Instead of taking a financial hit on your excess inventory, partner with a solar equipment broker to resell it in the secondary market.
By Melissa Ann Schmid, Marketing Communication Manager, EnergyBin
When anticipating equipment shortages, stock-piling inventory may seem like a good way to ensure your customers’ needs are met without delay. Intentionally creating excess stock in this manner is strategic.
But what happens when your company gets stuck with unwanted excess stock? Think about your older inventory that has been sitting in your warehouse or back room for months or even years on end. Perhaps it resulted from a cancelled project or is left over from a bulk order.
The products could be older technology no longer in production or products you were unable to sell to your primary customers. Maybe they were even used and returned but still in quality working condition.
“The most commonly traded used equipment we see on EnergyBin are refurbished inverters,” comments Rob Van Demmeltraadt, sales manager, “which come in handy when contractors need exact part matches for existing arrays.” EnergyBin is a B2B trading platform where solar companies can buy and sell single replacement panels, inverters and other components as well as full pallets of new and used equipment.
The Problem: Excess stock leads to higher holding costs
Unwanted stock can complicate your logistics and increase expenses, such as warehouse storage, internal movement, depreciation and interest owed on borrowed money to initially purchase the goods. The longer inventory sits dormant in your warehouse, the higher your holding cost rises.
“I’ve seen numerous instances where industry prices have fallen to the point where the company holding the inventory is taking a significant financial hit,” warns Matt Creamer, president at Surplus Solar Products, a broker based in New York working with customers across the U.S. and around the world.
In an industry where technology changes quickly, your risk of holding onto older models that could be obsolete tomorrow increases.
The Solution: Partner with a solar equipment broker
When you need to clear out unwanted excess stock, consider partnering with a solar equipment broker to get the job done. Brokers refer to the secondary market as an alternative outlet to connect to new qualified buyers.
Reputable brokers work with you to resell your new and used excess inventory. They have a constant pulse on global market ebbs and flows. In short, brokers are experts when it comes to pricing excess stock for resale.
“Understand that the solar market acts much like the stock market or any other commodity market,” explains Hollis Miles, global director of sales at Kinect Solar.
“What you purchased the product for may not represent its current value. Sometimes value can increase or decrease depending on the market. Generally, when supply is short, prices increase. But when the market is over-supplied, prices will decrease.”
Continue reading about how brokers can help with your excess stock.
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