A stockout loses sales; overstock ties up cash and creates waste. Good stock management means finding the middle ground — and that’s not just down to gut feeling.
The real cost of poor stock management
- Stockout: product unavailable = lost sale, disappointed customer, thinner menu.
- Overstock: cash tied up, space wasted, and above all expiry for fresh products.
Both often come from the same cause: orders based on intuition rather than numbers.
Threshold-based reordering (the simple method)
The classic method: a minimum stock triggers an order to return to a target stock. Simple and effective for steady products, but static — it doesn’t adapt to consumption swings.
Smart reordering (forecast-based)
More precise: the order is computed from real consumption and the supplier’s lead time.
Daily use = average consumption over a period
Projected stock = current stock − (daily use × supplier lead time)
Safety stock = daily use × safety days
To order = (target coverage) − projected stockThe result: you order the right quantity, at the right time, anticipating the stockout before it happens — without overstocking.
Stop thinking about it
FoodCostOS and StockZone offer smart reordering: pre-filled supplier orders, computed from your real consumption and lead times, to approve in one click. And because stock is connected to your POS in real time, your levels are always accurate.