Prepare for peak season with inventory management best practices

A quick review of 2023 holiday sales proves this sentiment. In 2023, ecommerce holiday retail sales hit $254 billion, with Cyber Monday alone recording a historic $12 billion in revenue. It proves ecommerce stores can mint money during peak season if they’re well prepared. 

However, if you’re not prepared, peak season challenges such as supply chain disruptions, managing excess order volumes, and satisfying lofty customer expectations will cripple your operations.

That’s why every ecommerce brand and fulfillment provider should follow best practices to help them meet peak season’s demands efficiently. That’s why we’ve put together this guide discussing top inventory management best practices you can observe to prepare for peak season demand adequately.

Forecast demand with precision

Demand forecasting is critical, especially during peak season, as it helps avoid overstocking and understocking. With accurate demand forecasts, you purchase the right amount of inventory to meet projected seasonal demand. Here’s how to accurately forecast peak season demand:

Historical data analysis

By analyzing sales data from previous peak seasons, brands can identify recurring patterns and trends, such as the volume of products purchased on certain days and the average amount of inventory left over after the peak season. Deep analysis of historical sales data offers data-backed insights critical for accurate demand forecasts.

Logiwa’s analytics tools help analyze sales data and create customized reports and dashboards displaying peak season data relevant to demand forecasting. Our analytics tools use artificial intelligence to analyze and compartmentalize data, giving you customized insights for forecasting peak-season demand. 

Real-time insights

Real-time inventory insights help warehouse managers track and adjust inventory levels throughout the supply chain. Monitoring inventory levels in real-time lets managers spot potential challenges like overstocks and understocks early and address solutions in advance.

Real-time inventory tracking is easier with a fully integrated fulfillment management system (FMS) that goes beyond legacy WMS. Logiwa IO connects online stores with other ecommerce platforms and automatically syncs inventory and order level data. 

Tracking inventory levels across all online sales channels helps businesses optimize stock levels to satisfy changing peak season demand. This way, there won’t be any surprise stockouts or stock excess inventory. 

Supplier collaboration

Sharing peak season inventory forecasts with suppliers enables them to prepare better to satisfy high-volume demand. A reliable fulfillment management system (FMS) like Logiwa IO can integrate with your supplier’s system to enable them to track your inventory levels in real-time.

Optimize inventory levels

With automated peak season inventory management, it’s easier to prioritize stocking high-demand seasonal items across all inventory locations. Using Logiwa’s AI-driven FMS, ecommerce brands can master inventory forecasting by using methods like establishing safety stock and setting optimal reorder levels. 

AI job optimization uses AI technology to review data like stock levels, shipping info, pick routes, and order details. It then uses this information to improve picking and packing by automatically creating tasks in the warehouse.

Supplier collaboration also promotes efficient communication between a brand and its suppliers. If they foresee potential supply chain disruptions, they can communicate early so that the business can relay the information to customers and find quick mitigation strategies. 

Enhance warehouse layout and processes

Peak season inventory management isn’t only about optimizing inventory levels. It also includes optimizing warehouse layout and using the space optimally. 

Efficient use of your warehouse directly impacts fulfillment operations performance, especially in peak season when operations are in high gear. Logiwa can help you implement these three concepts for warehouse optimization: 

• Warehouse layout optimization: B2B and DTC fulfillment warehouses face ongoing challenges with efficient space use, especially as their inventories grow. In the U.S., just a 5% increase in inventory could mean an extra 700 million to 1 billion square feet of warehouse space.
• Labor standards management: Review staff workloads, automate repetitive tasks, and cross-train employees to manage peak demand efficiently. Consider temporary staffing to alleviate labor-related bottlenecks during high demand.
• Automation integration: With Logiwa FMS, you can speed up warehouse operations by implementing automated picking and packing and integrating robotics and automation tools.

Strengthen technology and automation

Warehouse technology, such as inventory automation, helps warehouse managers fulfill brilliantly during peak season by facilitating seamless order processing. With the high-volume orders in peak season, it’s easier for fulfillment errors to creep in without automated workflows like inventory updates, order routing, walking path optimization, and shipping. 

Fortunately, Logiwa enables ecommerce brands to capitalize on technology by supporting real-time inventory tracking and management and workflow automation. Ideally, you should adopt these technologies before peak season to gain value quickly.

Refine shipping and delivery strategies

Shipping and delivery challenges are more common during peak season due to the sudden surge in fulfillment demand. But it’s no excuse to disappoint customers’ fulfillment expectations, particularly in the holiday season when orders are more time-bound. 

For instance, customers who order Christmas gifts expect to receive their packages well before the holiday. If you delay delivery, the package won’t satisfy customers’ emotional needs, and they may as well cancel the order. To avoid such unwanted frustrations, implement these strategies:

• Embrace multi-carrier shipping integration to offer flexible and fast shipping options. In case one carrier comes short, the others will deliver. 
• Distribute inventory across multiple fulfillment centers near popular customer locations to minimize shipping times and costs.
• Enhance reverse logistics to streamline returns so customers can return or exchange products easily..

Monitor performance with KPIs

Tracking warehouse key performance indicators (KPIs) like order accuracy, lead times, and returns in real-time can help maintain high-quality fulfillment standards in peak seasons. Logiwa WMS’s analytics feature facilitates KPI tracking for continuous improvement beyond peak season. 

Capitalize on peak season demand with Logiwa

Peak season is the busiest and most profitable time for ecommerce businesses. It’s also the biggest test of your ecommerce fulfillment flexibility and scalability. Logiwa IO gives you all the tools and technology to fortify your fulfillment network for peak season. From automating inventory management and seasonal inventory planning to demand forecasting and automating picking and packing, Logiwa has your back. 

Request a demo today to see how we can accelerate your peak-season preparedness and help you win big during popular shopping periods.
 

FAQs about peak season best practices