by Huntley & Palmer »
07 Feb 2007 22:37
That Friday Feeling Huntley & Palmer That Friday Feeling Slinky Oh deary me.........a mate of mine went into the club shop yesterday looking for some of the tracksuit bottoms that have the zip that allows you to take off the bottom 1/4 thus making them into 3/4 length, perfect for jogging in the cold. The bloke working in there told him they;d sold out to which my friend replied "not a problem no ruch, but when are you getting some more in stock"............now for the magical reply "i'm sorry but we won't be as we only get one delivery for the season and it's nearly all gone, the next stock will be the new pro gear range in the summer".
Now is it me or is that a oxf*rd awful way of running a business i.e. terrible oversight in stock demand, no stock control, and worst of all continually letting the fans down when they want to spend money on their own football club!!??!!! Shocking if it's true what the club shop worker said but why would he lie!
Seems pretty good planning to me. Much better to sell out than have to sell off cheap.
Doubtful to be honest. The club would pay a bulk price and the discount would increase the more they bought with the manufacturer, certainly they would be able to place a scheduled order to at least allow two deliveries in a season with an option for more depending on lead time.
You are correct but what if the first order/delivery didn't sell? They'd be stuck with a further delivery of an unpopular item.
Replica kit should always be available until well after Christmas (although the club can perhaps be forgiven for underestimating the demand this season) along with hats, scarves, badges etc. but with fashion items they have to make a judgement call.
I'm not the megastore's biggest fan. I've bought bedding for my kids that has to be four inches longer and wider than any other duvet set. Last season's DVD should have been re-ordered and still available.
I really can't imagine hundreds of people berating them for selling out of a particular style of tracksuit trouser.
They have access to historic figures, not just from Reading FC, available to them. Hell, the manufacturer would be able to give them guidance on how many of each line sells. All their clothing comes from Puma, I would imagine they have a customer liason working with RFC if the company is any cop. Seeing as Puma have probably paid us a sum for kit provision, I would expect that RFC pay them a royalty percentage per item.
At the end of the day it's called doing your research properly and then forecasting sensibly. You can factor in the extra revenue a promotion would bring quite easily, I have to do it at work for seasonal variations. It's exactly the same. If any extra order would not be required then they can neogtiate cancellation fees before placing.
Let's face it, it's not rocket science, it's just that RFC have a very out of date and poor management chain at promotions level. Why do you think Boyd Butler left?