By Ed Avis
What do kings, Santas, hippies and cowboys all have in common? They’re all known for facial hair. Beards and mustaches are essential components of countless costumes, which means they could potentially add to your bottom line.
Mustaches, which is a new NCA Vendor Member, has everything you need to create or expand your store’s fake facial hair department.
“We have 1,500 SKUs of fake facial hair, probably any mustache or beard you can imagine,” says Tomas Siuipys, owner of the company, which is based in Lithuania (Europe). “We probably have everything you see on TV or the movies or the internet. If you can imagine it, simply put, we have it or we can make it.”
Siuipys’ business began 25 years ago selling balloons. The company expanded to other party- and costume-related items, and eventually had 12 retail locations across Lithuania. That business was successful, but they started noticing something interesting: Many customers wanted quality beards and mustaches and they didn’t have much to offer.
“Simply, we couldn’t find good, decent quality products,” Siuipys says.
They already had a factory in Lithuania that manufactured various other party-related items, so they designed some beards and mustaches and added them to the line. They used quality materials so that picky customers would not fear adhering the items to their face.
Before long they had 10 popular items in the category and sales were going well in their stores. They decided that the product line might have potential beyond their own stores and decided to exhibit at the Nuremberg Toy Fair in Germany.
“Actually, I did not believe that this could be a business, but my wife said, ‘We have to go. We have to show the world what we do because it’s very good quality,’” Siuipys remembers. “Then two or three nights before the show I scrolled Google for different styles and types of beards and mustaches and created 20 to 25 new shapes. Using my father-in-law as a model, we made those beards by hand, did a quick photo shoot on a couch at home, and printed a catalog on my home computer printer. Then we left for Germany.”
Their facial hair products were a hit at the Toy Fair. Attendees appreciated the quality and styles, and orders started rolling in. Siuipys attributes the success to their decision to focus on quality since they don't have to compete with numerous competitors from Far East.
“Our beards and mustaches are handmade and very thoroughly combed,” he says. “And they’re very clean. They’re not itchy when you put them on your face. Another thing that distinguishes us from lower quality products is that we use 3M surgical tape to stick them on. That tape is anti-allergic and it sticks very well.”
Today Mustache’s product line includes all the standard hair colors, ranging from ginger to black to salt-and-pepper. Rainbow colored beards are popular at pride events, and national flag colors are great for patriots. Siuipys says his best seller is the classic walrus mustache, which stands to reason: Which man wouldn’t like to try on that persona once in a while?
All of the products come in clean retail packaging that shows off the product. And Siuipys has created two convenient Plan-O-Grams for store owners.
“We have a two-by-six Plan-O-Gram for smaller stores and a four-by-six version for bigger ones,” he says. “The Plan-O-Grams are made from our best sellers, so we know that when a retailer buys our Plan-O-Gram, they will sell it and come back to us again.”
The products ship directly from the Mustaches’ factory in Lithuania, which Siuipys assures is not at all a problem. Because the products are very light and small, even a large order fits in a small package that arrives in the United States in just four to six working days.
“If a store in New York orders mustaches on Monday, they’ll probably have the delivery the following Monday,” he says. “And they do not have to deal with the customs or taxes or anything like that. We handle all customs and delivery duties. And the shipping price is good, too – for orders $900 or more, shipping is free, and for orders under $900, shipping is $40 flat.”
Perhaps best of all is the discount Siuipys offers: NCA members get 30 percent off the wholesale cost, and the minimum order is just $300. Click here www.mustachesb2b.com to view their website, register as a NCA member and place orders.
Also if you prefer to chat with Tomas in person about business before making up your mind to place an order you are more than welcome to schedule a Zoom call by clicking this link https://calendly.com/mustaches/30min-call-on-zoom