Sell-By | Inventory Example
- Background
A Yogurt brand was experiencing inconsistent inventory turnover. Resulting in a recurring issue: pallets of yogurt in regional distribution centers were approaching their “sell-by” dates, making them unacceptable for delivery to major supermarket chains.
- Challenge
They faced a two problems. First, the short-coded yogurt, valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars, was at risk of becoming a total loss. Traditional liquidation would yield pennies on the dollar, and disposal would incur costs. Second, the marketing team needed to increase sales to prevent the issue from recurring. They identified retail media advertising directly as the most effective way to drive immediate purchases, but their budget was already limited.
- Solution
Asset Valuation and Exchange:
They partnered with ShopLIFT media to appraise the short-coded yogurt inventory, not at a salvage price, but at a significantly higher value. The Yogurt company then exchanged the inventory for media credits. This converted a potential loss into a marketing asset.
Targeted Media Placement:
ShopLIFT media invested the media credits with supermarket partners. Allowing the Yogurt company to fund digital campaigns that would have otherwise been affordable.
Restricted Inventory Redistribution:
ShopLIFT adhered to strict restrictions set by the yogurt company, the product was moved through channels that would not compete with its primary retail partners.
- Outcome
Funded a High-ROI Campaign: The Yogurt company was able to run a targeted retail media campaign—proven to drive purchase at the digital point of sale—entirely with its problem inventory.
Prevented Financial Loss: The company avoided a total write-off of the short-coded product, recovering significant value that would have been lost.
Increased Sales Velocity: The retail media campaign directly led to a measurable lift in sales, helping to improve inventory turnover and reduce the future risk of short-coded products.