Monday, September 20, 2010

Wegmans Inventory Policy

Wegmans Supermarket

Wegmans inventory policy is a simplified procedure.  There is no basic formula for handling inventory.  Inventory is managed based upon the current sale rate of a specific item and the current market value.  Wegmans used to keep backstock on all of their items however to cut carrying costs and to make more room in the back warehouse, they no longer keep back up inventory.  This is benificial by allowing wegmans to manage what is on the shelf and when to order when the product is low. 


Example of a Wegmans Market Warehouse
                                             
This process is very similar to the Continuous Review System but different by not keeping a safety stock.  Wegmans has orders come in every  day and everything that comes in is put right on the shelf for sale.  This is an example of an off the truck, ready to go procedure.  This policy works for a high sale rate store but smaller stores that do not move products frequently would not be benificial with this policy.  As an example, take for instance Wegmans is having a sale on WEGMANS soup.  This product being that it is on sale is going to move quick.  It is monitored hourly to maintain the availability of the soup.  If the soup is running low, Wegmans checks the sale rate of the soup and if it is moving fast, an order is placed for the next day delivery.  This ensures that there is always enough soup on the shelf.  There are also other factors that Wegmans considers such as anticipation for upcoming events/holidays and forecasted weather events.


Wegmans during a busy shopping day
                                          
Should a weather event not happen, the extra stock will still be available on the shelf and the reorder rate for it would not be as frequent.  Once again this type of inventory policy is good for a fast paced high selling store.  Wegmans policy helps maintain inventory costs by almost eliminating carrying cost except for the transportation cost which are still minimal due to interstore purchasing and product shipping.


Wegmans grocery transportation truck

For more information please visit:

Wegmans.com

or contact Wegmans directly

Wegmans.com/contact

Team 2 Wegmans

Wegmans is a supermarket chain with more than 75 stores spread throughout New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia. Wegmans is a unique supermarket because it is a lot bigger than most other supermarkets. They offer a very large variety of foods and in many stores, there is a sit in Market Cafe to eat in. Wegmans has appeared in a magazine's "100 best companies to work for" list and has been in the top 10 for the past eight years. Wegmans supermarkets have everything you need on your shopping list all in one stop and at great prices!