Inventory Boss… How it All Started
Welcome! My name is Michael Weir and I am the founder of the Inventory Boss – a Multi-Platform Inventory Management training system and software solution for Amazon and Ecommerce Sellers. The fact that you’re here tells me you’re ready to free yourself from the frustration and worry of managing your inventory.
If I could convince you of one thing today, it would be to ditch the your inventory spreadsheets and discover the power of a MYSQL Relational Database (available to you via the Inventory Boss software system).
There are so many great programs, seminars, masterminds and training courses available to teach you how to grow your business, but no comprehensive training that can teach you how to run the inventory management and logistics side of your business. If you sign up for the Inventory Boss, all that will change for you starting today!
I started selling on Amazon in 2013. I quickly scaled to 50+ products and our business was cranking! But, as we were growing, I noticed that we were bleeding profits by spending thousands of dollars in rushed Air-Express orders just to keep products in stock. At the same time, I also had money tied up in other products that weren’t selling very well and realized that I was nowhere near as profitable as I should have been.
I would launch products, work hard over a period of months to claw my way to page one for the right keywords, only to then run out or inventory and watch my listing vanish, my cash flow dry up, and my competitors happily take my sales and position on the page.
To play it safe I would then over-order so I wouldn’t run out of my best sellers. It seemed like a great strategy to make sure my competition wouldn’t get the market share and ranking if I ran out of stock. But this strategy also tied up my excess capital and made it impossible for me to expand into new products and categories.
Much of the revenue I made on my products went to covering my larger orders, extra shipping costs and additional storage fees. You may know exactly what I’m talking about.
That started my search for an inventory management system or an online course that could teach me how to run my growing business more efficiently. To my dismay, I couldn’t find one, and believe me when I tell you… I looked everywhere!
So, I set out to create a solution. That in itself is a long story. The short version is this: I have a business degree in finance, so I understand business math and spreadsheets. So, I went to a local university, bought all their textbooks on Logistics and Inventory Management, attended webinars and seminars that had nothing to do with Amazon but everything to do with inventory management. I even interviewed authors and professors… and so on.
I took a deep dive, because I needed this to work!
I ultimately earned my CPIM certification (Certified in Planning and Inventory Management) with the Association of Supply Chain Managers. ASCM is an internationally recognized association of professional inventory specialists.
All that time, expense, effort and research resulted in a 8-Step system for managing the logistics of my business. And it is amazing!
I started helping some of my Seller friends and that’s how the word started to spread about my system. This lead to speaking in mastermind groups and conferences all over the world. I soon found myself teaching this to anyone who asked, and that is how the Inventory Boss training began.
Here is my 8-Step System – In its unvarnished beauty, the entire thing looks like this:
Profitable Logistics = {Reorder Point} + {Demand Forecast} + {Seasonality Adjustments} + {Manual Adjustments for Future Events} + {Optimal Order Size} + {Consolidated Shipping} + {Warehouse Balancing} + {Forecast Refinement}
Granted, it looks a bit intimidating at first. I get it. And if it’s been a while since your last math class, you might be thinking it is way too complicated for you. The good news is that I can teach this to you if you want to learn. To be perfectly candid, if you really get after it, I can teach it to you in a single afternoon!
In fact, I can promise you two things:
Promise #1: I can teach you (regardless of your educational background) how each formula works. In fact, after I teach you each of the formulas we bolt together into this algorithm, you will be competent enough to teach others … I promise!
Promise #2: You will, forevermore, have absolute confidence in the logistics side of your Amazon/Ecommerce Seller business. This will absolutely transform your business, but more importantly it will also transform you as a business owner.
Bonus Promise: If you’ve ever thought about selling your business, your new Inventory Management System will increase the value of your business substantially, because you’ll have a logistics blueprint and systems in place that you can show (and then give to) your buyer.
Recap: You can learn this entire system, formula by formula, in an afternoon. If you do that, you will experience a renewed sense of confidence which will transform you (personally) as a business owner, and you will also streamline your logistics and inventory management which will result in a more profitable business with steady cash flow.