# Inventory: AI inventory management for every store

> AI inventory management for retail chains. Kai keeps a stock count per store, flags what will run out or sit unsold, and suggests what to reorder or move.

*Markdown version of [https://ocally.co/capabilities/inventory](https://ocally.co/capabilities/inventory), written for AI agents. All docs: [llms.txt](https://ocally.co/llms.txt). Deciding whether Ocally fits a business? Read [Is Ocally right for this business?](https://ocally.co/evaluate.md).*

**Know what every store can sell, and what isn't moving.** The till says nine. The shelf says two. Kai keeps every store's stock count, flags what will run out, expire or sit unsold, and suggests what to reorder, move or bundle.

- **Capability:** one of Kai's 16, in the area "Stay in sync". [All capabilities](https://ocally.co/capabilities.md).
- **You approve:** Every count import, stock fix, supplier order and transfer. Reorder suggestions stay suggestions until you say yes.
- **You give:** Stock and sales from your POS, your suppliers and reorder levels, and shelf counts when he asks.
- **Start here when:** a chain's answer to "What's furthest behind?" is "Inventory".
- **Built for:** retail chains and franchise brands; single stores and smaller chains are welcome too. [Where it fits best](https://ocally.co/evaluate.md).
- **Price:** part of Ocally's customized pricing, minimum $500 per location per month. [Pricing](https://ocally.co/pricing.md).

## What this costs today

Inventory today takes software, an analyst to read it, and store managers calling other stores for stock. Kai's AI inventory management takes on the reading and the chasing.

| What you pay for today | Typical cost | What it leaves undone |
|---|---|---|
| Retail inventory management software | $350 to $1,200 a month | Tracks stock and orders. Someone still reads it and acts, store by store. |
| An inventory analyst or buyer | About $77,700 a year, median | Reads the reports, builds the orders, balances stock between stores. |
| Store managers' time | Their time | Shelf counts, booking in deliveries, and calls to other stores for stock. |

**With Kai.** Kai does the weekly reading, the orders and the transfers for every store, from the same knowledge as every other capability.

Typical ranges from public price lists, October 2026. Sources:

- [Cin7, Pricing: Cin7 Core $349 to $1,199 a month, unlimited inventory locations](https://www.cin7.com/pricing/)
- [inFlow, Pricing: Pro $499 a month billed annually, unlimited locations](https://www.inflowinventory.com/software-pricing-inflow)
- [U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Purchasing Managers, Buyers, and Purchasing Agents: buyers and purchasing agents median $77,710 (May 2025)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/purchasing-managers-buyers-and-purchasing-agents.htm)

## Stop buying a tool for every job

The biggest promise of AI is consolidation. The same kind of software that can drive a car can write the reply to your email. So buying one point solution per job, each with its own login, contract and agency, now wastes money.

Judge software the way you’d judge a hire: by the range of work it can take on. That’s what to look for now: one system you can point at many jobs. Ocally is that for your stores: Kai and two people across listings, reviews, local search, social, AI answers, pricing, inventory and store routines, at every store.

Not sure what you could consolidate? Bring your list of tools and what they cost to a free consultation, and we’ll go through it with you.

**The same scope of work for 25 stores, a month (listings, reviews, local search, social and AI answers; the low end of published prices; use your own numbers):**

| Line | Basis | Tools, agencies and people | Ocally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings software (Moz Local Lite, $199 a year per location) | $17 per store | $425 |  |
| Review software (Reputation Rep Core, per location) | $80 per store | $2,000 |  |
| AI answers tracker (Peec AI Pro, 150 prompts) | $245 a month | $245 |  |
| Local SEO agency (chains of 20+ stores, "often $5,000+") | $5,000 a month | $5,000 |  |
| Social media agency (mid tier, $2,000 to $5,000) | $2,000 a month | $2,000 |  |
| AI search agency to fix what the tracker finds (small business low end, $1,500 to $5,000) | $1,500 a month | $1,500 |  |
| Staff time to run the tools and agencies | 1 hour per store a week at $54 an hour | $5,850 |  |
| Ocally | from $500 per store: Kai, a growth engineer and a growth specialist |  | $12,500 |
| Your team's time approving Kai's work | 0.25 hour per store a week |  | $1,463 |
| **Total a month** |  | **$17,020** | **$13,963** |
| Per store a month |  | $681 | $559 |

