Inventory Planning · Part 2 of 2

Overstocked and Out of Stock at the Same Time: What That Tells You About Your Planning

A UAE seller had 33 overstocked SKUs and 35 at OOS risk in the same 122-SKU portfolio. Not in different months — in the same diagnostic snapshot.

By Saddl · 12 October 2026 · Inventory & Cash

SKUs with overstock

Cash tied up in inventory moving slower than expected

SKUs at OOS risk

Flagged for stock attention in the same snapshot

Total portfolio

122

SKU rows reviewed in the diagnostic

The short answer

Having both overstock and OOS-risk SKUs in the same portfolio at the same time is not a contradiction — it is what happens when inventory decisions are made at account level rather than at SKU level. An account total hides the fact that some products have too much and others have too little. The fix is not more purchasing — it is a SKU-by-SKU review that distinguishes concentration from shortage.

When this diagnostic was run across a UAE seller's Amazon and Noon portfolio, two numbers came back from the same 122-SKU snapshot: 33 overstocked and 35 at OOS risk. At first glance they look like they should cancel each other out. They do not.

Overstock and OOS risk happen on different products. The excess is not sitting next to the shortage waiting to be moved across. Each is a separate SKU-level problem — and together they signal something specific about how the portfolio is being managed.

122 SKU portfolio — diagnostic snapshot

Healthy

No action flagged

Overstocked

Hold — no new purchasing

OOS Risk / Reorder

Needs attention

122

Total SKUs

All rows reviewed

Pending Reorder

After PO check

Diagnostic snapshot: 21 September 2026. Figures represent a point-in-time planning view, not confirmed inventory movements.

Problem 1 — same portfolio

Overstocked SKUs

Capital already committed to inventory that is moving slower than the purchasing decision assumed. Each unit on the shelf is cash that is not available for anything else. No new purchasing should be triggered for these SKUs until the position clears.

Problem 2 — same portfolio

OOS-Risk SKUs

Products that need stock attention — but "attention" does not automatically mean a new supplier order. The first question for each is whether the need can be covered by stock that already exists in the network or is already on the way.

Why this combination happens

It is tempting to treat simultaneous overstock and OOS risk as a logistics failure — the wrong things went to the wrong places. Sometimes that is true. But more often it reflects a structural gap in how replenishment decisions are made.

01

Purchasing decisions were made at account level, not SKU level

If a team sees "inventory is low" and orders broadly, some products that were already adequately stocked get restocked again. Others that genuinely needed attention may still be missed. The aggregate view masks the distribution.
02

Velocity differences weren't reflected in purchasing quantities

A slow seller ordered in the same quantities as a fast seller accumulates faster than it clears. Velocity-based purchasing has to account for how fast each product actually moves — not average movement across the range.
03

Existing purchase orders weren't visible when new orders were placed

If inventory already on its way from a supplier isn't factored in, a team may place another order for the same SKU. The product arrives twice. One delivery becomes the new overstock.
04

Stock was not being redistributed across the network

Inventory held in a warehouse or on one marketplace is not doing anything for another marketplace that has run short. Without a view of total network stock by SKU, redistribution doesn't happen — and purchasing fills the gap instead.

Why the account-level total doesn't help

Here is the structural problem: if an account has 33 overstocked SKUs and 35 at OOS risk, those two groups numerically offset each other in any aggregate view. The account might look adequately stocked overall — while one set of products is consuming cash and another is heading toward lost sales.

The aggregate trap

An account-level inventory total hides both problems simultaneously

Excess stock on slow sellers inflates the number. Shortages on fast sellers are masked by that inflation. The total looks acceptable. Neither the overstock nor the OOS risk registers as clearly as it should.

Account total says Adequate

33 SKUs say Too much

35 SKUs say Too little

Right response SKU-level review

Neither problem shows up clearly in the account total because they offset each other in aggregate. The review has to happen at product level.

What this means for new purchasing decisions

When an inventory review surfaces both overstock and OOS risk in the same portfolio, the purchasing question changes. It is no longer just "what do we need to order?" It becomes: what do we already have, where is it, and should any of it move before we spend more?

📦

The overstock is a capital cost — now

Each overstocked unit represents money that has already been spent on inventory that is not generating revenue at the expected rate. That is a present-tense cost, not a future one. New purchasing decisions have to be made in the context of that already-committed capital.

🔁

Some OOS risk may be resolvable without purchasing

Not every OOS-risk SKU needs a supplier order. Some may have stock that can be redistributed from a warehouse or another marketplace. Some may have existing purchase orders already covering the need. The diagnostic has to check both before concluding a purchase is required.

🎯
New purchasing should target genuine gaps only
After redistribution and existing POs are accounted for, the remaining uncovered shortfall is the real purchasing question. In this portfolio, that was 13 SKUs and AED 14,389 — not 35 SKUs. The diagnostic narrowed the scope before the capital decision.

Velocity starts the calculation — it does not finish the decision

A fast-moving product may deserve stock movement today even if it does not require a new supplier order. A slow-moving product may show a large unit shortfall that looks urgent until you realise the 30-day requirement is 12 units and you have 400 in the warehouse. Velocity tells you which SKUs need attention. It does not tell you whether the response is a redistribution, a PO check, or a new purchase.

