On-shelf availability: How planograms help retailers reduce stockouts

Detailed summary

Planograms help reduce shelf-level stockouts caused by insufficient shelf capacity or deviations from the approved store layout. They don't fix late deliveries, forecast...

GUEST OPINION: Planograms help reduce shelf-level stockouts caused by insufficient shelf capacity or deviations from the approved store layout. They don't fix late deliveries, forecast errors, or low inventory, which require supply chain solutions.

On-shelf availability (OSA) shows whether a product is on the shelf when a shopper looks for it. It differs from inventory availability: a product can be in the warehouse or backroom and still be missing from the shelf. For the shopper, that is a stockout, and for the retailer, it means a potentially lost sale.

An empty shelf does not always mean the product is out of stock across the chain. Often, the product is available in the backroom or recorded in the inventory system but has not reached the shelf. Planograms help address these store-level causes:

● Not enough facings. A fast-moving product gets too little shelf space and sells out between replenishments.

● Too much space for slow movers. Products that sell only a few units a week occupy space that could be used for faster-selling items.

● Case packs do not fit shelf capacity. The shelf cannot hold a full delivery unit, so some products remain in the backroom instead of being available to shoppers.

● The shelf no longer matches the plan. After promotions and resets, stores may drift from the approved planogram, while replenishment decisions still assume the original layout.

A planogram defines how many facings each product gets and how many units the shelf can hold. Three checks help improve on-shelf availability:

The plan also has to reach the shelf. Stores need access to the latest version, and headquarters needs confirmation that the layout has been implemented correctly. Without this check, replenishment decisions may rely on a layout that no longer exists in the store.

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