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Returns, overstocks and out-of-stocks cost retailers mightily.<\/p>\n
Research released recently from IHL Group found that merchants lost $1.75 trillion annually due to those three situations.<\/p>\n
Retailers still questioning the importance of data analysis and of full insight into sales channels \u2014 e-commerce, brick and mortar and mobile \u2014 take note.<\/p>\n
The study, entitled, \u201cRetailers and the Ghost Economy: $1.75 Trillion Reasons to Be Afraid,\u201d outlines just how much these common faced problems cost merchants:<\/p>\n
The top three troubles?<\/p>\n
Number one, internal process failures (representing $284.9B in losses); number two, personnel issues ($259.1B), and number three, data disconnects or systems that are not integrated ($222.7B).<\/p>\n
In total, those trouble spots amount to 11.7% of annual retail revenue on average.<\/p>\n
So, a $25 billion retailer that streamlines processes, becomes more efficient and uses analytics to make informed purchasing decisions, can expect an additional $2.9 billion added to the bottom line.<\/p>\n
According to Greg Buzek, president of IHL Group:<\/p>\n
Retailers all too often focus on a variety of ways to drive revenue and increase comparable year-over-year sales, but retailers can realize huge gains by addressing opportunities that are in hand and slipping through enterprise fingers.<\/em><\/p>\n Merchants must dedicate time and effort into selecting the proper inventory management systems to fit their needs.<\/p>\n Planning is essential to ensure all parts of the supply chain are supported and that capital isn\u2019t wasted in procuring unwanted inventory or systems.<\/p>\n Omnichannel insights offer retailers tremendous growth potential, but if inventory is not tracked properly, data analysis is skewed.<\/p>\n For example, POS software can highlight the top 20 sellers for a business, allowing purchasers to buy more of the products that are most profitable.<\/p>\n Conversely, POS software can inform a merchant which products are not moving, so they can be cleared out and room made for more popular merchandise.<\/p>\n It can be a long process, and in retail especially, time is money.<\/p>\n But the investment will pay off \u2014 to the tune of some 11.7%.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Returns, overstocks and out-of-stocks cost retailers mightily. Research released recently from IHL Group found that merchants lost $1.75 trillion annually due to those three situations. Retailers still questioning the importance of data analysis and of full insight into sales … Continue reading