ATLANTA — Concerns over store inventory levels have been mounting since tariffs were put in place in April, according to a new report from GreyOrange, a warehouse inventory and store management software company.
In a survey of U.S. middle and senior retail managers, 25% of which represented home and lifestyle stores, about three-fourths have witnessed an increase in stockouts or empty shelves, with nearly one-third (59%) conceding its harder to keep stores replenished.
The impact on customers has resulted in several behavioral changes, including more people shopping earlier for key events such as back-to-school and holidays, customers cutting back on overall spending and increased angry customer interactions because of stock location issues. Within the home/lifestyle sector, the Eye on Inventory report noted store managers dealt with an average of 18 angry customers per month, which was tied with food/grocery and specialty for the highest number.
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Home/lifestyle retailers also were 1.7 times more likely to say their customers are spending less than spending more, and 81% have lost sales because they couldn’t locate stock quickly enough.
“We see a lot of managers operating with false confidence in their inventory visibility,” said Troy Siwek, general manager of gStore by GreyOrange. “They underestimate how often products go missing on the sales floor because they don’t always hear about it. A customer might not ask for help if an item isn’t where it should be. Most of the time, they will just walk out.”
Labor shortages are adding to store productivity issues, the report found, as about half (51%) of store managers have reduced their workforce in the past six months. The layoffs are attributed to budget cuts (59%) and low sales (42%). Poor sales impacted home/lifestyle retailers harder than the total group, however, with 59% citing that as the reason for staff cuts.
“The less help managers have around the store, the easier it is for routine tasks to slip,” said Siwek, “whether that’s restocking a shelf or helping a customer locate an item.”
Tasks most often skipped at home/lifestyle stores were restocking shelves (59%), cleaning and organizing (43%), inventory audits (54%), employee training (48%) and customer assistance (39%).
On a more positive note, retailers do expect to be ready for the holidays, with senior managers (55%) expressing more assurance than middle managers (42%). Siwek attributed this confidence in part to retailers who have shored up their supply chains in the past few months. “They’re hoping those efforts will resolve their inventory issues in time for the holidays.”
The Eye on Inventory report surveyed 500 middle or senior managers 18 or older working at U.S. retail stores. The research was conducted by Censuswide between July 16 and 28.
