Unloading the Unwanted: Strategies for Offloading Slow-Moving and Excess Inventory

Holding onto unsold inventory is a significant drain on a business. It ties up valuable capital, increases storage costs, and risks obsolescence. Whether you're dealing with closeouts, abandoned inventory, excess inventory, discontinued items, unwanted merchandise, or overstock products, it's crucial to develop effective strategies for offloading these items to free up valuable warehouse space and improve cash flow.

1. Inventory Assessment and Categorization

The first step is to conduct a thorough inventory assessment. This involves:

• Identifying and categorizing all items:
• Fast-moving: Items with high demand and quick turnover. There is little to no need for liquidating inventory that is still selling well. Save this for the dead stock that has been filling up your warehouse space and sitting on pallets for years.
• Slow-moving: Items with low demand and slow turnover. Slow selling merchandise might be a target for items you might want to liquidate. Let’s face it, the longer these products sit in your warehouse, the worse your sales are going to be.
• Non-moving (dead stock): Items that have not sold for a significant period. Dead stock is a target. If you have old inventory, closeouts, obsolete merchandise, excess inventory and other unwanted merchandise filling your warehouse, you should consider finding an effective way to get rid of inventory.
• Closeouts: Items that are being discontinued by the manufacturer. If you are looking for a closeout partner, consider a Google search using these terms: closeouts, overstocked inventory, excess inventory, need to get merchandise off my hands, inventory liquidators, keen to clear stock from 3PL warehouse, downsizing business, shutting down operations, looking to offload inventory in bulk, getting rid of closeouts, looking for excess inventory buyers, selling obsolete merchandise, discontinued items.
• Abandoned Inventory: Items from canceled orders or returned goods. These products rarely if ever do you any good. Don’t get hung up on what your merchandise used to be worth or how much it cost you. In an efficient market, excess inventory is only worth what a closeout buyer is willing to pay for it. Contact different companies that buy overstock inventory and discontinued products or closeouts, get bids, and liquidate your inventory to the most reliable closeout buyers who can pay and pickup quickly.
• Discontinued Items: Items no longer produced or sold by your company. Discontinued products are common, especially when you are importing toys, housewares and other consumer goods like closeout pet products, discontinued lawn and garden merchandise, closeout solar lights and excess inventory of home goods. Once these products are discontinued, it is best to eliminate them from your product line so you can concentrate on merchandise that is more profitable.
• Unwanted Merchandise: Items that are surplus to requirements or no longer align with your business strategy. Unwanted merchandise has no place in your warehouse. You should do whatever necessary to get these products off your hands, whether it be by contacting inventory liquidators who are keen to clear stock from your warehouse, or even donating inventory for free, just to get it off your hands.
• Overstock Products: Items with excessive stock levels compared to demand. Overstock inventory is merchandise that may still be moving, but it is selling too slowly and backs up in your warehouse, taking up too much space and getting in the way of you effectively running your business.
• Determining the condition of each item:
• New: Items in pristine condition. Most closeout buyers are looking for name brand closeouts with UPC codes, in color retail packaging. The reason for this is, most brick-and-mortar retailers cannot sell closeouts in brown box or ecommerce packaging. Name brand closeouts and discontinued products are in high demand, so if you are looking to offload this type of inventory from your warehouse it should be easy.
• Used: Items that have been previously owned or used. Used items can be a problem, because today’s inventory liquidators and closeout buyers are only interested in buying closeouts of new products in original factory cartons.
• Damaged: Items with defects or imperfections. Damaged products fall under the category of salvage more than closeouts or excess inventory. Damaged goods will have to be sold to different closeout buyers than discontinued items in clean packs.
• Assessing the value of each item:
• Original cost: The initial purchase price of the item. Keep in mind when you are liquidating excess inventory, the goal is to create space in your warehouse and just get the old inventory off your hands. So don’t get too hung up on the original purchase price, because you will only recover a small percentage of original cost. A good rule of thumb when liquidating excess inventory and offloading closeouts is 10 cents on the dollar. This can vary, depending on how large the closeout inventory is, how desirable the products are, and whether they are name brand closeouts or generic imports. If you are liquidating closeout toys or overstock sporting goods, you may be okay if they are generic imports. But for closeout housewares and excess inventory of frypans, kettles, coffee makers, etc, it is generally easier with name brand housewares.
• Current market value: The estimated price the item could be sold for in its current condition. This is all that really matters. Ask yourself, how much can I get for my excess inventory, closeouts and abandoned inventory in its current condition based on how much stock I have, where the inventory is located, and whether they are closeouts of toys and sporting goods or more challenging items like trying to offload excess inventory that has been in the warehouse for years.
• Salvage value: The potential value of the item if it is sold for parts or recycled.

