How Do Grocery Stores Know When to Restock?
Have you ever been in a grocery store with some shelves beginning to look low on product? Or does your grocery store seem magically full at all times? Either way, it may get you thinking about how the stores know when to restock.
Restocking can be a complicated process, with stores trying to restock at the best times, but also making sure products are available to customers. Most grocery stores have this broken down into a seamless process (most of the time). Here is how grocery stores know when to restock:
Past Sales
Like many other retail stores, grocery stores base their ordering and restocking on what people have historically bought. Basing future orders and stocking on what people usually buy seems like a safe bet for a grocery store. For example, if a grocery store is consistently selling out of milk on Saturdays and Sundays, it makes sense to order more milk and make sure it is fully stocked with extra in the back to put out on the weekends.
In addition, if there are some products that simply don’t sell, it can be a signal to stop stocking that particular product. With a close eye on local sales, as well as an eye on general supermarket news, stores can keep track of what sells and what doesn’t and in what quantities, so that they can restock appropriately.
Future Events
While past sales can be a great indicator of what to restock and when, future events can also play a role in what grocery stores have in stock. Large events and major holidays generally have food traditions associated with them, so grocery stores need to stock according to what will be in demand for those particular days.
For example, grocery stories in the United States will need to increase their stock of turkeys and canned pumpkin leading up to Thanksgiving, and they will need to increase their stock of chicken wings and snack foods before the Super Bowl. This holds true for many national holidays and events, as well as religious holidays that the store’s customer base celebrates.
Future events can be an important indicator of what should be stocked at the grocery store during certain dates and specific times of the year.
Time of Day
As far as the day to day restocking of items on the shelves, unless some high demand item has run out and needs to be immediately restocked, more stores stick to restocking their shelves either later in the evening or early in the morning.
Stores choose these times in order to avoid disrupting shoppers during peak shopping times during the day. That way, products are restocked daily, making everything available for shoppers when they need it, but restockers are not disturbing shoppers while they are shopping.
As you can see, there is a science to knowing what to restock, as well as how much to restock and when. From past sales to future events, it is important for stores to anticipate the demand of certain products and get those products out on the shelves without disturbing shoppers. More
