How do I identify dead stock in my boutique inventory?

Dead stock — sometimes called dead-on-arrival or DOA inventory — is any product sitting unsold that's tying up both cash and rack space. In Shopify, go to Analytics, Reports, then Sales by Product. Sort by Net Sales ascending to see your worst performers at the top.

A useful working definition of dead stock is any style received before April 1 with fewer than three units sold and still in inventory. Every one of these items represents cash you spent that isn't coming back, and it's occupying space that a better-performing piece could fill. Bundle them, flash-sale them at forty to fifty percent off, or move them into a clearance collection.

Pay attention to vendor patterns. If the same vendor shows up three or more times on your DOA list, that's not a one-off bad style — it's a vendor relationship problem that should be addressed before you place any fall orders.