4 Biggest Challenges Faced by Every Grocery Store

Whether it’s a small, individually-owned grocery store or a large grocery chain, store owners ensure that their stores run smoothly, items are available, prices are competitive and customers are satisfied.

Owners of grocery stores constantly strive to meet customers’ demands. While sales and customer service goals are common with all retailers, certain purchase management challenges can hinder a grocery store’s chance of meeting its objectives.

There has been much consolidation in the grocery stores in recent years. Retailers, now are trying to do things in order to lead the competition. Nearly every survey consistently indicates what today’s customers are looking for in their shopping experience:

• Sell what your customers need and have it in stock when they want it.
• Make it easy for them to shop and find what they are searching for.
• Provide details they need to make a purchase decision.
• Have friendly, helpful staff available to make their shopping experience a pleasant one

Here are some common challenges that grocery owners face while meeting the afore-said expectations of customers-

Inefficient Purchase Process

It causes a lot of time wastage, and strain on the people who manage purchase process. Most often, inefficiency distress grocery stores that operate on a manual basis, but even automated companies also suffer.

Inefficiencies are everywhere and are most often found when orders are created or taken. Retailers need an efficient system in place such as Purchasing Manager app to efficiently manage products, orders, vendors and also take a 360-degree view of the entire purchase process.

Knowing the Inventory

Owners of grocery stores must understand the inventory inside and out. Apart from knowing what the product is, they should also know how often it’s delivered by the vendor and the most affordable quantity to order. Above all, the manager must know at all times exactly what is on hand, where it is located, and when it will be replenished.

Purchase order apps such as Purchasing Manager is an ideal solution for this solution. It enables retailers to create order list, adjust product volume, and share products with different vendors at a few taps.

Furthermore, retailers can review the shared order list anytime to anticipate next order, or update the status of current list as per the activity.

Cost-BenefitRatio

Grocery stores are always looking for ways to squeeze extra expenses out of every part of the profit and loss.  One of the places they squeeze is in logistics and Inventory. Every grocery store has products which are there in the store, but didn’t make it to the display shelf. Since retailers do not have a fair idea about what they have on hand, they end up ordering the sample products again instead of selling the in-stock products first.

Increasing Competition

With the emergence of the grocery store chains and supermarkets, it’s becoming more difficult for neighborhood grocery store owners to establish and survive in such competitive environment.

Efficient supply chain, deep insights of inventory, and quick order processing are the keys to survival. Purchasing manager is a wonderful app for retailers that streamlines purchase process and makes purchase management easy.