Inventory Management Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Inventory Management - Term Paper Example This research will begin with the definition of consumerism as a phenomenon where there exists a never-ending and never satisfying hunger for the consumption of goods and services. Economists term consumerism as the dynamics or symbol of a progressive and booming economy. The basic concept in economics is when consumption, that is the purchase of goods and services in an economy, is increasing then the economy is on the verge of a boom and if things are the other way round than the economy is in recession. There is sound economics basis behind the concept of consumer culture. In economics terms, consumer culture is synonymous with market culture. In such a situation the prices of commodities are determined solely by demand and supply factors. To understand this we can simply say that when demand of a particular commodity is high in the market than its price will go up., but if supply exceeds the demand of the commodity in the market than the price of the particular commodity will go down automatically. In such a case the choices or buying decisions that consumers take independently, serve to define the structure of the market. The marketers and entrepreneurs have used this concept of consumer culture greatly to their advantage. Consumer culture has provided marketers and entrepreneurs, means to understand the needs and wants of a particular market better and then cater these needs and wants in a profitable manner. We can understand this with the help of an example. Supposing you have to travel o a particular country where your in-laws are living, you will find out about the culture of that country such as local customs, the way they dress, local cuisine and common linguistics etc. so once you enter that country you will be able to interact with the locals in an improved manner and they would be pleased to host you. In a similar manner when entrepreneurs are about to take on a particular market segment, they study the consumer culture of that market. Studying th e consumer culture includes looking at the trends of the market in terms of profitability, analyzing demand, consumer behavior, the satisfied and unsatisfied needs and wants of the market. Once these rules are learnt than the marketers chip in and play their game. (Birchal 2010) The Need for Inventory Management The entrepreneurs, having studied the market trends and being well acquainted with the consumer culture, can determine certain variables that are almost impossible to discover otherwise. The entrepreneurs can determine future demand of a particular product that they are selling to a particular segment. Having talked about consumer culture we must not forget to mention the changes that have taken place in the market over the period of time. With the introduction of more and more products by the companies and entrance of giant companies that offer products that serve to cater to similar needs and target the same set of consumers have actually helped to make the market place a battle field. Today customers have so many options and choices to choose from. In fact making a buying decision has become a Herculean and specialized task for the customer. Where on one hand intricacies at the end of consumer have increased then on the other the customer has become very powerful as well, and one cannot repudiate the fact that products and brands that do not meet customer expectations are either ousted or kicked out of the market and become forgotten history. Here inventory management becomes a key concept that needs to be discussed and highlighted to limelight. As we talked about the concepts of â€Å"customer expectations† and â€Å"consumer culture† so we also need to understand that they are very closely linked to inventory management. Finding the product on the shelf is one of the most significant customer expectations, significant yet basic. â€Å"Finding the product on the shelf† implies that the product must be available to the customer at the right place in the right quantity at