Survey Reveals Automation will Alleviate Inventory Problems for Retailers

Bossa Nova conducted a survey recently that revealed retailers’ inventory issues are one of their main causes of lost profit. In fact, the majority of corporate retail professionals admitted that inaccurate inventories in total account for more lost revenue than theft.

“Inventory accuracy is a never-ending challenge for retailers,” said Martin Hitch, Bossa Nova co-founder and chief business officer. “Bossa Nova’s mission is to help retailers understand what’s happening in their stores and more specifically on their shelves. Our data is ground truth for the store and enables retailers to transform store operations, influencing everything from the flow of goods, to the product replenishment process and ultimately, to the customer shopping experience.”

Despite nearly all survey respondents admitting to some kind of constant inventory problem, only 33 percent felt that keeping track of inventory on shelves was an effective use of employee time. Instead much of their time is spent filling out-of-stock holes on shelves and pulling items forward.

Almost 75 percent of retailers felt that inventory forecasting was a constant struggle that left them with too much or too little supply to meet demand. Price inaccuracy and an inability to track inventory through the supply chain has led to unbalanced P&L reports and potential lost sales, respectively.

In light of all these issues, retailers feel that there is a solution, and that is a greater presence of technology in their stores. Through the introduction of robots alongside current employees, retailers believe that productivity (76%) and inventory accuracy (74%) would increase, and lost profit would be alleviated. Importantly as well, retailers felt that current employees would welcome their new automated colleagues into the workplace with open arms.