The Hidden Revenue Stream Many Consumer Goods Businesses Overlook
- Neil Marchant
- Oct 17
- 3 min read
I recently led a commercial supply chain initiative for a global consumer goods business that turned slow-moving and non-moving stock into more than $20 million in incremental revenue.
This transformation was only possible because of years of foundational work, strengthening supply chain reliability, enhancing local accountability and embedding visibility across markets. With these pillars in place, the business was able to execute structured “deal inventory” programs that supported sales and inventory targets.
The outcome was a series of structured, data-led deal programs that cleared inventory responsibly and profitably, while supporting core sales targets. It was a clear demonstration that inventory management, when handled strategically, can directly contribute to a company’s financial performance, not just its operational health.
The experience reinforced a key lesson I now apply in consulting: with the right structure and cross-functional alignment, slow-moving inventory isn’t a burden, it’s a hidden cash flow opportunity.
From Hidden Cost to Hidden Opportunity
Slow-moving or non-moving inventory is often treated as a burden but with structure, alignment and the right commercial mindset, it can become one of the most effective and immediate sources of cash flow available to a business.
At the heart of this transformation was a disciplined commercial process:
Visibility of non-moving and at-risk stock across all markets.
A repeatable “deal inventory” framework to convert this stock into incremental sales.
Guardrails to protect pricing integrity and channel strategy.
And accountability for results held at the market level, ensuring swift decision-making and ownership of outcomes.
Over a concentrated six-week period, the business executed seven tranches of closeout deals across 9 markets, each designed to clear specific targeted pockets while supporting local sensitive eco system. The program contributed meaningfully to overall company results, helping the business hit the “big three”: profit, inventory and sales targets.
The Power of Alignment
One of the most important lessons from this experience was the impact of cross-functional alignment. Success didn’t come from supply chain alone, it came from close collaboration between supply chain, sales and finance teams.
When all three functions shared visibility, understood the same data and were measured on the same outcomes, decision-making accelerated and execution improved dramatically.
That alignment turned a long-standing operational challenge into a commercial success story.
Lessons for Consumer Goods SMEs
For mid-market and SME consumer goods businesses, the same principles apply and can be implemented quickly:
Make stock visibility real and actionable. Know exactly what you’re holding, how long it’s been there and what it’s worth.
Create a structured release mechanism. Build a process for converting aged stock into cash without resorting to unplanned discounting or write-offs.
Drive joint accountability. Treat inventory as a shared responsibility between supply chain, finance and sales, not a back-office problem.
Protect the brand while clearing stock. Responsible liquidation builds long-term trust with both retail partners and consumers.
Turning Insight into Action
Cash flow pressure is one of the defining challenges for today’s consumer goods businesses. Yet often, the fastest way to improve liquidity isn’t through external financing or drastic cost-cutting, it’s through smarter management of the assets you already have.
Unlocking value from slow-moving stock requires discipline, structure and cross-functional ownership, but when done right, it delivers tangible impact on both the P&L and the balance sheet.
At MET Supply Chain Consulting, this is exactly the kind of work we help clients achieve: identifying hidden cash flow opportunities within their supply chains and turning operational complexity into commercial advantage.
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