The PDA Christmas Story - How Do the Shelves Stay Fully Stocked?

With just over a week to go before Christmas and shelves and stock being renewed at a faster rate than any other time of the year a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) management system really does prove itself as an important and useful tool.

As in house merchandisers try to keep up with demand and keep shelves replenished as shoppers descend for their Christmas shopping, real time information allows store managers to ensure they never run low or worse run out of a product on the shelves. We all know this is the easiest way to lose customers - they will simply go elsewhere to find the product they want.. which is a retailers worst nightmare. The logistics of maintaining stock levels is so much easier with the use of PDAs and will identify low stock levels together with video technology and bar code scanning will prompt the push of product from warehouse to store.

One of the other major benefits is capturing valuable sales data - looking at value per square foot of a particular product or category and identify what is performing and what isn't. This has allowed retailers to maximise on selling space and identify areas to increase category profits.


For companies working at providing these services within a large retailer a PDA system allows real time management of displays and merchandising. To be able to manage remotely and respond immediately across multi sites all over the UK so efficiently increases service levels massively. To then capture and analyse category performance and suggest alternatives for use of selling space is an excellent advantage.

Ultimately it means our shelves remain full and stocked and we get everything we need for Christmas. Having to make an extra trip hunting for cranberry sauce or goose fat because our usual store has ran out at this time of year is the last thing you want as a shopper. More so than ever before retailers and their supply chain are ensuring stock levels are consistent and available.  So a very Merry Christmas brought to you by PDA technology!