The Ultimate Guide to Offloading Excess Inventory: A Comprehensive Approach

Excess inventory, whether it's abandoned, closeout, overstock, or obsolete, can be a significant drag on a business. It ties up valuable capital, occupies valuable warehouse space you need for new goods arriving, and increases the risk of damage and obsolescence. We are going to discuss how you can have a comprehensive approach to effectively offload excess inventory including closeouts and surplus inventory, minimizing losses and maximizing returns, while getting rid of unwanted inventory and products you don’t want to deal with anymore.

1. Identify and Categorize:

• Accurate Inventory Assessment: Conduct a thorough overstock inventory audit to identify all excess stock.
  • Slow-moving inventory: Items with low sales velocity compared to historical averages. This can include overstocked toys, closeout housewares, excess inventory of tools and hardware, obsolete childrens products or closeout lawn and garden products.

• Obsolete inventory: Products that are no longer in demand due to technological advancements, changing consumer preferences, or market shifts. This may due to slow-selling inventory, products that have been phased out, abandoned inventory left behind in the warehouse, closing down your 3PL warehouse or closeouts.
• Closeouts: Products that are being discontinued or replaced by newer models. This may be due to stronger selling new products, slow-selling merchandise, obsolete inventory no longer needed, inventory leftover when acquiring another business or having excess inventory and closeouts due to aged inventory.

• Damaged or Defective Inventory: Products that are unusable or require significant repairs. Typically, if you are talking with closeout buyers and inventory liquidators they won’t be interested in these products.

• Categorization:
  • A-List: High-demand, fast-moving items. Generally there is little to no need for offloading these products or wanting to get them off your hands.

• B-List: Moderate demand, steady sellers. These items may be okay, however, you should keep an eye on product movement so you don’t have overstock or backup of inventory sitting in the warehouse taking up warehouse space.

• C-List: Low-demand, slow-moving or obsolete items. This category requires the most focus for offloading. Getting rid of these dead products will be important to your bottom line. If you have overstock inventory sitting in the warehouse, you should be keen to clear out stock to make room for new products arriving.

2. Pricing and Discounting Strategies:

• Gradual Price Reductions:
  • Begin with small, incremental discounts to gauge customer response. Sometimes you can get rid of merchandise by lowering the price enough. If you are selling name brand closeouts, you may not have to mark them down as much as non-brand excess goods.

• Gradually increase discounts over time, using a tiered approach. The longer you sit with unwanted inventory, the harder it will become to get rid of it.

• Flash Sales and Limited-Time Offers:
  • Create a sense of urgency with limited-time offers and flash sales. If your customer understands you are selling one time deals and when they are gone, they are gone, you may be able to move out overstock inventory faster than if you just let them sell off.
  • Utilize email marketing, social media, and website banners to promote these events.

• Bundle Discounts:
  • Combine slow-moving items and abandoned inventory you won’t be selling anymore with popular products to incentivize purchases. Inventory liquidations are good ways to bundle both good and bad selling products together. You can list these closeout items on overstock websites and liquidation websites for broad exposure.

• Offer bundle discounts or "buy one, get one free" promotions.

• Psychological Pricing:
  • Utilize pricing tactics like "odd-even pricing" (e.g., $9.99 instead of $10) to create a perception of value. Selling dead stock just takes a little creativity, and you are off to the races. For whatever reason you are getting rid of old inventory, you can sell your surplus inventory into the discount market where there are always buyers looking to offload closeout pet products, overstock liquidation items, discontinued products and obsolete inventory for sale.

3. Effective Sales and Marketing Channels:

• Online Marketplaces:
  • Leverage platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy to reach a wider audience. If you want to liquidate excess inventory from an ecommerce business, you will find customers on major online platforms.

• Optimize product listings with high-quality images, compelling descriptions, and competitive pricing. Whether you are getting rid of closeouts because you have canceled orders, overstock in the warehouse, or slow sales, good pictures will go a long way in showing closeout companies and inventory liquidators you product lines.

