Tips for taking control of inventory management

Managing a warehouse is not an entirely easy task for small business owners. Trends come and go and it has probably happened that you have had a whole bunch of products in a certain color or size that you had to sell because they simply did not wear out. However, it is also common for companies not to keep track of their inventory due to the fact that the inventory does not really keep up. However, there are ways to remedy this and get the most out of your stock and thus your investment in your business.

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Create a routine for the inventory

A warehouse costs money for the company and is a great investment. Therefore, it is an extra pity if, due to the inventory, you do not get the most out of what you bought. Taking inventory means creating a register of the goods that are in your company's warehouse. The most common is to inventory once a year and if you have an inventory or inventory system, each item only needs to be inventoried once. If you have a smaller inventory, it's easier to keep track of the products and that's important to do because you can customize what you order in to what you already have. For example, if you notice that some items do not go as fast, you do not need to order as much of them next time.

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Stay on top of trends

An important part when it comes to inventory is to try to avoid tying up too much money in it because the risk of buying things that don't work out is that you have to sell them out later, or in the worst case not get them sold at all. By keeping track of your market's various trends, you can reduce that risk because you can control what you order in based on what is likely to sell the most.

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Ask customers what they want

Another tactic to not fill the warehouse with unnecessary products is to ask your customers what they want. You can do that in slightly different ways. If you have a physical store, you can ask customers at the checkout. It's an effective way to take the temp on demand. If you have an online shop, you can choose to ask the question at some point in the payment process on the website, or you can email the customer afterwards.

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Look back and learn from it

You can also learn from your own history. If you look backwards on orders and purchases, you can quickly see different patterns. For example, many products are seasonal, which means that they are eaten more or less in different seasons. Then you know if you have to cover up with a slightly larger stock of something for the winter and when you can reduce the order.