2. Pricing Strategies

• Deep Discounts:
• Percentage discounts: Offer significant discounts on all items, such as 20%, 50%, or even 75% off. Remember, when it comes to getting rid of closeouts, the greater the discount, the faster the sale. It’s not rocket science: overstock buyers and inventory liquidators want to pay as little as possible.
• Bundle deals: Group together slow-moving or related discontinued items and offer them at a discounted price. Closeout pet products and overstock sporting goods can sort of go together if they can be sold to a similar buyer.
• Tiered pricing: Offer progressive discounts based on the quantity purchased. This is a common theme with closeouts, discontinued products, excess inventory and unwanted merchandise. The more a customer buys, the greater the discount. In other words, if I can get rid of everything at one time, I am willing to take less.
• Psychological Pricing:
• Odd-even pricing: closeout items at slightly below whole numbers, such as $9.99 instead of $10. Consumers are used to discounted pricing on discontinued products or overstock inventory deals. Keep in mind when trying to get rid of dead stock, $0.99, $1.99 and $2.99 can be magic numbers. The cheaper the price, the faster you will get rid of closeouts, overstock and excess inventory.
• Loss leader pricing: Offer a few high-demand items at a significantly reduced price to attract customers. You can offer loss leaders on some of your closeouts if it brings customers in and if they buy up the rest of your overstock inventory.
• Auction-style Selling:
• Online auctions: Utilize platforms like eBay or Amazon to sell items through auctions. These are popular ways to create excitement and unload closeout pet products, overstock sporting goods, and closeouts of housewares, home goods and overstock lawn and garden products.
• Live auctions: Host a live auction event to generate excitement and attract potential buyers. Today’s consumer is bargain conscious and always looking for a good deal.

3. Sales Channels

• Online Marketplaces:
• Amazon: A massive platform with a vast customer base. You can liquidate inventory and get rid of closeouts online easier than brick and mortar. It should be easy to find closeout websites and overstock websites where you can list your excess inventory for sale and try to offload the entire stock all at one time.
• eBay: A popular platform for auctions and fixed-price sales. eBay is another outlet for liquidating merchandise and offloading closeouts of toys, housewares and home goods. Wholesale liquidators often shop on these sites looking for opportunity buys and discontinued items importers are looking to liquidate.
• Facebook Marketplace: A social media-based platform for local buyers. Same here. Inventory liquidators and closeout buyers peruse FB, looking for sellers trying to offload large inventories of abandoned inventory, unwanted merchandise and closeouts for pennies on the dollar.
• Other online marketplaces: Consider platforms like Etsy, OfferUp, and Letgo.

• Email Marketing:
• Send email blasts: Notify your existing customer base about your clearance sale. You have an amazing sales tool right at your fingertips. You can email all your customers any special liquidation deals you have on closeout housewares, overstock pet products, discontinued inventory of home goods and furniture, and abandoned inventory of consumer products. The cheaper you make it, the faster it will sell. Getting rid of closeouts is easier than it has ever been thanks to computers.

6. Liquidation Options

• Liquidation companies: Sell your inventory in bulk to liquidation companies. If you are having trouble finding reputable closeout buyers, you can look online for the most reliable closeout companies in the industry. Be sure to read reviews and check references, but you should be able to find closeout buyers and inventory liquidators capable of buying large volume. Some of these companies have been in business for decades, buying up all kinds of closeouts and obsolete products in all categories, from all kinds of vendors.

Merchandise USA is an inventory liquidator in business almost 40 years. We are one of the most reliable and professional inventory liquidators in the United States, specializing in offloading closeout and overstock housewares, closeout pet products and overstock toys and liquidation inventory of lawn and garden closeouts, discontinued home accents and overstock school supplies, hardware and closeout tools of all kinds. We buy excess inventory and discontinued products from importers and fulfillment warehouses. If you are shutting down operations, downsizing warehouses or completely closing your business we can help you with the liquidation process and closeout process. Contact us if you are very keen to clear stock from your 3PL warehouse in the U.S.