Things to Remember
Here are the key points:
- Stock what your sales history proves you absolutely must — but no more.
- Despite your best efforts to keep inventory levels under control, you will still end up with too many of some items; however, by erring on the side of caution, this may only be a problem — not a catastrophe.
- Don’t let personal preferences or wishful thinking cloud your judgment; go with the numbers.
A store owner recently related how, when he became involved in technical diving, he convinced himself that his favorite technical diving BC was what every one of his customers needed. Fortunately, he paid enough attention to his sales figures to realize that, as much as he was in love with this BC, it wasn’t what most of his customers wanted. This helped save him from investing too heavily in the wrong item.
- Remember the three rules of inventory control: Turnover. Turnover. Turnover.
At this point, one thing should be readily apparent: You can’t effectively manage your inventory off the top of your head, or by “eyeballing” it. Modern Point of Sale (POS) software is essential. POS software not only helps you monitor inventory levels, it gives you hard data on which items are turning over at an adequate rate — and which aren’t.
As one successful dive retailer put it: “Lose control over your inventory, you lose control over your business. It’s that simple.”
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