Demand planning has been challenging for distributors since their demand planning teams have had to work with uncertainty from both suppliers and customers.
1. Reassess Your Product Mix
Don’t apply blanket inventory decisions. Analyze demand at the category and product level to identify what’s growing, declining, or staying steady — then align working capital accordingly.
2. Understand Your Customer Mix
Identify which customer segments are driving demand changes. Understanding the “who” behind surges and slumps helps prioritize inventory, forecast demand, and allocate capital strategically.
3. Align Suppliers Across the Business
Break down silos between product, customer, and supplier teams. Coordinated decision-making helps avoid inventory gaps, protect customer relationships, and respond faster to changing market conditions.
A data-driven view across products, customers, and suppliers creates the agility needed to balance service levels, inventory, and working capital in a changing market.