Cannabidiol (CBD), delta-8, and kratom have carved out a new frontier in the convenience store industry.
These product lines have exploded in popularity — and adding them to your c-store’s offerings can help you attract new customers to your business and make more sales.
But stocking CBD is not without its challenges. Most importantly, you’ll need a solid plan in place to manage your c-store’s CBD inventory and ensure that your customers always have the widest variety of products to choose from.
In this blog, we’ll give you three steps to follow to effectively and efficiently manage CBD inventory in your convenience store.
1. Ditch the Manual Processes
If you’re still relying on manual processes to keep your convenience store well-stocked, then it’s time for a refresh.
Counting your inventory and recording your stock levels by hand takes up valuable time in your day. Plus, it’s more likely to lead to human error, which can result in costly inaccuracies and put your inventory out of balance.
Adding CBD to your c-store’s offerings makes it even more important to modernize your inventory management practices.
CBD comes in a wide range of types and strengths, and your customers will be browsing your shelves for anything from mild tinctures to stronger edibles. You’ll also need to manage varying expiration dates, adding another layer of complexity to your CBD inventory management process.
To keep track of all those SKUs accurately and efficiently, you need a modern, powerful inventory management tool by your side.
2. Leverage a POS System With Integrated CBD Inventory Management
We’ve established that old-school, manual methods won’t cut it for CBD inventory management — but now what?
Fortunately, the right point of sale (POS) system can be your greatest ally on your journey to effective CBD inventory management. Many POS solutions have built-in tools to track your store’s stock, saving you time and making the inventory management process effortless.
Let’s look at a few key ways a POS system can help you manage CBD inventory:
- Monitor your stock levels in real time. Your POS system allows you to keep a close eye on your inventory from anywhere, at any time — making it a breeze to keep your convenience store well-stocked.
- Add unlimited items to your inventory. Your POS system makes it easy to carry and keep track of a wide variety of CBD product types. Make sure to choose a solution that allows you to add unlimited SKUs to your inventory database.
- Leverage automation. You can set up your POS system to alert you when a certain item is running low, or even automatically generate and send a purchase order to replenish your CBD stock.
When searching for the right fit for your convenience store, your best bet is to choose a POS solution that’s industry-specific. A POS system designed for the convenience industry will have all the features you need to manage CBD inventory, along with all the other items you carry in your store.
In addition to robust inventory management functions, you’ll want to select a POS system with lightning-fast checkout features, a built-in loyalty program, and detailed reporting and analytics to keep your customers and your bottom line happy.
Related Read: 6 Essential Convenience Store Software Solutions for 2023
3. Stock Your C-Store the Smart Way
Implementing a system to manage CBD inventory isn’t a one-and-done project. Instead, it’s an evolving and ongoing process.
Approaching inventory management the right way can do more than just keep your convenience store well-stocked; it can also give your sales and customer satisfaction a major boost.
Your POS system offers a goldmine of information to help you stock the right kinds of CBD products to meet your customers’ wants and needs. Your sales reports offer valuable insights into which products they’re buying the most, how much CBD they’re purchasing, and how often they’re replenishing their CBD products.
For example, you might find that your customers purchase CBD tinctures and vapes most frequently. Equipped with this data, you’ll be able to prioritize these products, ensuring that they’re always in stock. You might even choose to expand the range of tinctures and vapes you offer to give your customers more choices and to give your sales a boost.
Conquer CBD Inventory Management With C-Store POS
Looking for a partner to help you manage your CBD inventory and take your convenience store to the next level? We’ve got you covered.
C-Store POS is an all-in-one POS solution designed with the needs of small business owners like you in mind. Our POS system has all the tools you need to manage and grow a thriving convenience store, including powerful inventory management tools, convenience checkout processes, a built-in customer loyalty program, and integrated high-risk processing to make selling CBD simple.
Schedule a live demo with one of our convenience industry experts to see C-Store POS in action.