Table Of Contents
Pre-Orders
Online Stores
Review Merchandise Data
Keep It Simple
Picture this: You're in charge of your local club's merchandise (perhaps by choice, or you've been persuaded or 'volun-told' as I like to call it). You have yet to learn what the club historically sells best or the products that everyone wants to have. You might be thinking, why do I need to know what sells best?
The answer: So you don't spend hundreds in 'dead stock'. You know those uniforms and merch that's been sitting in the club storeroom for years collecting dust because you can't seem to sell it? That's your dead stock.
Below are some ideas to help you avoid the 'dead stock' situation and identify what club members really want to buy and wear!
How To Avoid Dead Stock And Identify Popular Club Merchandise: Our Top 3 Recommendations
1. Pre-Orders
Pre-orders can be done via the club's main communication channels (Facebook group polls, email surveys or a good old fashion showing of hands). The idea here is that you are spreading the message of a new product the club is considering and sharing the artwork and pricing for that product to garner interest.
There's no point in a club creating new merchandise products if nobody wants to order them.
Pro-tip: Ensure you get your merchandise supplier to provide a mock-up of what it might look like and any sizing considerations in the product. At Cheeta, we can easily provide all that at no extra cost.
2. Online Stores
Many clubs have online stores to sell tickets to club events, pay membership fees and sell merchandise. If you have an online store, make sure you leverage it to sell your merchandise for you! Online stores are also fantastic for pre-orders!
The worst-case scenario is that a pre-order item doesn't sell as well as you wanted or hoped. All you have to do is refund members who did make a purchase.
Need an online store? Don't worry! Cheeta Teamwear can sort you out with a custom-built site for your club – completely free of charge, minus the credit card transaction fees. If you want to see an example of what our online stores look like, just click here to check it out.
The greatest advantage of online stores is that the club doesn't have to pay any money up-front for the merchandise! Your club members order and pay for their own merchandise and apparel.
3. Review Merchandise Data
Sounds a little overwhelming, right? Believe me, having an online store makes reviewing merchandise data much simpler! With an online store, you can generate simple sales data, such as the most popular product/sizing sold.
If you don't have an online store, it is still a relatively simple exercise – review any supplier invoices across recent seasons to see how many units you purchased and how many are left. Keep it simple! You might be surprised by what you find.
Keep It Simple
These above ideas are simple, nothing revolutionary there – but that's the whole point, right? Likely being a club volunteer reading this, you don't want something extremely time heavy when you already have limited time.
By implementing a change that might involve reducing wastage (dead stock), you will save both money and space around the club. It is the simple, easy wins that can make a big difference.
If you'd like to discuss these ideas in more detail with us, please don't hesitate to call us on 03 7017 1972 or reach out to us by clicking here.
