on how many testers you’ve shipped each week. Deduct that number from your inventory separately. It’s not glamorous, but it works if your order volume isn’t astronomical.

3. Communication with Retailers

If you’re considering a new approach—like a tester fee or separate product listings—be transparent. Retailers usually understand that testers come with their own constraints. A quick note on your Faire shop page or a direct email can clarify:

“We’re offering testers as a separate product line for smooth inventory tracking—feel free to add them to your cart if you’d like to test before stocking up!”

This heads-off confusion if buyers are used to seeing testers listed differently.

4. Monitoring & Adjusting in Real Time

A. Keep an Eye on Your Dashboard

Faire provides some basic analytics. Use them to track how many tester items you’re moving versus regular stock. If you see a spike, that’s your cue to update inventory or temporarily pause certain listings.

B. Set Safety Stock Levels

One trick we use is padding our inventory a bit. If we have 50 units ready to go, we might only list 45 to cover surprises. That buffer can save your skin if a wave of tester orders suddenly pushes you past your real inventory.

5. Avoiding Oversell Nightmares

Batch Updates: Once a week (or once a day if you have the bandwidth), review your orders and see how many testers went out. Update your stock levels accordingly. Make it part of your routine—like checking emails or shipping reports.

Collaborate with Faire Support: If you’re noticing big discrepancies, reach out to Faire for assistance. They might have new or upcoming features to handle testers differently. It never hurts to ask.

Testers can create a tricky balancing act. You want to offer them for retailers to try out your amazing scents, flavors, or variations—but you don’t want to break your inventory tracking in the process. By treating testers as either a separate product or dedicating time to manual inventory reconciliation, you can keep a healthy stock without shortchanging your wholesale buyers.

Remember: every business is different, so pick a method that fits your workflow. The main point is to plan ahead and stay consistent with whatever method you choose. A little bit of extra organization now can prevent a major headache down the road. After all, the last thing you want is for a hot new store interested in your product to click “buy” and discover you’re sold out—when you’re actually not!

If you’re still unsure which route to take, try out one of these solutions for a few weeks and track your results. You’ll quickly see what meshes best with your inventory management style. And as always, feel free to tweak and adapt until you find that sweet spot—where testers help you grow your wholesale business without burying your inventory in confusion.