Mike's Inventory Management Blog

Taking inventory of your automotive dealership is a job that is often viewed as being disruptive by your employees, not just those who have to do the physical parts counts, but also the teams that are affected while the inventory is in progress.

That is why the idea of doing inventory outside of your regular annual count for year-end can be daunting.

We all want to see the best in people, especially the people who work for us. Unfortunately, internal theft happens. When your business fails to properly monitor its inventory, your company is opened up to the risk of disgruntled employees taking advantage of your trusting nature, grabbing parts for themselves, friends or even for their side business.

The reality is, the cost of a stolen part isn’t just its value, it is the indirect costs associated with not being able to easily locate the parts – wasted time, poor customer service and frustrated employees.

To minimize the effect of internal fraud, consider the following tips from Pro Count West:

The success of your parts department is key to the effective operation of your automotive business as a whole.

If it is not properly maintained, you risk inventory errors and challenges that will have an adverse effect on your entire business - including service, administration, sales and much more.

To demonstrate the importance of a well-managed inventory system, here are five ways your dealership will benefit from a successful parts department.

It’s that time of year again – time to prepare for your annual physical inventory.

As the second largest investment in most automotive dealerships, it is imperative that your parts inventory dollars be accounted for. If you do not take this critical step in your inventory management, there is a risk that your ending inventory will be inaccurately stated.

The year is quickly coming to a close and that means that it is time to start planning for your annual year-end physical inventory count. This will help ensure the count goes as smoothly as possible.

Buying a dealership can be a lucrative investment that offers a number of benefits - an established customer base, a better understanding of the market expectation and the ability to start operations almost immediately.

However, there are a lot of things that you need to consider when completing the buy/sell transaction.

To outsiders, inventory management may seem straightforward and easy to do but, as a parts department manager, you know this is not the case.

Managing the amount of stock that passes through your dealership is a complex process and how you deal with inventory can change from one SKU to another, depending on a number of factors including its turnover, age, and versatility.

Your inventory management strategy plays a big role in the success of your dealership or service shop, which means you need a team that provides physical inventory services that are second to none.

Every automotive parts business has inventory problems – overstock, obsolescence, the wrong mix of parts and many more. The difference between a successful business and a business with increased losses is how the management chooses to deal with these issues.

So, you’re the new Parts Manager, Parts & Service Director, General Manager or Controller at an automotive dealership - congratulations on the new position!

To ensure that your new role as a Manager starts off right and that you have a clear picture of your department’s assets and issues, it is critical that you take an inventory of auto parts stock as early in your tenure as possible. Doing so will provide three key benefits.