ASK THE EXPERT: COULD TOO MUCH INVENTORY BE IMPEDING SALES?

Q: I have a lot of inventory, but my sales have been sluggish recently.
Are you seeing this with your menswear clients, or could too much inventory actually be impeding sales?

A: Sales among our client stores have been strong so far this year. But we have noticed that stores that have older inventory are having a harder time selling.

Newness is the name of the game right now since many of our customers’ wardrobes are full after 4 years of buying. It takes something fresh and a little bit different to get them to pull the trigger.

What I would recommend is that you look at the age index of your inventory by class. The age index will tell you how much of your inventory has been bought in the last three months versus what has been sitting around for a long time.

We use this index with our clients when we are determining which areas may need more markdowns and promotions to clear goods.

Another strategy you can take is to rearrange your floor to put the newer items in more prominent positions. A last resort is to take the older items to a reseller.

Regular analysis of your inventory can help you improve turn rates, so inventory is moving. It also gives you a clearer view of where you need to take action to prevent getting stuck with a lot of older inventory.

Steve Pruitt is founder and Senior Consultant of Blacks Retail Analysis and Blacks Consulting. With over 30 years of experience, Steve is one of the most respected merchandise analysts in the industry. His specialty is apparel merchandising and he has worked with clients in every sector of this category. Email: steve@blksretail.com.