Online Retailers Have An Inventory Problem

Not having the items customers want in stock may be costing online retailers up to $22 billion a year in the consumer goods segment alone, according to a new study from the Grocery Manufacturers Association. That report showed that out-of-stock rates for e-commerce purchases of consumer products are nearly twice what occurs in physical stores. And while the more frequent responses to the discovery that your first-choice online seller doesn’t have precisely what you’re seeking involve picking something similar instead, more than 31% of the time, such customers head to another retailer — digital or brick-and-mortar — or just cancel their purchase completely. “This is one of the first studies on online availability after previous reports over the past decade studying on-shelf availability and its effects on consumer purchasing patterns,” said Keith Olscamp, a GMA director of industry affairs and collaboration, in a press release. “The findings should encourage retailers and brands to collaborate and enhance online availability in the fast-growing area of online retail.” Read more at The Motley Fool.