Consignment store owners have a unique set of skills unlike any other business. They have a great eye for style, amazing customer service and a crazy work ethic, leaving them little time to research and educate themselves on industry software and online tools. Creating labels, adding inventory, and even writing receipts yourself may seem like the easiest option in the meantime, but how is it hurting the long term growth of your business?
25% of consignment businesses are using the top software options available for the consignment industry, meaning the largest demographic of consignment owners are still running their business by hand.
1. Controlling Inventory
Consignment stores get new inventory constantly: clothing, musical instruments, furniture, even outdoor equipment, and itemizing and labeling these items is most commonly done by hand. Smaller shops can get normally get away with handmade labels but what do you do if a label is lost and how do you keep track of all the inventory currently in your store? Many furniture consignors will price inventory by hand, then go and enter the information into accounting software doubling the inventory process. Utilizing consignment software can not only help you stay organized and efficient, it can cut down on precious time that you could be spending with your customers.
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2. Running Reports
Its closing time, which means its time to break out the calculator, reading glasses, and the oversized receipt strip that looks more like a medieval decree than a sales report. How much time are you keeping your
employees on the clock to run these reports, and after a busy day, how likely are you to make a mistake and in turn hurt your stores sales records? Consignment software allows you to print your end of the day reports instantly and correctly.
3. Writing Checks
How many check do you write a month, week, even a day? Think about how much money you are spending on checks, paper, ink? Now think of how much you could save if you took those expenses off your plate. Services offered by Paypal and Google Wallet now allow you to pay your consignors by email, meaning you can administer payouts straight from your computer or smartphone. The personal interaction of writing a check is a great way to instill loyalty with your best consignors, but paying them instantly keeps them out in the world getting you the new inventory you need to continue to grow your consignment business.
