Four reasons why inventory liquidation is best left to the experts
Excess and aging inventory is a common problem of many companies. From lower revenue to a cluttered warehouse, your unsold inventory, if left unmanaged, can cause a significant, negative impact on your bottom line, logistics, and day-to-day operations.
In their desire to quickly solve this problem, some business owners decide to take matters into their own hands and liquidate their unsold inventory on their own.
Unfortunately, the process of liquidating your excess inventory is not as simple as it sounds. There are so many moving parts, such as the fluctuating economic value of consumer goods, changing customer behavior and preferences, and inflation, to name a few.
This is exactly why we think inventory liquidation is best left to the experts! Since liquidation is a process that can get complicated pretty quickly, we think it is best to involve a professional who knows the ins and outs of inventory liquidation for you to reap its maximum benefits.
What is liquidation, anyway?
Kenton (2023) explained that liquidation is a process of putting your excess items into good use, such as by selling your assets to clients in order to gain revenue. Businesses turn to liquidation when they are struggling to sell their products and they are determined to recover value from them. During the liquidation process, businesses typically sell their assets below their market value. The goal is to sell these items quickly, after all, and the lower the selling price of your goods, the more attractive they are to customers, and the higher the chances that they will be sold faster.
Now, putting your company’s assets up for sale is not as simple as holding a garage sale at home. If you are really serious about recovering the value of your assets, then partnering with a credible liquidation organization is the most logical step for you to take. Not only will it increase your chances of generating the most revenue out of your assets but it will also reduce your risk of earning less from your assets and encountering unwanted problems that you may potentially encounter if you handle your own liquidation.
Four reasons why you should leave inventory liquidation to the experts
Without further ado, here are the four reasons why you may want to consider letting the experts handle your inventory liquidation:
- You will get better liquidation results because of their expertise.
Many companies end up handling the liquidation of their own items, believing this will be cheaper and more efficient for their company’s growth. After all, these are their own products and they know how best to generate value from them.
But, do they?
A blog by Spoiler Alert (2022) revealed that most companies involved in consumer packaged goods (CPG) have a higher tendency to get poor results — recovering only 50% or less — -from their liquidation efforts due to poorly thought-out, in-house liquidation programs.
Here’s another alarming statistic: only 18% of companies think they have superior liquidation programs.
Source: Spoiler Alert. (2022). 6 Insights into liquidation and automation.
Liquidation experts have experienced handling the ins and outs of the whole liquidation process for various clients. Partnering with them will give your company less risk for costly mistakes and a higher chance of recovering maximum revenue out of your assets. Take note that there are also certain procedures regarding the liquidation process which only experts in this field can handle (and derive successful results from).
2. You can get better liquidation results with the experts’ use of advanced technologies such as AI and automation.
Let us remember that our world is constantly moving towards innovation and technological advancement. Liquidation, then, is not just about finding actual buyers and selling your items to them. To achieve greater success in your liquidation efforts, you may also want to utlilize strategies that deal with automation.
Some liquidation experts utilize state-of-the-art technology like AI tools and automation to deliver their services to their clients. That means you can also tap into these technologies — and reap their benefits — if you choose to partner with them. AI and automation can benefit your company by saving you from engaging in time-consuming processes and helping you determine which of your products are still in demand — all in a matter of minutes! With the help of AI machines, you can employ better management procedures that will assist your company in generating higher profits.
Need an example? Most companies in Japan receive better profits because of their use of AI machines that contribute to their efficient operations and management.
Of course, not all companies have the means to invest in their own AI tools and automation equipment. This is another benefit of partnering with a liquidation expert that uses these technologies: you don’t have to invest in your own AI tools, but you can still experience the rewards that they offer.
3. You will stress less as partnering with a liquidation expert is more convenient. Given that liquidation is complex in nature, it is no surprise that many business owners tend to mismanage this process. Add to that the fact that they are not experienced in this field and they already have a never-ending pile of tasks to ensure their business runs smoothly. It is no wonder why business owners end up mismanaging or getting a poor result from their in-house liquidation activities!
Can you imagine? On top of your day-to-day tasks, you still need to check and sort which of your items can be sold, research how much you should sell them for, look for buyers, and organize the actual selling event? Surely, there are other tasks that you need to prioritize more in your business!
Yes, liquidation is a time-consuming and complicated process that requires regular coordination between your in-house sales, operations, marketing, and finance teams. If you want to just focus on the more critical aspects of your business, you may want to consider partnering with a liquidator who can help lighten your load and take this huge task off your plate.
Here’s a fair warning: the complication of handling your inventory liquidation on your own could lead to insolvency, insufficient cash flows, and worse, total bankruptcy. This applies particularly for businesses that have no knowledge or prior experience with liquidating their inventory.
4. You can gain more connections (and potentially sales) in less time. Forming an alliance with a liquidation expert can have a bigger return to your company’s growth and development.
With a liquidation partner on your side, you may find it easier and faster to sell your assets. Why? Because liquidation companies already have a network of buyers who may be interested in your items!
Of course, there is nothing wrong with trying to establish your own network of buyers. Just remember that in order for you to build a strong and stable network, you would have to attend various events and networking sessions. Perhaps more importantly, you need to remember that building a strong relationship with your buyers will take time.
So if you want to save time and increase your chances of selling your items faster, consider letting the experts handle your inventory liquidation. Not only will this save you precious time which you can allocate to your other tasks but it can also be an opportunity for you to obtain new clients for your business!
Let the experts handle it
If you have items you are struggling to sell and you know that your resources — whether that’s time, knowledge about the liquidation process, manpower, or all of the above — is very limited, then it may be best to just let an experienced liquidation partner help you in recovering value from your inventory.
Partnering with a liquidation expert can give you better liquidation results because of their expertise and technology, lessen your stress, and widen your network while generating the revenue you hope to achieve from your excess inventory and assets.