WarehouseTWO Inventory Sharing Solution: Getting Rid of the Long Checkout Line

By Mark Tomalonis, WarehouseTWO, LLC

When shopping in a store that has multiple checkout lines, how do you choose which line to get into? Chances are, you try to pick the shortest/fastest line. Everyone wants the shortest/fastest line, including your customers.

So, why do you let your customers wait in your company’s longest/slowest checkout line? Taking an order for an item with a long lead time is essentially like forcing your customer to wait in your company’s longest/slowest checkout line.

Your Business Customers are People. And They Think Like Consumers.

Checkoutline Just as consumers do not like waiting in long checkout lines, your customers do not like long lead times. If your customers have alternative sources, they may use them. And if they must buy from you, they may resent having to wait for you to fulfill their order.

Backorders are most likely an unavoidable part of business. (Who can afford to have everything in stock that customers might want?)

What are your options when dealing with a long lead time backordered item?

Stock more? (Take on greater financial risk?)
Pay expedite fees? (Spend whatever profit the order might have yielded?)
Spend hours managing your customer’s backorder?
Turn down your customer’s order?
Ask your supplier, “Who was the last one you sold this item to”?

What is a better solution?

Answer: Formalized Inventory-Sharing w/ Peer Distributors via WarehouseTWO

Formalized inventory-sharing can give you access to millions of dollars of finished goods inventory for immediate shipment, owned by peer wholesaler-distributors in your industry. Your backordered item might be in another wholesaler-distributor’s stock. With hundreds of inventory sharing communities and manufacturers' items available, WarehouseTWO makes formalized inventory-sharing with peer wholesaler-distributors easier.

WarehouseTWO offers two powerful tools to help you find a needed item:

SEARCH: Browse inventory data posted by peer distributors, available for immediate shipment.

BROADCAST REQUEST: Send an inquiry email to peer distributors, including those who do not post their inventory data to WarehouseTWO.

What are the advantages of WarehouseTWO?

Created exclusively for manufacturers and their authorized distributor communities, and wholesale trade associations
No IT expertise necessary
No up-front investment or special software required
Integrated with Tribute and TrulinX software
No transaction fees
The Inventory Sharing Network for Eaton Hydraulics Team

Contact WarehouseTWO or visit at TribNet to learn more about how formalized inventory-sharing via WarehouseTWO can help your company. Tribute, Inc. has integrated with WarehouseTWO to make the search for items in this "additional warehouse" even easier. Think outside your box!