Inventory Dashboard Template

What's included

• Stock-on-hand by SKU with reorder point flags
• Days of cover at current sell-through rate
• Inventory turn rate (annualized)
• Slow-mover report (no sales in 60/90/180 days)
• Out-of-stock incidents and revenue impact
• Overstock report (>180 days of cover)
• Cost of goods tied up by SKU
• Open purchase orders and expected receive dates
• Source data on a separate tab

How to use this template

1. 1. Set reorder points based on lead time + safety stock

   Reorder point = (daily sales × lead time in days) + safety stock. The dashboard calculates this automatically per SKU; you only need to enter lead time and safety-stock factor. SKUs trending below reorder point trigger the flag.

2. 2. Watch the slow-mover report monthly

   SKUs with no sales in 60/90/180 days are usually candidates for: markdown, bundling, sunset, or returning to supplier. Cash tied up in slow inventory has a real opportunity cost. The dashboard surfaces this monthly so you act on it instead of letting it pile up.

3. 3. Measure turn rate, not just inventory value

   Inventory turn = COGS / average inventory. Higher turn = healthier business. Industry benchmarks: apparel 4–6x, electronics 5–10x, grocery 12–20x. Falling turn is one of the earliest signals of overstocking before it shows up in cash flow.

4. 4. Track out-of-stock revenue impact

   Out-of-stock isn't just a fulfillment problem — it's lost revenue. The dashboard estimates lost revenue from OOS events using historical sell-through rates. Surfacing the dollar amount makes the case for safer stock levels much stronger.

5. 5. Build the days-of-cover view per SKU class

   A blended "days of cover" number is misleading. Hot SKUs running at 5 days of cover are about to stock out; slow SKUs at 5 days of cover are well-stocked. Segment by velocity (top 20% / middle / long tail) and target days-of-cover separately for each.

Who it's for

• DTC and ecommerce operators
• Inventory and supply chain managers
• CFOs at physical-product businesses
• Small manufacturers and wholesalers

Frequently asked questions

What's a good inventory turn rate?

Industry-dependent. Apparel: 4–6 turns/year. Electronics: 5–10. Furniture: 3–5. Food/beverage: 12–20. Higher is better — capital turns more often. Compare against YOUR trend more than benchmarks.

How much safety stock should I carry?

Standard formula: safety stock = (max daily sales − average daily sales) × max lead time days. For volatile SKUs, this can run 2–4 weeks of cover. For predictable SKUs, 1–2 weeks. Set per-SKU, not blended.

What's the difference between FIFO and weighted average costing?

FIFO (First-In-First-Out) records cost based on the oldest inventory sold; weighted average uses the average cost across all inventory. FIFO matches physical flow for perishables; weighted average is simpler for non-perishables. Pick one and stick with it — switching mid-year creates accounting issues.

How often should I do physical inventory counts?

Cycle counts (rolling counts of a subset weekly) beat annual full counts. Target: every SKU counted at least quarterly. Annual full counts are accounting-mandatory in some jurisdictions; cycle counts catch shrinkage faster.

When do I outgrow Excel for inventory?

Around $1M+ annual revenue, 100+ active SKUs, or when inventory becomes multi-location. Cin7, Katana, NetSuite, Brightpearl, and platform-specific tools (Shopify's inventory features, Amazon FBA inventory tools) all replace the spreadsheet.