2009 ORWM Outdoor Specialty Retailer Seminars Inventory Management: The process Is More Important Then The Technology January 23, 2009 Jay Townley The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC

Inventory Management: The process Is More Important Then The Technology Inventory Management is a collective term for eleven store operating functions Summary What I Want You To Do Today & Tomorrow Q&A

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Inventory Management: The process Is More Important Then The Technology Inventory Management = eleven store operating functions that are a part of the Complete Retail Process, #4 on the list of five ways to grow your business. …the consistent steps your store follows in providing an exceptional retail shopping experience, every time! Part of the Process…is having what your customers want, when they want it.

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 1. Merchandise Assortment Planning Establish a planning process for selecting,stocking, displaying and marketing all of the Stock Keeping Units you sell…by season. –Pricing policy –Inventory turn goals –Gross Margin Return On Inventory GMROI

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 2. Sales forecasting at the category and SKU levels Your merchandise assortment plan will require sales forecasts, as does your annual business- financial plan. –Units and Dollars Get your suppliers, managers and staff and past sales history involved in the forecasting process

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 3. Open to buy, or OTB Analysis and Management Available with some POS systems Consulting services available…category management Never re-order a SKU that isn’t selling at retail! SROR = 29% of Retailers have OTB

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 4. Purchasing and generating and issuing purchase orders Documents the terms and conditions Available with some POS Systems –SROR = 82% of stores have POS Systems and 24% are booking orders electronically Integral part of OTB, cash-flow & AP Go to a stationery store and purchase manual forms!

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 5. Use of scanning technology from door to door SROR = 82% of stores have POS systems and 24% are booking orders electronically Scan in at receiving, and Scan out at point- of-sale. RF technology

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 6. Regular and consistent education of staff to ensure complete working knowledge of the store POS system Teach your staff how it works Educate your staff about what your POS system is capable of doing and what information and metrics it can generate POS vendor support

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 7. Retail process that assures consistent staff use of every aspect of the store POS system Teach you staff how you want them to use the system = Customer information Your POS system becomes a very powerful part of your stores complete operating process…when staff is educated and trained in all the modules and the system is fully utilized

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 8. Retail process that specifies what metrics will be tracked and regularly generated by the store systems…weekly! What are the Critical Numbers to your business –Sales, Operating Margin, Total Expenses, Realized GM by categories and Inventory, Inventory turns & GMROI…Net Operating Profit

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 9. Store operating policies and procedures that document and fully support the inventory management process Store Operations Manual…your road map to growth! Don’t keep this stuff in your head… The difference between not growing and growing…could be simply writing it down!

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 10. Store management that consistently and uniformly supervises, guides and helps staff adhere to store operating policies and procedures In other-words, lead by example…by adhering to your own operating policies and procedures What, Why and How

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Eleven Store Operating Functions 11. Store management that consistently educates the staff in the store retail process, including inventory management Develop an annual staff training and education plan that goes beyond rep clinics on how to sell stuff Staff buy-in and support for your store retail process is critical to success and growth

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC SUMMARY At the end of the day…it’s not the computers or software, or technology, it is your documented store operating process, consistent management leadership and ongoing staff education that makes possible more profitable Inventory Management that will help your business grow!

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Inventory Management: The Process Is More Important Then The Technology! What I Want You To Do Today & Tomorrow Write down your thoughts and ideas for developing or improving your merchandise assortment planning. Include what you are going to do to develop and improve your sales forecasting. If you don’t already use OTB, write down what you plan to do to implement OTB this quarter.

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Inventory Management: The Process Is More Important Then The Technology! What I Want You To Do Today & Tomorrow If you are not using a formal purchasing system – write down your thoughts on establishing one. If you are using door-to-door scanning, write down your ideas for improvements…and if your not, your thoughts on implementation.

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Inventory Management: The Process Is More Important Then The Technology! What I Want You To Do Today & Tomorrow If you don’t have a Store Operating Manual, write down your thoughts and ideas for developing one this quarter. Write down your thoughts and ideas for improving your staff education plan and program…and if you don’t have one, what your thoughts are about establishing one.

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Inventory Management: The Process Is More Important Then The Technology! What I Want You To Do Today & Tomorrow Write down your ideas for leading your store inventory management process, and making your leadership and that of your managers consistent throughout the year! –Store Operating Manual –Staff education plan and program

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC When you have minutes at your computer, take the OIA Outdoor Specialty Retail Survive Or Thrive Assessment Survey by visiting What I Want You To Do Today & Tomorrow

The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC Q & A Thank You! Jay Townley Partner The Gluskin Townley Group, LLC