How to Make Sure You're ALWAYS Well Stocked!
How to Make Sure You're ALWAYS Well Stocked!
I know what you're thinking, 'just buy more!', but it's so common to get caught short, or to simply not realize that you need a solid plan in place when you start a business! If, like many of us, you rely on memory and 'just getting stuff when you need it,' you might want to reconsider…
Consider this: you believe you have enough lash glue. You can't remember when you ordered it, but you used it on Friday and it felt fine - at least two more days' use. You'll place another order later. Only your client lays down, and you clean their lashes and draw out your map, only to discover that your eyelash glue is stringy, or not coming out at all. What happens next? I mean, it hardly bears thinking about - you order some right now, and it arrives tomorrow (probably), but at what time? That could mean having to shuffle around 2-3 days of cancelled clients, which isn't ideal. So, how do we prevent this?
Tip 1 - Take Stock
You must always be aware of your stock level - how much lash glue do you use in a month? How many lashes do you get on average? Are you sure you have enough of each pretreatment product to last a week? While we use express shipping and try to ship orders as quickly as possible, there is always the possibility of a delay!
The best way to store liquids (particularly glue) is to keep them out of direct sunlight and as airtight as possible. However, you'll need to be able to do a quick count how many you have when you open the drawer or cabinet they're in. How many are currently open? How long will they last?
Tip 2 - Label Your Liquids
Keep track of the date you opened a product that will eventually expire, especially lash glue!
Any eyelash glue you buy has a 6 month shelf life from the date of manufacture (don't worry, we print that on the bottom of the bottle AND on the aluminium pouch it comes in, so you don't have to figure it out on your own!) prior to being opened, and once opened, it must be used within 2 months.
When you open a new bottle of glue, simply write the date on a piece of tape with your mapping pen and just pop the date on the bottle. Whether you write the date you opened it or the date you need to replace it is entirely up to you, but either way, precise labelling will help you avoid any mishaps!
Tip 3 - Plan Ahead
Schedule an hour or two every month to order all of your stock. Maybe do this once you are confident enough in your knowledge of how rapidly you use each product. To know which products you need to stock up on, why don't you create a spreadsheet with them on or write them in the back of your diary for future reference? This will make it way easier when it comes time to place your monthly order.
Consider subscribing to our glue subscription service to make it even simpler for you to stay fully stocked. You can get your preferred glue delivered every 2, 4, or 6 weeks depending on when you need it. It's automatically dispatched and delivered, and it's 15% less expensive than the glue would normally be!
Tip 4 - Don’t Overstock
Planning for the future is only beneficial if you only plan for what you actually will use. It's very easy to end up with a lot of stock you won't use or will try to use once it's too old, so don't be tempted to place a big order to "cover you for months" when it will actually be a waste of your time, money, and products (not to mention potentially harming your reputation!).
