Blog · 21 September 2026
Direct store delivery: who is responsible for out-of-stocks when the store does not order?
In shortIn direct store delivery, the supplier decides the quantities, delivers at its own frequency and often fills the shelf. The store has neither an order to place nor reliable book stock: the out-of-stock appears in none of its tools. It lasts until the driver's next visit. The store still keeps three levers: counting availability between two visits, passing that count to the supplier with the times, and negotiating the frequency or a buffer stock on the SKUs that empty before the next visit. The rule: the supplier manages supply, the store remains responsible for what its shopper sees.
What direct store delivery is, and what it changes
In most stores, part of the range does not go through the retailer’s warehouse. The supplier delivers directly, at its own frequency, and its driver or merchandiser often fills the shelf personally. It is common for packaged bread and pastries, newspapers and magazines, some drinks, regional and local products, sometimes eggs or local fresh products.
For out-of-stocks, three things change:
- the store does not order: quantities are decided by the supplier, from its own counts;
- book stock does not exist or is not reliable: these products are often managed by value or at delivery, with no unit tracking;
- nobody in the store owns the shelf: “the supplier takes care of it”.
None of the usual methods therefore sees the out-of-stock: not automatic ordering, not cycle counting, not the low stock alert.
The gap between two visits
The direct-delivery out-of-stock has a particular shape: the shelf is full after the driver’s visit, empties, and stays empty until the next visit. If the driver comes on Monday and Thursday, a SKU emptied on Tuesday evening is absent for a day and a half. If the sales peak is Saturday and the last visit is Friday morning, Saturday afternoon goes without the product (Saturday and pre-holiday out-of-stocks).
The supplier only sees the state of the shelf on arrival: it knows the shelf was empty on Thursday morning, not since when. Its delivered quantity is set on what it observes, not on lost sales.
The store’s three levers
1. Count between two visits
A five-minute count, the day before the driver’s visit and on the evening of the biggest sales day, on direct-delivery SKUs only. It is the only source of information on the real duration of out-of-stocks.
2. Pass it to the supplier, with the times
A dated count (“SKU X absent from Tuesday 6 pm to Thursday 9 am, three weeks running”) is an argument the supplier hears: it is its turnover too. Most adjust willingly when given the information they lack.
3. Negotiate the frequency or a buffer stock
Two solutions when a SKU regularly empties before the next visit: one more visit a week in the high-sales period, or a buffer stock in the back room that the store team puts out between two visits (organising the back room). The second means naming someone in the store.
| Question | Supply through the warehouse | Direct store delivery |
|---|---|---|
| Who decides the quantity? | the store (order) | the supplier |
| Who sees the out-of-stock? | the system, the aisle | the driver, on their visit |
| Typical duration of the out-of-stock | until the next replenishment | until the next visit |
| The store’s lever | ordering parameters, replenishment | count, frequency, buffer stock |
Name someone responsible
The simplest and most forgotten point: every direct-delivery family has a contact person in the store, even if the supplier fills the shelf. Their role fits in three actions: glance at the shelf every day, keep the count, be the driver’s contact. Without a contact person, the out-of-stock belongs to everyone, so to no one (the department manager’s role).
A worked example (hypothetical)
Take a fictional supermarket where sliced bread and packaged pastries are delivered directly three times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday). A four-week count shows that five SKUs are absent every Saturday from 3 pm and every Sunday morning. The store passes on the count; the supplier raises Friday’s delivery on those five SKUs and agrees to a buffer stock of two cases in the back room, put out by the team on Saturday at 2 pm. The expected scenario is the end of the weekend out-of-stock on those SKUs. The figures are illustrative.
What shopper reporting changes
On a shelf neither the system nor the team watches, the shopper is the only one who sees the gap when it happens. With ShelfAlert, their reports give exactly what the supplier lacks: the SKU, the day and the time. The count to pass to the driver is already done. 14-day trial, no payment card: see the plan for store managers.
Sources
- Corsten, Gruen, “On Shelf Availability”, 2004: summary.
- Gruen, Corsten, Bharadwaj, “Retail Out-of-Stocks: A Worldwide Examination”, GMA, 2002: full study (PDF).