Safety stock, stockouts, and target inventory levels. The math behind how much to hold, what it costs you when you hold too much, and what it costs when you hold too little.
Every inventory risk is the same risk arriving at a different time: you committed cash to a forecast and the forecast was wrong. The six ways that bill lands, which one to accept on purpose, and how to size the rest.
· 7 min read
MOQ is the smallest quantity a supplier will produce or sell in one order. It is their constraint, not yours — so the real skill is deciding when to accept a buy larger than your forecast justifies, and pricing that decision in carrying cost rather than unit cost.
· 7 min read
A backorder is an order you have already accepted for stock you do not have. The useful question is not what it means but whether to keep taking it — which turns on your real lead time, what the customer does while waiting, and the channel you sold through.
· 6 min read
Stocky stops working after August 31, 2026. Purchase orders, stocktake history and cost data export cleanly. Suppliers do not export at all. Here is the order to do it in.
· 4 min read
Stocky stopped working on August 31, 2026. Shopify Admin took the purchase orders and transfers, and Sidekick now suggests reorders. What it still does not do, which tools remain, and when Admin alone is enough.
· 7 min read
A purchase order records what you agreed to buy, from whom, in what quantity and by when. Eight steps to create one, only two of which are decisions — and the reason an open order belongs in your plan, not only in your accounting system.
· 8 min read
Safety stock is the inventory you hold above the forecast to cover the weeks the forecast is wrong. How to size it from your own demand and lead-time variability, with a stated service level and a worked example.
· 10 min read
Cycle service level counts how often a replenishment cycle avoids a stockout. Fill rate counts the share of ordered units you shipped. Retail scorecards charge you on fill rate; most safety stock formulas are built on service level.
· 7 min read
Overall inventory turnover hides important patterns. Here's how to analyze turns at the product level to find your winners, losers, and opportunities for improvement.
· 5 min read
Not all SKUs deserve equal attention. ABC analysis helps you classify inventory by importance so you can focus planning efforts where they matter most.
· 6 min read
Managing inventory across multiple locations multiplies complexity but also opportunity. Here's how to allocate, balance, and optimize inventory across your distribution network.
· 6 min read
Days on hand, days of inventory on hand, days sales in inventory, DIO — four names for one number. The formula in each of its forms, a worked example, and how to find the floor your own lead time sets.
· 8 min read
Dead stock ties up cash and warehouse space, but aggressive clearance can hurt your core business. Here's how to reduce excess inventory strategically while protecting fill rates.
· 6 min read
Five safety stock formulas, run on the same SKU with the same service level, returning answers that differ by nearly eight times. Which one to use, what each one needs from you, and what each one quietly ignores.
· 9 min read
Safety stock is the buffer for variability. Cycle stock covers demand between deliveries. Target inventory is the level you order up to, and it contains both. How the three fit together, and how the reorder point is built from them.
· 6 min read
A stockout isn't just a missed sale—it's lost customers, damaged search rankings, and operational chaos. Here's how to calculate what stockouts really cost your business.
· 6 min read
Safety stock doesn't have to be complicated. Here's how to calculate the right buffer inventory for your business using straightforward formulas that actually work.
· 5 min read