Merchandise Management

Merchandise Management: The objective here is to identify the merchandise that customers want, and make it available at the right price, in the right place at the right time. Merchandise Management includes (i) merchandise planning (ii) merchandise purchase, and (iii) merchandise control. Merchandise planning deals with decisions relating to the breadth and depth of the mix, needed to satisfy target customers to achieve the retailers return on investment. This involves sales forecasting, inventory requirements, decisions regarding gross margins and mark ups etc. Merchandise buying involves decisions relating to centralized or decentralized buying, merchandise resources and negotiation with suppliers. Merchandise Control: deals with maintaining the proper level of inventory and protecting it against shrinkage (theft, pilferage etc.)