Having access to an enormous and efficiently structured warehouse can be an absolute godsend. Unfortunately, the vast majority of smaller to medium-sized stores are limited to rather confined stockrooms. It’s no secret that stockroom efficiency has a direct impact on overall business performance, which is why it’s a good idea to occasionally revisit and rethink the way things are done.
If your stockroom is particularly small, it’s natural to assume that making any big differences would be impossible. Nevertheless, there’s always room for improvement and enhanced efficiency – consider the following helpful tips as a starting point:
1. First and foremost, think about your storeroom as a floor to ceiling storage and logistics facility. High quality shelving in conjunction with sturdy stepladders could make an enormous difference when it comes to making the best use of all available space.
2. Always be sure to keep a close eye on old items and those that for whatever the reason simply are not selling well. If there is anything in your store whatsoever that isn’t particularly popular and therefore isn’t doing your business any real favours, consider making efforts to sell-off or to discard it.
3. In terms of organisation, one of the most critical tips of all is that of ensuring that your most popular and frequently sold items are kept in an area that is easy to access. And on the other end of the scale, items that you rarely sell can be positioned in areas that are slightly less convenient.
4. Consider colour-coding your storage room with different coloured shelving for different product ranges. This will ensure it remains consistently easy for employees to know exactly where to look for the items they require at a glance.
5. Be extremely strict and enforce strong discipline when it comes to general tidiness and housekeeping in your stockroom. All waste and rubbish should be immediately taken to the appropriate outdoor receptacles, unnecessary tripping hazards should not be tolerated and nor should your stockroom be used for temporary storage of employees’ personal property.
6. Designate a specific area of the warehouse for paperwork of administration, in order to prevent files, documents and other bits and pieces ending up all over the place.
7. Go over your current product ordering and storage procedures in order to determine whether or not you are keeping too much of any given items on hand. If you can get into the habit of only ever maintaining the stock you need, your stockroom will be a much easier place to manage.
8. Try to remember that the type of shelving or storage racks you use in your storeroom will make the biggest difference of all when it comes to efficiency and ease of operation. If you haven’t considered an upgrade in a while, it might be worth seeing what’s available.
9. Last but not least, it is also worth grabbing a pencil and piece of paper in order to brainstorm ideas for a new stockroom layout. Think about accessibility, walking routes, entry points, exits, access to popular items and so on.
