Worked scenario
Two branches, and neither knows what the other is holding
A second branch doubles the stock available to a customer only if either branch can see the other, and most two-store retailers cannot.
3 min read
Opening a second store is meant to increase reach. In practice it often just splits inventory, because each store operates as though the other's stock does not exist.
The lost sale is invisible to both
A customer asking for a size that is out is told no. Nothing is recorded, the other branch never learns there was demand, and the pair it is holding continues to age towards markdown.
Transfers are where records break
Informal transfers — a pair carried across by staff — are the most common cause of stock records diverging. It is not the transfer that causes the problem but the fact that it is not recorded at both ends.
The rebalancing opportunity
With one view, size gaps at one branch can be filled from surplus at the other before either becomes broken stock. That is the actual commercial benefit of a second store, and it is only available with a shared record.
What changes
- One stock view across branches, visible at either counter
- Transfers recorded so both records stay correct
- Size gaps at one branch matched against surplus at the other
- Sales attributed to the branch that made them, from shared stock
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