Both problems together are a planning signal

Having overstocked and OOS-risk SKUs coexist in the same portfolio is not just a logistics inconvenience. It is a signal that the planning process is not operating at the right level of resolution. Fixing it means doing the SKU-by-SKU work — network stock check, velocity calculation, PO review, redistribution assessment — before every purchasing decision, not just when the problem becomes visible.

Two capital conversations in one portfolio

Overstock and OOS risk represent opposite ends of the same purchasing process. One is capital that has already been spent — and may not be recovering as fast as planned. The other represents capital that may need to be spent, but only after existing stock positions are understood.

Overstock position

33 SKUs

Cash already committed to inventory moving slower than the purchasing decision assumed. The goal is to clear before purchasing more of the same product — or before treating aggregate stock levels as a reason to hold off on other purchasing.

Action: Hold — no new purchasing

OOS-risk position (post-review)

13 SKUs

After network stock check and existing PO review, the genuine purchasing requirement narrowed from 35 SKUs to 13. AED 14,389 pending reorder cost — across 1,794 units. These are the SKUs where new capital is genuinely needed.

Action: Buy — pending reorder

What to check before concluding you have an OOS problem

Check stock across the full network — not just the marketplace showing the alert Amazon, Noon, Minutes, local warehouse. A low-stock signal on one marketplace may be offset by stock held elsewhere that can be reallocated.
Identify whether existing purchase orders already cover the need Inbound inventory changes what still needs to be purchased. If 240 units are already on the way from the supplier, placing another order creates the next overstock problem.
Calculate the 30-day requirement based on actual velocity — per SKU Account-level velocity averages are not useful here. Each SKU sells at a different rate and has a different shortfall. The planning requirement has to reflect that.
Identify which OOS-risk SKUs can be addressed by redistribution first If stock exists in the network, the first response is to move it — not to order more. Redistribution does not consume new purchasing capital.
Flag overstocked SKUs separately — and hold them Overstocked SKUs should not trigger new purchasing. Reviewing them alongside OOS-risk SKUs gives the full capital picture before any orders are placed.
Scope the pending purchasing requirement to what remains genuinely uncovered After redistribution and existing POs are accounted for, this is the number that drives the purchasing discussion — not the original OOS-risk count.

How overstock and OOS-risk SKUs are treated differently

SKU status	Count (this portfolio)	What this means	Purchasing action
Overstocked	33 SKUs	More inventory than the planning requirement — stock is moving slower than the purchase assumed	Hold
OOS Risk — covered by redistribution	Subset of 35	Low-stock signal exists but existing network inventory can cover the need without a new supplier order	Move, not Buy
OOS Risk — covered by existing PO	Subset of 35	Shortfall is already being filled by a purchase order in transit — another order would create the next overstock	Track inbound
OOS Risk — genuine gap	13 SKUs	No warehouse stock, no inbound PO covers the 30-day need — this is the real purchasing requirement	Buy
Healthy	54 SKUs	Within normal range — no immediate action required	No action

Common questions

Can a seller really be overstocked and out of stock at the same time?

Yes. Inventory problems happen at SKU and location level, not at account level. One group of products can carry excess inventory while another group is running short — sometimes in the same portfolio snapshot. An account-level total hides this because it averages across all SKUs.

Why does an account-level inventory total hide overstock and OOS problems?

Because it averages across all SKUs. If some products carry 10× too much stock, that excess can numerically offset a genuine shortage on other products. The account looks fine in aggregate even though money is tied up in slow sellers and fast sellers may be heading toward stockout.

What does having both overstock and OOS-risk SKUs mean for purchasing?

It means new purchasing decisions should not be made without first reviewing where inventory is already concentrated. Some replenishment needs may be met by redistributing existing stock rather than ordering from a supplier. And the overstock position represents cash already tied up in inventory that is not performing.

How do you decide which OOS-risk SKUs actually need a new supplier order?

By checking four things in order: whether stock exists elsewhere in the network that can be moved, whether existing purchase orders are already covering the need, whether the current stock will last until those orders arrive, and whether the remaining uncovered shortfall justifies a new purchase given velocity and commercial priority.

What should happen to overstocked SKUs in a replenishment review?

Overstocked SKUs should be held — meaning no new purchasing should be triggered for them. The priority is to sell through or redistribute the excess before committing more capital. An inventory review that focuses only on OOS risk without also flagging overstock gives an incomplete picture of the portfolio.

Saddl · UAE Marketplace Management

Is your inventory review running at account level or SKU level?

The difference between those two approaches is often visible in the portfolio — and it shows up in the purchasing decisions that follow.

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Data note: All figures in this post are drawn from a single inventory diagnostic snapshot dated 21 September 2026, covering 122 SKU rows across Amazon UAE, Noon UAE and Minutes. Portfolio status classifications (overstocked, OOS risk, healthy) reflect the planning methodology in use at the time of the snapshot. Proposed allocations and pending reorder quantities are planning figures — not confirmed completed transactions. The pending reorder cost of AED 14,389 reflects the planning snapshot, not realised spend.