With over 25 years in the gift basket industry, I have seen businesses come and go, but in recent months during these tough economic times, I have seen an undeniable increase in businesses that are for sale or closing. Consumers still require baskets for a variety of reasons. How do you continue to survive and get consumers to spend their coveted dollars with you during this recession?
The gift industry is in a category all by itself. Many do not realize the amount of inventory required to offer the variety of gift baskets consumers desire, as well as the many additional items such as wrappers, ribbons, packaging, boxes, etc. all of that goes into designing and shipping a gift basket. It’s easy to go overboard when buying these items. We must resist buying too much to keep our spending in check. Things to keep in mind when purchasing inventory:
-Remember, when purchasing food products, you will want to monitor your inventory carefully. Don’t carry more than you can actually sell in a short period of time. You want to be able to offer the freshest product possible to your customer. Old and out-of-date inventory can be the end of your business, and having to discard excessive purchases on a regular basis can put you in the red very quickly.
-Keep track of where your suppliers are. Are they located within a one day shipping time? If so, you do not need to store these items. If you know you can replenish low inventory within a day, there’s no need to saddle yourself with a huge overhead. Although it may seem responsible to order in bulk to save on shipping, having a sustainable level of inventory is more important than saving a few bucks on shipping costs.
– Are the items you stock available from multiple vendors? Ask them to match the price.
-Keep a detailed and categorized inventory list so that when it’s time to re-order, you can order all the necessary stock from a specific supplier without forgetting anything, thus avoiding unnecessary additional shipping costs.
As gift basket professionals, it’s important that we monitor our results so we can offer beautiful gift baskets at a fair price. If a customer knows they can trust us to provide fresh gift baskets on a consistent basis, they will be able to retain these customers regardless of economic conditions. They will come to trust our reliability and will be happy to pass on the responsibility of receiving an eye-catching gift basket to family, friends and associates in a timely and affordable manner.