• Social Media Marketing:
  • Utilize social media platforms to promote sales, engage with customers, and run targeted advertising campaigns. Excess inventory buyers are keen to liquidate inventory on social platforms where they can reach as large an audience as possible.

• Consider platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest.

• Email Marketing:
  • Build an email list and send targeted promotions to your subscribers. Liquidating excess inventory is easier today than it used to be, because you can build online email lists without having to pay for them. Closeout wholesalers and closeout buyers will be happy to be on your list offering overstock inventory of things you want to get rid of.

• Offer exclusive discounts and early access to sales for loyal customers. When you are selling closeouts below regular cost, you will develop a long line of customers who always want to know what you are keen to clear out from the warehouse. You can send them pictures or do video calls on Zoom to see updated excess inventory, overstocked products, closeouts, abandoned inventory and other products you are looking to offload and get off your hands.

• Consignment Sales:
  • Partner with consignment stores or online platforms that specialize in selling used or pre-owned goods. On occasion, you will have to give away merchandise for free just to get it out of your warehouse and make room for new products arriving. Overstock inventory buyers aren’t always willing to pay and sometimes will only take unwanted merchandise for free.

• Liquidation Sales:
  • Host liquidation sales at a physical location or online to clear out large volumes of inventory quickly. If you are looking for an inventory liquidator, try searching online using these terms: closeouts, shutting down operations, downsizing warehouse, moving to a smaller warehouse, looking to offload closeouts, keen to clear out inventory, obsolete goods, unwanted merchandise, looking to get inventory off my hands, sell closeouts.

4. Liquidation and Wholesale Options:

• Liquidators:
  • Sell excess inventory in bulk to liquidation companies at a discounted price. If you have excess inventory, there are limited options to clear out your warehouse. One way is to sell everything at one time to an inventory liquidator.
  • This is a quick and efficient way to clear out large volumes of inventory because they often take everything in one fell swoop. They will make you an offer, whether you have overstock of closeout pet products, excess inventory of lawn and garden stock, or obsolete goods sitting in your 3PL warehouse.
• Wholesale Distributors:
  • Sell excess inventory to wholesalers who will resell the products to other retailers. When you have overstock items for sale, a wholesale buyer can take large quantities and resell them into the discount market. Selling liquidation stock is not complicated and does not have to be stressful. The key is to find a reliable closeout partner you can trust and work with. Look for the largest and most experienced closeout buyers in the industry, and try to find inventory liquidators in business for many years.

• Export Markets:
  • Explore opportunities to sell excess inventory in international markets. If you have name brand closeouts and are looking to offload them out of the country, this is a good option.

5. Re purposing and Creative Solutions:

• Donate to Charity:
  • Donate usable inventory to charitable organizations for tax deductions and positive brand image. This can be a good option for closeout toys, closeout novelties, excess inventory of sporting goods and hardware, or if you are liquidating housewares and home goods inventory.

• Re purpose Inventory:
  • If possible, repurposed the materials from obsolete products or create new products from existing closeout and overstock liquidation inventory. This can be particularly effective for manufacturing or industrial businesses.

• Employee Discounts:
  • Offer employee discounts on excess inventory as a morale booster and to reduce stock levels. If you cannot sell your excess inventory on the open market, perhaps you can offload it within your organization to employees and friends.

Merchandise USA is one of the largest and most reliable closeout companies in the U.S. We specialize in buying closeouts of housewares, liquidation pet products, overstock lawn and garden inventory, discontinued children's toys, overstock tools, discontinued furniture, home goods and stationery and much more. We have been a reliable and experienced inventory liquidator for 40 years. If you are downsizing your business, moving to a smaller warehouse, or shutting down and retiring, we can help you offload your entire inventory at one time in one fell swoop. When liquidating closeouts you should seek guidance from inventory liquidation specialists to understand the best options for offloading excess inventory in bulk.