When you own an e-commerce business or an online store, you know that one of the first things you should focus on is inventory management, which refers to all of the materials (goods, products, etc.) that you sell. We are all aware that a stock is a specific quantity of “goods” for sale that are kept in a warehouse or logistics space.

Inventory management is an activity that allows a company to control its assets in order to maximize results. The ultimate goal is to maintain constant inventory control so that you can conduct your activity normally. One of the most important aspects of this management is determining the turnover ratio, which allows a store to maintain demand while not accumulating meaningless stock, so two coordinates are required: control and optimization.

Control. When we refer to the stock of goods it is related to the filter we want to use: area, type, time interval, selling price, etc.

Optimization. An ideal inventory management scenario is to place all the stocks you buy in a systematic way. In this way, you achieve a complete stock rotation.

As a result, a company that manages to place the majority of its acquired stock in a systematic way, properly interprets market needs, and does not make unnecessary purchases, can always allocate resources to other areas of the company.

How can you improve inventory management in times of crisis?

Crises strike with little warning. And, for any business, it is necessary to develop and manage protocols for responding quickly when confronted with an unexpected situation.

Here’s what you need to know about the inventory of your goods before and during the crisis:

  • Always measure performance using clear indicators / KPIs and objectives.
  • Inventory should be managed based on risk.
  • Reduce your inventory level and generate cash flows by eliminating as many old, latent, or outdated products as possible.
  • If possible, try to reduce the offer so that there are fewer products in the catalog and remove those that aren’t necessary.
  • Increase your flexibility by making payments with much shorter deadlines in some periods to be much more receptive to an increase or decrease in demand.
  • Pay close attention to market signals so that you can react quickly and revise your sales and purchasing forecasts.

Conclusion

Any compromise in one of the above factors has a direct impact on delivery time and can thus lead to stock depletion or overstock. It is critical to focus your time and resources on what is important in supply chain inventory management. Furthermore, the existing automation in specialized warehouses will save you time, allowing you to focus more on making decisions about your online store.