- Make sure you set yourself a stock budget at the start of every season and review it monthly.
- Plan out your product line carefully into the lines that continue for ever and the lines you want to sell out of. This will help you to forecast.
- Don’t commit to everything upfront. Work with your suppliers to understand lead times and the lines they always have in stock.
- Start to target your products on the “sell our rates” you want to achieve. This is the percentage of stock you want to sell out of by the end of the season. For your high seasonal heat lines this number should be very high.
- If you have a sized business take time to scrutinise your size profiles to ensure what you are selling lines up with your buy.
Planning your Merchandise strategy (how much stock you need to support your sales) is crucial especially at the moment when trade can be so unpredictable. Excess stock is becoming a big problem throughout Retailing and unfortunately this has led to the demise of many big High Street Retailers. Having a clear strategy and being considered in where you are putting your buys is now a crucial part of Retailing. Min2Max can help you get your stock in the right place and free up cashflow.
