Are you losing track of bottles — or even cases — in liquor in your store? Do you have to explain to frustrated customers why their favorite vodka isn’t in stock? Does manually counting and recording your inventory take up valuable time in your day?
If any of this sounds familiar, then your store might be plagued by alcohol inventory mistakes.
Left unchecked, these missteps can put a big dent in your profits and bring down your customer satisfaction.
In this blog, we’ll share five of the most common alcohol inventory mistakes and how the right liquor store point of sale (POS) solution can help.
How Can a Liquor Store POS System Help With Alcohol Inventory?
Before we dive into specifics, let’s cover what exactly a liquor store POS system is — and how it can solve your inventory woes.
A liquor store POS system is a specialized tool that acts as the engine of your small business. It processes all of your transactions, analyzes your financial performance, and boosts your sales with key features like flexible promotions and a customer loyalty program.
Most importantly, your POS system monitors your inventory in real time. This critical tool can help you avoid countless alcohol inventory mistakes, making it effortless to keep your store stocked with the right bottles.
The 5 Most Common Alcohol Inventory Mistakes
Now that we’ve explored what a liquor store POS system is, let’s take a look at five common alcohol inventory mistakes, and how this tool can prevent them.
1. Not Having a Liquor Inventory Management System
The biggest alcohol inventory mistake you can make is not having any tools or strategies in place.
Keeping your liquor store well stocked is no easy feat — and you can’t do it alone.
Relying on a POS system with robust inventory management features can make a world of difference for your liquor store. The right software can save you time, make reordering effortless, and keep you informed about your inventory trends.
Related Read: What’s the Best Liquor Inventory System? 5 Best Solutions
2. Running Out of Your Customers’ Favorite Liquors
If a customer visits your store with a margarita in mind, they expect to find a wide selection of tequilas on your shelves.
But if they can’t find their favorite brand in the right size, you’ll lose a sale and see a dip in customer satisfaction.
Fortunately, the right tools and techniques can prevent this costly alcohol inventory mistake and ensure that you never run out of your bestselling liquors.
When you’re running low on a spirit, your POS system will give you a timely notification, allowing you to take action before your stock hits zero.
3. Overstocking Underselling Liquors
Is your storage room overflowing with excess inventory? That’s a clear sign that you’re ordering too much slow-moving inventory.
To take back your space and stock only what sells, we recommend using a POS system with an automated ranking feature.
This advanced tool shows you a ranked list of your items, giving you insights into which liquors are flying off your shelves and which ones are sitting still.
Equipped with this data, you’ll be able to make more informed decisions about what to stock and avoid alcohol inventory mistakes like overstocking.
4. Wasting Time on Purchase Orders and Receiving
As a small business owner, your time is the most valuable asset you have.
The precious hours in your day should be spent getting to know your customers and growing your business — not doing tedious paperwork.
That’s why you should rely on your POS system to manage your purchase orders and receiving.
The right POS system will detect when a particular spirit’s stock level drops below a certain threshold and automatically generate a purchase order for that item. When a fresh case of that liquor arrives at your store, your POS system will add the new inventory to your records, making the restocking process effortless.
This feature is a major time-saver, making it even easier to keep your store perfectly stocked.
5. Not Accounting for Seasonal Trends
An often overlooked aspect of liquor inventory management is keeping up with seasonal trends.
Your customers’ purchasing habits fluctuate throughout the year, transforming with the seasons. For example, you might see an uptick in the sales of mini bottles and tropical rums during the summer months, while in the winter, you’ll experience more demand for giftable wines and warm spirits like whiskey.
Not paying attention to these shifts can be a costly alcohol inventory mistake, but the right POS system can help you stay on trend by identifying how your customers’ preferences change over time.
Not only will this information help you stock your store strategically, but it will also help you plan effective promotions.
Related Read: Managing Seasonal Inventory for Your Liquor Store: 6 Steps to Success
Eliminate Alcohol Inventory Mistakes With Bottle POS
Are these alcohol inventory mistakes taking a toll on your liquor store?
Have no fear: Bottle POS is here to help.
Bottle POS is an all-in-one POS system designed by and for liquor store owners. Equipped with industry-specific features like case break inventory management, built-in age verification, and a sales-boosting customer loyalty program, Bottle POS has everything you need to take your small business to the next level.
See Bottle POS in action by scheduling a live demo today!
