Dead stock is like a boat anchor dragging on the seabed, holding the business back. The only way to fix a handle a dead stock problem is to deal with it.
Start by understanding the scope of the problem. How much dead stock is there, what is its value and how old is the stock Retailers need to be able to answer these questions easily. If they can't, they need to get system in-store which enable the questions to be answered on an on-going basis.
A good point of sale system will easily identify dead stock. Identifying the problem is two thirds of the battle.
Once stock that is under-performing and had been identified, it is time to act. Here are six ideas for quitting dead stock and still making some money from it
Move the stock. It may be that a stock item is dead because it is in a dead location. The first step of dealing with dead stock is to move it to a better location. There are situations where a product range has been moved four or five times before the sweet spot location was found.
Change the price. Price may be the problem. It is natural for retailers to this that an item may be too expensive. There are situations where an increase in price has helped it sell. Pricing a product too low can make take it off the radar of some shoppers.
Hold an off-site sale. Group together with some other nearby businesses, hire a community hall, and run a massive sale. Choose the days of the sale carefully - you want maximum attendance. Talk to your suppliers and supplement your dead stock with items they want to quit - be sure to mark this up to deliver a healthy margin. Distribute flyers to homes in the area. Promote the sale to your own customers are a week or two leading up to the sale. Make it sound like this is a once in a year opportunity. Invite a community group to run a food stall.
Ask the supplier to take it back. If the stock which is not performing was recommended by a supplier, invite them to take it back and provide you with a full credit in return for your continued commitment to them. Good suppliers will do this as long as the stock is in a merchantable form.
Sell the stock on eBay. There are many retailers who successfully use eBay for quitting stock which is not selling in-store. eBay is not for all stock items, experiment and find out if it works before putting too many items online. Trust that the eBay auction process will find the right price for the products.
Hold an occasion sale. The good old stocktake sale or mid-year sale or anniversary sale - create an event which is unique to your business at a time when there is little sale competition around. Theme the business appropriately. Have a limited number of items as loss leaders and leave the majority of the product at the usual price. The key is to dress the store for the sale, bring out the dead stock and present it in a different light.
Dead stock will remain dead unless it is moved in some way. By engaging with it, retailers often find that it is not as dead as it may have seemed.