Category: Inventory Management

Are Higher Margins Available?

4/19/2021

Here's a post-pandemic strategy that should not be missed: higher margins!

Not the entire store, of course; you must be a merchant here.

But think about it: many shoppers have increased savings, reduced debt, or gotten their job back. Maybe all three.

And after months of being at home, and spending on home improvement and groceries, many shoppers have pent-up demand to spend on items they have had to postpone, like for themselves. Whether that would be in a restaurant or in a specialty store, shoppers are more willing and able to spend. (And some even feel entitled to spend.)

Beware the Perils of Exuberance

3/22/2021

Isn't it great? Headlines and the media world seem to be in unison; the dastardly COVID pandemic is being arrested. And, if we can believe the pundits, pent-up shoppers are about to buy all sorts of products and services with abandon.

But, will they?

Given this exuberance, many retailers could be building up excess inventory. Retailers once again need to be true merchants. That is, the #1 responsibility of retail senior managements must always be to control inventory. (It's the only thing that makes money, but it soaks up cash.)

Where's the Money Gone? Nowhere!

9/14/2020

Many Americans who can afford to save money – thanks to reduced spending on eating out, vacations, and consumer goods – are playing it safe and hoarding their cash, according to recent research by Gallup/Franklin Templeton.*

And those who currently are saving at least a little money largely plan to keep saving rather than spending in the near term.

Smart Buying in the Covid Age

8/3/2020

That's a sign of the times, isn't it?

While retailers are more accustomed than most folks to cope with change, 2020's unrelenting flexibility tests have been a challenge. Forget about five years. Retailers have to be ready for the next five months! It's back-to-school and then Holiday.

The only certainty about the next five months is that they will probably feel like the past five months. Yet you still must run a retail business. And that means you still must buy and sell merchandise.

The opportunities – and the pressures – are mounting.

Get Your Tents and Sidewalks Ready!

6/8/2020

As more stores are able to reopen, and more shoppers are willing to emerge, what will they encounter?

"A glut of pent-up inventory is waiting to be dumped on consumers this summer as retail stores reopen in the U.S., and shoppers for everything from shoes to sofas should be able to find major bargains," reported the Wall Street Journal* on June 2.

Not only are stores chocked full of merchandise that needs to be liquidated, but so it is with their wholesalers and vendors. Meanwhile, of course, the prevalence of store-closing sales only compounds the volume of discounted merchandise that will be available as shoppers begin to return to stores. It only adds to the glut.

Ready to Seize This Opportunity?

5/27/2020

Like every natural disaster, whether a massive storm, earthquake, wildfire, we all are victims of COVID-19.

Not all of us have suffered being infected by the virus. But, essentially everybody has suffered losses.

The loss of milestone celebrations of weddings, graduations, reunions, birthdays; anniversaries;
Lost access to theaters, museums, libraries, sporting events;
Loss of the sense of community that comes from going to work, or worship services, book clubs, or the local coffee shop;
Loss of income, job losses;
Or, sadly, the loss of loved ones.

Few have been spared.

The Dynamics of Merchandise MIX and Amount

4/13/2020

The Retail Owners Institute® has developed a retail strategy for "Inventory Management Going Forward."

As we often do, it was recapped as an unassuming chart (see below) identifying the Five Stages of Merchandise Mix Management, from "Before COVID-19" to the "New Normal?"

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