Inventory issues are among the top challenges UK retailers face within the store in 2025, according to the latest research from Pricer, an in-store automation and communication solutions provider.
Research of over 100 senior UK retailers by Pricer revealed that inventory availability was the top in-store challenge retailers are looking to address this year (36%), while a further 34% will also focus their efforts on improving inventory accuracy. This was followed by trying to address the rising costs of rents (35%) as well as improving in-store conversion (31%) and engagement (29%) rates.
Inventory issues continue to plague customer experience in-store, with out-of-stocks remaining a major bugbear for shoppers. A separate shopper poll by Pricer showed that consumers typically find almost a fifth (18%) of the items in their weekly food shop unavailable on shelf when they shop in-store, rising 1 percentage point year-on-year. And, according to further Retail Insight research, 82% of shoppers have reported experiencing stockouts.
Meanwhile, with rising National Insurance Contributions and National Living Wage from the October Budget, which came into effect in April, UK retailers face a £5.6bn surge in costs this financial year. This is prompting many to search for efficiencies to mitigate against the impact of these levies on their businesses. Over a quarter of retailers (28%) polled by Pricer now want to address store operating costs due to the rising cost of labour, while a further 36% say they are facing greater pressure to save on labour hours or find productivity gains due to the rising cost of wages.
Peter Ward, UK Country Manager at Pricer, commented: “Retailers are having to navigate the complexities of rising operational costs, shifting consumer demands and labour shortages. And this, up against a barrage of disruption, means many are turning towards innovation and automation to remain competitive and boost productivity, while maintaining customer experiences – not an easy circle to square.
“By digital connecting the shelf-edge, retailers can automate and streamline key store operations, such as pricing updates, inventory availability and e-commerce picking, while also delivering customer engagement opportunities at the shelf edge and freeing staff to serve.”
NAM Implications:
- This is about optimising working capital by holding minimum but workable levels of buffer stock.
- i.e. avoiding the high interest cost of having to hold ‘excess stocks’ just-in-case.
- Retailers will try to pass this cost back to suppliers by raising service level requirements.
- i.e. faster, smaller, more frequent and accurate deliveries.
- Over to you…
