New Year Purchasing Tips

Turning your head towards spring is not an easy thing when you are up to your eyeballs in Christmas sales.  The smart retail buyer however, is doing just that; planning to replenish their store with a great new spring assortment.

Start out with replenishing fashion basics before you are tempted to bring in new looks.  If an item sold well before and works back with existing inventory, it probably is a good idea to replenish it so you can sell it again as well as selling it with coordinating merchandise.  Core merchandise is the backbone to business success. If it is seasonal however, move on and look for new merchandise that would tie back into existing merchandise.  All of our vendors have both season-less fashion basics and new introductions that always coordinate back with previous seasons.

Buy assortments with existing partners. These are the valued relationships that will help you continue to build your business.  Ask yourself the questions:  Are you getting a turn on their inventory?  Do you have enough merchandise of theirs to tell a confident story to your clients? Chances are that it is a sure bet to circle back to the vendors who are familiar with your needs.

Build Categories that are growing? If there are categories in your assortment that are successful, keep building these categories by fine tuning and adding on products that may not be covered currently.  For example: If you are stocking decorative pillows and only purchasing one color way or style, try adding a complimentary color or a coordinating style.  Again the consumer will be more confident to purchase if there are items to chose from that are “different but the same.”

Try inching into a new category. Risk is the mother of success so always trying something new is mandatory to keeping the direction of your merchandise moving forward.  Everyone at any time can try just one new thing to take an educated risk that will pay off.  Just make sure you have the threshold of pain for knowing it all could be marked down at the end of the season. Make sure the opportunity outweighs the risk.

Keep both lower and higher priced merchandise in your assortment. In order to make sales projections, there needs to be inventory turn as well as profit.  In order to do this, you have to balance both offering items that turn quickly at a lower price point and assortments that may be higher priced but offer value.  Particularly in a soft retail climate, quick turn on your inventory my not happen as readily and you won’t be able to pay the rent on inexpensive items alone.

More than anything, think about what you want your merchandise mix to convey to your customers. No matter what other retailers may be selling, it is your unique assortment that tells your story and builds your brand.