As summer winds down, pharmacies have an important opportunity to prepare for the next seasonal shift. Back-to-school shopping signals a transition back to familiar routines, and it isn’t long until cold and flu season begins driving demand for seasonal health and wellness products. That makes Q3 an ideal time to review inventory, analyze previous sales, and ensure your pharmacy is prepared with the products likely to be in the highest demand for the months ahead.
For this important seasonal prep time, the goal is to build a collection of back-to-school essentials and flu season pharmacy supplies that can help you meet seasonal demand without ordering too much. Here are a few things to consider.
Review Last Year’s Sales
Before ordering new inventory, check your store’s sales details from this time last year. Identify which products were the highest sellers and which may have been overordered. This information can help with sales forecasting and prepare you to stock the items your store actually sold most. While customer demand can change from year to year, historical sales patterns can help you identify which categories and specific products your pharmacy should prioritize.
Which products sold quickest? Which products didn’t move as expected? Did you have to place last-minute restock orders? Knowing the answers to questions like these will help you make informed purchasing decisions for the season ahead.
Restock Back-to-School Pharmacy Items
The beginning of a new school year signals a transition back into familiar routines. This is a time to focus on everyday products that support families’ busy schedules. Whether preparing for a child’s next year in grade school or a move off to college, there are a variety of health and wellness products that pharmacies can stock to help students and families get back into their school routines.
Between prescription medications and immune system-boosting vitamins, keeping on top of daily vitamin and medication regimens can be made easier through medication management tools like pill organizers. Medication management products can help with organization and adherence of daily medications or vitamins. Depending on your assortment, consider assessing your inventory of daily, weekly, and travel-friendly organizers as well as pill cutters and crushers.
In addition, a variety of basic first aid, hygiene, and health essentials are important:
· Basic first aid supplies, including adhesive bandages, blister care, and hot/cold packs
· Everyday hygiene essentials, such as hand sanitizer, hand wipes, and facial tissues
· Allergy care, like nasal care products and eye drops
· Sleep essentials, such as ear plugs and eye masks
· Active student necessities, like muscle and joint pain relief and athletic wraps
Prepare for Your Flu Season Based on Local Demand
Now is also the time to start preparing for cold and flu season. This time gives buyers an opportunity to review their assortment of flu season pharmacy supplies before seasonal demand starts to increase. Seasonal demand can vary based on geography, climate, and the pharmacy’s customer base. The timing and intensity of seasonal illness varies by region, so pharmacies should consider both local trends and historical sales data when determining exact products and inventory to keep on hand. For example, a pharmacy in a college community may prioritize convenient or travel-size products for students, while a location in a colder climate may experience more demand for cough and congestion products.
Organize Inventory for Visibility and Convenience
Having the right products in your store is the first step of your seasonal preparation. The second? Thinking about product placement. As these seasons approach, start to place high-demand, seasonal items in places that are easy for customers to find. Consider using endcaps, aisle displays, and other high-visibility areas to highlight back-to-school and cold and flu season essentials. Special signage and product call-outs can also draw attention to seasonal items and help customers quickly find the products that they’re looking for.
It can also be helpful to organize related products together to make shopping more convenient for your customers. For your flu season pharmacy supplies, group complementary products like cold and cough remedies alongside tissues and throat lozenges, or fever and pain relievers near thermometers and other sick-day essentials. When it comes to back-to-school pharmacy items, a display with hand sanitizer, ear plugs for study support, and basic first aid items can prepare students for a confident start to a new year.
Create a Check-in and Reordering Plan
Even the best seasonal inventory plan needs room for adjustment. Even when you use historical sales data and your specific customer base to guide your purchasing decisions, customer needs and illness patterns can change from year to year. Put in place a check-in plan during the season to assess trends and inventory. Do you have the products that seem to fit this year’s trends? Are you running low on anything sooner than expected? Is there a product you unexpectedly have too much of?
Setting a date to check in on inventory and reorder before products get too low will help you stay prepared to meet the demands of customers in the current climate of back-to-school and flu seasons.
Get Ahead of the Season
By the time fall demand is in full swing, you’ll want key products ordered and stocked in your seasonal displays. Start by looking back at last year’s sales, then use those insights to build a well-rounded assortment for the months ahead. From flu season pharmacy supplies to back-to-school essentials, a thoughtful inventory review and strategic plan can help you prepare for customer demands before they happen. With the right products, placement, and reordering strategy in place, you can spend less time reacting to seasonal changes and more time providing customers with the products they need.
