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One of the very worst things that any business owner can experience is to lose control of their inventory. In a mess like this, you won’t know whether your goods are coming or going. You won’t know what you have, how much you have, or how much money is slipping through your hands. This is why it’s so crucial to develop inventory management tactics.
You Need a Secure Space to Store Inventory
The first thing you will need is a space to store all of your inventory. It needs to be a place that is safe from the elements as well as criminals. You also need a place that charges a good rate for storage. If possible, you should think about buying your own storage space. If not, you can look for a good deal on warehousing in Oakland, CA.
You don’t have to spring for a huge amount of space at the very outset. It may be wise to temper your expectations concerning just how much product you can move. Your best bet may be to look for a deal that gives you just enough space for your operation to grow into. This way, you won’t have to go through the hassle of paying more for space you don’t use.
Use the Push Strategy to Control Inventory
One of the most common and widely used inventory management strategies is known as the Push. It gets its name from the fact that items are pushed down from the level of the manufacturer, straight to a store, business, or, in your case, warehouse. Once it is in your warehouse, you can sell it to a customer or employee straight out of your inventory.
The key to success with the Push strategy will be to have a good grip on customer demand for a certain item. If it’s the summer season, you can stock up on beach shorts. If it’s winter, parkas are a safer bet. The amount of items you stock will be largely based on how many you have managed to sell in the past. This will determine the future push level.
If the Push Doesn’t Work, Try the Pull
The Pull strategy is one that works in the exact reverse manner of the Push strategy. This is a tactic that allows you to order an item for a customer only when they have specifically asked for it. In many cases, a store won’t even order the item until it has been paid for in advance. The item is not in your inventory but will have to be ordered.
The Pull strategy is a good tactic to use if you have certain items, such as a wedding dress, that are ordered only on special occasions. It saves you the trouble of having to stock these items and let them take up space in your inventory. The drawback is that it may take longer for these items to ship to a customer as they can’t be pulled from stock.
You Can Use the “Just in Time” Strategy
If you really have a limited amount of space in your inventory, it may be better to keep only a very small amount of certain items on hand. For others, it may be best to use the “Just in Time” strategy. This is a tactic that will involve you ordering items that you think there may be a demand for. The trick is to order them just as the demand begins.
This may work well for certain items that are beginning to trend. You can order a few to have on hand right when you think this trend is bound to reach critical mass. You will need to guesstimate how many of these items you can actually sell.
Don’t Let Your Inventory Get Out of Control
There are plenty of new methods that you can use to keep your business running smoothly. Many of these new tactics have to do with finding a simpler way to handle your inventory. If you run a business that deals in physical goods, you’ll need to have a place to store them. These are the tips you can take from L.A. businesses when it comes to this matter.
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