Look At Your Inventory From A Wide View

When I talk with potential new clients about POS software, the conversation always turns to how to control inventory in the simplest way. Trying to keep track of inventory by item level is next to impossible, unless you would like to be glued to the computer twenty four hours a day. We built our POS software where item levels are viewable, but the analytics are done by the department and class level. What departments and classes are trending up in sales? Which are heading down? How are the sales comparisons changing, as measured by the percentage of revenue each department and class contribute and their overall cost? Which vendors are my profitable ones or which ones I like to drink coffee with?

Have I been able to maintain my selling price and margins or am I keeping up my dollars at the expense of my bottom line? How are my sell thru percentages, turn rates and margins in each department and class as compared with other departments and classes. These numbers all come quick and automatically from the POS software retail stock ledger. You need to identify these trends quickly if you are to change your product mix, lower or raise your initial markups and change floor layout. The steps you take need to be factual, quick and easy to implement based on solid information from your POS software.