Dead stock
What is dead stock?
Dead stock is stock you still hold that has stopped selling. You’ve paid for it, it’s on the shelf, and the cash in it can’t be spent on anything else until it moves. There’s no official cut-off, but 90 days with no sale is a common point to start looking.
How long before stock counts as dead?
You choose. A shorter period catches a problem sooner, but it also flags products having a quiet spell. A longer one flags fewer, and the ones it flags are more surely stuck.
Our calculator and guides use 90 days. Verity’s own reports start at 180 days, and you can set them to 30, 90, 180 or 365 days to suit what you sell.
What counts, and what doesn’t
| The stock | Is it dead stock? |
|---|---|
| In stock, no sale in 90 days, and you’ve had it longer than that | Yes |
| Added in the last 90 days, no sale yet | Not yet: it’s new |
| Out of season, sold well last season | Not yet: judge it over a full year |
| Still selling, but more than a year of stock | No: it’s excess stock |
| Sold out | No: there’s no cash in it |
Seasonal stock is the one to watch. A winter coat with no sale since March isn’t dead in October, it’s waiting for winter. If you sell by the season, look back a full year.
Is dead stock the same as excess stock?
No. Dead stock has stopped selling. Excess stock still sells, only too slowly: you hold more than a year of it. They want different decisions. Dead stock is a discount, a bundle or a write-off. Excess stock is a reason to stop reordering and let it run down.
What do I do about it?
- Find out how much it is. The calculator gives an estimate from three numbers, and your exports give the exact figure.
- Decide what happens to each product. Start with which stock to discount first. A bundle, a return to the supplier or a write-off are the other ways out.
See dead stock listed line by line in the tour, on an example shop.