Stockout
A situation in which a product is unavailable for purchase because inventory has been fully depleted before replenishment.
Full Definition
A stockout occurs when demand for a product exceeds available inventory at a given location and time, resulting in lost sales and potential customer dissatisfaction. In retail analytics, stockout rates are tracked as a key operational KPI, and predictive models are used to minimise their occurrence. Stockout analysis distinguishes between phantom stockouts (product is in the store but misplaced) and true stockouts (inventory is genuinely zero). Editors should note the term is written as one unhyphenated word, not 'stock-out' or 'stock out,' in modern retail analytics style.
Usage
Usage note: Write as one word: 'stockout.' The hyphenated form 'stock-out' appears in older retail literature but is now non-standard. 'Out-of-stock' (hyphenated) is acceptable as an adjective (e.g., 'out-of-stock rate') but 'stockout' is preferred as a noun.
In Context
- "The demand forecasting model reduced stockout incidents by 18% across the frozen food aisle." — Supply chain analytics report
- "Phantom stockouts accounted for nearly a third of the reported stockout events in the audit." — Store operations analysis