Inventory is the Lifeblood of your Business
Inventory is the Lifeblood of Your Business!
The better you can control your inventory, the faster it will turn. The faster it turns, the sooner you will be able to enjoy your profits and use them to reinvest in fresh product.
First, let’s talk about product selection. Here are the guidelines I’ve followed:
1) The product must be viable. I would have to believe that customers would want or need this product.
2) The product must meet quality and safety standards and perform to its expectations.
3) The product must be a good value. Not necessarily inexpensive but worth its price.
It’s up to you to determine what you believe a product is worth. Then, based on the cost, you decide whether it fits your assessment of its value and profit target. Many times, I’ve passed on products I liked because I believed the price exceeded the value. If I really wanted the product, I might decide to negotiate the cost or agree to make less margin.
I was always looking for products that I might sell “along with” what I was already selling, rather than “instead of” something I was already selling. Trading sales from one product to another doesn’t grow your sales.
Some categories require more variety than others. You might be under represented in some and over represented in others. Do you have seven ear washes to choose from and only two dental treats?
Try to manage your inventory to sales as best you can. There is no sense in having six of an item your might sell just once a month. There are lots of products that sell even less frequently, but make you a one stop shop. I had many products that had two pieces on the shelf. One to go and one to show. These were infrequently purchased items, but I had them in stock to meet the need. If the item was costly, I might only stock one. You probably do 75% of your business in 25% of your products.
Of course, keeping your inventory fresh and up to date is essential. Look around your store for excess inventory. You might think about marking down excess slow movers until you reach a sensible quantity. Move out those items that have seen better days or are performing poorly. At the very least, it will turn stagnant inventory back into spendable income for fresh products.
Along with inventory management comes product information management and IndiePet has a solution just for members - IndiePet Open Catalog powered by Salsify.
IndiePet Open Catalog lets manufacturer-members upload their product information in a standardized, consistent format so that retail-members have confidence that they are downloading accurate and current information to their point-of-sale, e-commerce, and marketing platforms.
The IndiePet Open Catalog is a member benefit. There are no additional fees or charges to use either by our manufacturer members or our retail members! You do not have to be a Salsify customer. If you’re not yet an IndiePet member, join today!
