This will be our fourth year doing our own holiday store. The 4 main sources that we use are:
Accessories Palace
www.accessoriespalace.com
Oriental Trading
www.orientaltrading.com
Ebay & dollar stores.
Accessories palace has great stuff, they charge for shipping but just add 5 cents to the selling price of each item and that will cover the shipping cost. They have great items like pens, & keychains that say #1 Mom, Dad, Grandma, & grandpa. Socks for both men & women (regular and holiday). Great jewlery for women & girls...the list goes on and on.
Most of the stuff we get from oriental trading is kids stuff. You always need some inexpensive kid items that you can charge $0.25-$0.75. The best thing from OT however, are the ornaments that you can personalize with a marker. We sell tons of those as they can be made to order for anyone the child is shopping for. We have someone who is assigned to just personalizing these ornaments. Plus you can get free shipping on orders over $60.
Ebay is great if you can find wholesale lots of new items. Just watch the shipping.
Dollar stores are great for holiday figurines and holiday candles. If you can find them online at a good price, the shipping will typically be high as they are heavy in mass quantities. The other great thing about dollar stores is they are local, so if you see you are running low in a particular area they are a hop, skip, & a jump to run to and restock. Obviously all dollar stores are not created equal, find the best ones in your area and try not to use your most local one where everyone in your school shops. Don't forget to take your tax exempt forms with you when you shop so you will not need to pay sales tax.
Also occasionally we find a good deal or two in Target, Walmart, k-mart, etc...