Dead stock: finding it and clearing it out

There's a box in the back room that's been there since last spring. Nobody remembers ordering it. That's dead stock: products that have stopped selling, or never really sold, and are just sitting on shelves or in storage. Dead stock ties up cash, takes space from things that sell, and often loses value over time. Finding it is easy with your POS. Clearing it takes a plan.

Every store has some. The goal is to keep it small and deal with it regularly.

How do you find dead stock?

Start with your POS sales report.

Run a report of items sorted by last sale date or by units sold over a period. Look for items with zero or very few sales in the last 60 or 90 days.

Compare that list with what's actually on the shelf and in the back. Some items may show zero sales because they're out of stock, not because they don't sell.

Walk the store and the back room. Look for dusty products, faded packaging, and boxes that haven't been opened.

Check expiration dates on anything perishable. Items near their date are close to becoming dead stock.

Here's a hypothetical. Your POS shows 40 items with no sales in 90 days. Twelve are out of stock and need reordering. The other 28 are sitting on shelves. Those 28 are your dead stock list.

What does dead stock cost you?

More than the price on the invoice.

Cash. You paid for those products. That money isn't available for items that sell.

Space. A shelf full of slow items is a shelf that could hold fast sellers.

Time. Staff dust, face, and count items that never move.

Value loss. Packaging fades, seasonal items go out of season, and perishable items expire.

Here's a hypothetical. The 28 dead items have a total cost of $1,400. That's $1,400 that could have bought two weeks of your best-selling drinks, which would have sold and brought the cash back.

How do you clear it out?

There are several options. Pick the one that fits each item.

Mark it down. A clear discount sign on a small dedicated shelf or bin moves a lot of slow items. Price low enough to actually sell.

Bundle it. Pair a slow item with a fast seller. A slow snack flavor bundled with a popular drink at a small combo price.

Move it. Sometimes an item doesn't sell because it's in the wrong place. Try it at the counter or on an endcap, the display at the end of an aisle, for two weeks. Wikipedia's page on the endcap explains why those spots get attention.

Return it. Some suppliers accept returns or give credit for unsold items, especially if they're recent. Ask.

Donate it. Items that are still good but won't sell may be donated to a local organization. Check any rules that apply to donated food.

Write it off. Some items just need to go. Remove them, record the loss, and use the space for something better.

How do you prevent more dead stock?

Prevention beats clearing.

Order new products in small amounts first. Reorder only after they sell.

Order by sales data. Use your POS to see what actually moves.

Be careful with deals. A discount on a case of something that won't sell isn't a savings.

Review slow sellers monthly. A short list is easier to handle than a big pile.

Limit variety on slow categories. You may not need six flavors of an item that sells one flavor.

If you use NRS POS, check its sales reports by item and date. Learn more at NRS POS. For markdown signs, labels, and price tools, browse the label guns category and the office and school supplies category on NRS Marketplace.