Next-level inventory management part 2- two important steps in securing your store inventory

Recent trends in BOPIS, click & collect and curb-side pickup have become a pain point for many retailers. Disconnected POS stock data is not enough any more: out-of-stock situations and a lack of real-time stock visibility results in low customer satisfaction and ultimately damages the brand image.

A modern order management system will not only provide you with a real-time stock overview, but will ensure stock protection in your store ‘mini fulfilment center’.

Two important steps to protect your in-store inventory are:

1. Improve inventory management in-store from an operational perspective. For example, make it easy for your staff to find inventory that might be on a mannequin or in a backroom. You could also consider keeping dedicated inventory for store fulfilment – and in any case, make sure in-store picking is a fast and smooth process to prevent short picks. 

2. On top of this, you should start to consider inventory as part of a global pool. Unify your inventory and implement smart & flexible rules to determine how much inventory should be considered available. To achieve this, an order management system (OMS) is key.

Want to know more about what this means for your business? Contact Emma Dijkstra, Expert Lead Order Management at Emakina.NL.