Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Reducing Out-of-Stock Issues



Ted Gladson, a Chicago-based business leader, served as the president and founder of Gladson Interactive, a store merchandising and design company, for more than 30 years. Over the course of his career, Chicago’s Ted Gladson has handled a wide variety of issues regarding design and merchandising, including out-of-stock issues.

Having a large number of out-of-stock products damages a store’s reputation and can drive away customers. Below are a few ways stores can reduce their number of out-of-stock issues and maintain consumer trust:

- Expand RFID use. Using RFID, or radio frequency identification, helps retail businesses track their inventory and understand their stock levels at varying times during the day. This makes it easier to avoid out-of-stock problems since there is a clear record of what exists in the store during the ordering process.

- Don’t create out-of-stock issues. Sometimes, retail stores create out-of-stock situations by covering merchandise on the shelf or moving items from their usual spot. Although the store has these items in stock, when customers cannot see the item they are looking for, they assume the item is out of stock and will skip over it or buy it at a competitor.

- Stay vigilant. Although technology is a great way of tracking products, retailers must be vigilant of shoplifting and of receiving incorrect quantities. These incidents are not tracked as easily with technology and can create an unforeseen out-of-stock issue. Retail owners should figure out why certain products seem to be disappearing and address the problem.