Persistent inventory inaccuracy is undermining one of retail’s most critical assets: the trust between retailers and the consumer brands that fill their shelves.
In fact, research from IHL Group and Brain Corp. reveals that retail’s $1.7 trillion inventory distortion problem runs deeper than lost sales. It’s eroding trust between retailers, consumer brands, and shoppers alike.
“Retail doesn’t just have an operations problem when it comes to inventory, it has a trust problem,” says Greg Buzek, president of IHL Group. “Our research shows that many retailers still lack a clear, consistent view of on-shelf conditions. That visibility gap undermines confidence across the value chain, including the trust consumer brands place in retail partners.”
“Few areas in retail have a bigger impact on profitability, customer experience, and brand trust than accurate inventory data,” says David Pinn, CEO of Brain Corp. “IHL’s research underscores that retailers are eager to use robots to enhance inventory accuracy and shelf execution, but prefer adoption models that eliminate the need to own, operate, or maintain the robots themselves. This mirrors what we’ve heard from retail partners like Winn Dixie, and it’s why we’ve partnered with Driveline to create ShelfOptix to deliver robot-powered shelf intelligence through the simplicity of a fully managed service.”
Key takeaways:
- 67% of retailers report daily or weekly relationship challenges with consumer brands due to inventory inaccuracy.
- 47% say their inventory inaccuracies have led to reduced engagements with consumer brands.
- The largest retailers (over $5 billion in annual revenue) are 87% more likely to identify strained brand relationships as a major consequence of inventory inaccuracies.
- Fewer than one in four retailers achieve 80%-plus accuracy in key shelf metrics such as on-shelf availability, planogram compliance, and promotional execution.
- 50% report lost sales and 47% cite customer dissatisfaction as a result of inventory execution failures.
- Robotics ranks as the No. 1 solution to improve inventory accuracy, ahead of handheld RFID, mobile image capture, fixed cameras, or barcode scanners.
- 72% of retailers are ready to deploy in-store robots, with 60% already planning deployment by the end of 2027.
- 67% of retailers prefer not to own or manage an inventory scanning robot themselves, signaling a shift toward flexibility and scalability in how automation is adopted.
