Excess inventory: Why too little is worse than too much

Author: John Coorey

Excess inventory comes in all shapes and sizes. On the surface it seems like a good idea to minimise the amount of unsold stock as much as possible. In an ideal world you have nothing left over after your sales period, but in reality many vendors find themselves stuck with excess inventory that they struggle to sell. This can eat in to your bottom line and, if you are not careful, it can negate the valuable sales that you have made.

Unfortunately, contrary to instinct, too little excess inventory can be just as financially damaging as too much. If you make careful choices you can sell your leftover products for a reasonable return to minimise the amount of profit lost, but when you are dealing with very small quantities of products it can be hard to find stock buyers who are willing to pay any significant amount for your goods.

If you don’t have enough excess inventory, it’s hard to sell as an excess stock parcel

If you are left with a very small amount of excess inventory you may not be able to sell it at all, leaving you with a bigger loss than if you had a larger batch of product that you could sell at a small discount to a stock buyer. The worst-case scenario for most vendors is to be left with small quantities of several different types of items. Finding stock buyers for a pick-a-mix of different products is extremely tough and for most major retailers it will not be worth the effort of raising an order, entering the items into their system and processing the goods – even if you are selling at a very reasonable price. The products will simply be off the shelf too quickly to make the time commitment worthwhile.

Plan ahead to sell your excess inventory

Planning ahead can save you from this common problem and help you to identify whether or not you are likely to be left with a small amount of excess inventory. If you anticipate that you will not sell the entirety of your stock, act quickly and stop selling while you still have enough overstock to pass on to a professional stock buying company like Coorey & Co. We will buy all quantities of excess stock down to single pallets or cartons so you can minimise the hole in your profit caused by excess inventory.

Sell excess inventory fast using our service

If you have tried everything and still cannot sell your excess inventory, then it is probably a good idea to get in touch with us. We have been buying and selling surplus inventory for over 21 years from our Sydney warehouse. Sometimes we can buy your excess inventory straight away on the same day, and sometimes it takes a bit longer. It depends on what type of inventory surplus you have and the current state of the market.

If you have excess inventory, get in touch with us for a free consultation and we will give you a report on the state of the market. Call us on +61-2-9893 1899 or email to john@coorey.com to let us know more about your excess inventory.

Author: John Coorey
Managing Director