Inventory Health Check

What the Organization asks for before its AI team starts work.

The business

Halloway Hardware. Two stores, about USD 240,000 of stock at cost.

The problem

Cash is tight and the shelves are full

What keeps happening

We run out of the cheap things people come in for and we have plenty of everything else

Buying

Centrally, same template for both stores

Data

Stock file and twelve months of sales by line and location

Lead times

Two to three weeks on most consumables

What I suspect

We are holding a lot of stock we will never sell

Timeframe

Before we place the spring orders

Attached by the buyer.

• Stock file with cost and last sale date (CSV, 1,240 lines)
• Sales by line and location, 12 months (CSV)
• Supplier lead times (XLSX)

1. Retailer supplies inventory, sales and optionally supplier lead-time exports.
2. Data agent standardizes SKU and location identifiers.
3. Inventory agent calculates age, velocity and concentration indicators.
4. Merchandising agent identifies category and location patterns.
5. Final output prioritizes a manageable exception list rather than every SKU.

• Inventory value/context
• Fast and slow movers
• Aged stock
• Potential stockout risks
• Location imbalances
• Category concentration
• Items requiring action
• Next purchasing/merchandising questions