Inventory planning breaks down when retailers plan for products instead of planning for people. Customer profiles can help fix that.

When retailers understand who buys from them, how those customers shop, and what brings them back, inventory decisions become more disciplined. The depth of your buy, replenishment timing, sizes and markdown strategy start to reflect real demand instead of guesswork.

Here’s some examples of mismatches between inventory and customer behavior:

— Too much fashion risk for a conservative customer base (or too little risk for fashionistas)

— Too many sizes that don’t move

— Seasonal buys that don’t match actual shopping patterns

— Core items running out while fringe items sit untouched

Customer profiles can help you avoid these issues by providing context when sales data gets noisy. They also help planners distinguish long-term customer behavior from short-term spikes, preventing emotional reactions that cut good categories too soon or overcommit to temporary winners.

Replenishment becomes more predictable as well. Core customers shop in consistent patterns, making it easier to time reorders and prioritize space for proven items. Carrying costs fall, and open-to-buy dollars are used more strategically.

Markdown strategy improves too. Profiles reveal which customers wait for discounts and which items loyal shoppers buy at full price, allowing retailers to mark down selectively and protect margins.

At Blacks, we’ve seen retailers who don’t really have inventory problems, but they do have customer clarity problems. From an inventory planning perspective, customer profiles aren’t a marketing tool. They’re a risk management system that keeps inventory aligned with how customers actually shop.

Customer profiles help retailers see demand before it shows up in sell-through reports—when it’s still cheap to adjust.

If you don’t have your customer profiles mapped out yet, here’s a short template to start with.

You can add more profiles later, but this one should represent the customer who drives the majority of sales.

1. Core Customer Snapshot

(Anchor your inventory decisions here)

Primary customer type:
(e.g., working professional, casual lifestyle shopper, trend-driven, value-focused)

Average transaction value:

$

Purchase frequency:

(weekly / monthly / seasonal)

% of total sales they represent:

%

This defines who your inventory should be built for, not who you wish shopped with you.

2. Shopping Behavior (This Drives Buy Depth)

Buys early or waits for sales?
☐ Early/full price
☐ Mid-season
☐ Clearance

Repeat categories:
(Top 3 categories they buy consistently)

Typical basket:
(1 hero item + add-ons? multiple items? single purchase?)

This guides how deep to buy core items and how aggressive to be on fashion risk.

3. Size & Fit Reality Check

(One of the biggest margin leaks)

Top-selling sizes:

Slow-moving sizes:

Common fit issues or returns:

This helps adjust vendor size curves and avoids end-of-season size leftovers.

4. Seasonality & Timing

(When inventory actually moves)

Peak shopping months:

Dead zones:

Weather sensitivity:
☐ High ☐ Medium ☐ Low

This prevents early markdowns and mis-timed deliveries.

5. Price Sensitivity

(Controls markdown strategy)

Comfortable price range:
$

Will pay more for:
☐ Quality
☐ Fit
☐ Brand
☐ Made-in / sustainability
☐ Convenience

Discount dependency:
☐ Low ☐ Medium ☐ High

This determines how long you can hold full price and where promos actually make sense.

6. Inventory Implications (The Most Important Part)

Based on this customer, we should:

Buy deeper in:
(categories, fits, colors, sizes)

Buy lighter in:
(risk categories, fringe sizes, trend items)

Replenish vs one-and-done:
(list core SKUs)

Take fashion risk:
☐ Low ☐ Medium ☐ High

Fill out this template once per season, review it before every major buy, and update it after markdown season.