Stock-outs hit 81pc of shoppers

Some 81 per cent of adults have suffered from an unavailable product in-store in the past 12 months, a study by YouGov and GT Nexus has revealed. And 65 per cent of online shoppers have had the same experience.

The survey of more than 5,000 adults in the UK, US, Germany and France found that 57 per cent of disappointed in-store shoppers blamed the retailer or manufacturer when a product was unavailable.

In the UK, 83 per cent of adults have suffered from an unavailable product in-store in the last 12 months (70 per cent online).

41 per cent of disappointed in-store shoppers blamed the retailer and 57 per cent became lost sales.

The lost sales figure was even higher for online shopping. The survey found that 65 per cent of disappointed online shoppers who remember what they were looking for became lost sales.

“In today’s competitive environment it is hard enough to get the attention of consumers, but winning them and then losing them due to stock-out is very damaging,” said Kurt Cavano, founder and chief strategy officer at GT Nexus.

“It raises the question to retailers that, ‘If you can’t execute well on omni-channel, maybe you shouldn’t offer it at all.’ Retailers need end-to-end supply chain visibility to execute in this environment. This means connecting all of the players in your supply chain, inside and outside your four walls, creating a true multi-enterprise supply chain. Do this well and you can effectively and profitably meet consumer demands. Do this poorly and you won’t be around much longer.”