Defaults from: [Moz Local pricing](https://moz.com/products/local/pricing); [Reputation pricing](https://reputation.com/pricing/); [Peec AI pricing](https://peec.ai/pricing); [RankAI: multi-location local SEO cost guide (June 2026)](https://rankai.ai/articles/pricing-multi-location-local-seo-management-cost-guide); [Cloud Campaign: social media management pricing guide (July 2025)](https://www.cloudcampaign.com/blog/social-media-management-pricing-guide); [WebFX: GEO pricing (May 2026)](https://www.webfx.com/blog/seo/geo-pricing/); [BLS: market research analysts and marketing specialists, pay (May 2025)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/market-research-analysts.htm); [BLS: employer costs for employee compensation (June 2026)](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm).

## What Kai does

1. **Keeps each store's count straight.** He reads stock from your POS and online shop. When counts disagree, he asks the store for a shelf count and fixes the book on your yes.
2. **Flags what's at risk, weekly.** Every Monday he ranks what will run out, expire or sit unsold at each store, from its own sales, and suggests what to do with each.
3. **Orders what's running low.** From your reorder levels, he works out what to buy, drafts the supplier order with the math, and sends it once you approve.
4. **Moves stock to where it sells.** When one store runs short or another can't sell an item, he finds the match and, on your yes, asks the team to move it.

## What it unlocks

- **Slow stock on the list every Monday.** Unsold items show up in each store's weekly list with a plan: move them, bundle them above your margin floor, or put them out front.
- **Phantom stock caught, store by store.** When the system says nine and the shelf says two, Kai flags it, asks for a count, and checks your POS and online shop against his book.
- **One store covers another's shortage.** The all-stores view shows how long each item will last at every store, and which store could send more. One yes starts the move.

## Questions

### What is dead stock, and how do you reduce it?

Dead stock is inventory that has stopped selling. It ties up cash and shelf space. Catch it early, then move it to a store where it sells, or bundle it with something that does, above your margin floor. Kai flags it store by store from your own sales and proposes the fix for your yes.

### What is phantom inventory?

Phantom inventory is stock your system says you have and the shelf doesn't. It hides stockouts, because nobody reorders what the system thinks is there. Kai flags it when the counts he holds for an item disagree, asks the store to count the shelf, and holds the correction until you approve it.

### What is inventory optimization for a retail chain?

Inventory optimization means holding enough of each item at each store to sell, and no more. For a chain, it also means moving stock to the store that needs it before ordering more. Kai works from each store's own sales, reorder levels and use-by dates, and suggests orders and transfers for your yes.

### Does Ocally replace our POS?

No. Your POS keeps ringing up sales. Kai keeps a working stock count for each store beside it, connected to your POS and online shop, and flags where the shelf, the stock book and the till disagree. Stock fixes and shelf counts wait for your yes.

### Can Kai place supplier orders for us?

Yes, on your yes. From the reorder levels you set, he works out what each store needs, shows the math, drafts the order to the right supplier and sends it once you approve. When the delivery arrives, the team checks it in and the count updates. Nothing is bought without a yes.

## Related capabilities

- [Pricing and offers](https://ocally.co/capabilities/pricing.md): Spots price gaps across stores and checks the margin before any offer runs.
- [Store routines](https://ocally.co/capabilities/store-operations.md): Sends each store its checklist and checks the photo proof.
- [Product feeds](https://ocally.co/capabilities/product-feeds.md): Gets every product listed right, ready for search and AI shopping.

Bring the store with the fullest back room. [Book a free consultation](https://ocally.co/consultation.md): 30 minutes on one store, and where Kai would start.

## Next steps

- [Is Ocally right for this business?](https://ocally.co/evaluate.md): who it fits and who it does not, the cost, the risks, and how to start.
- [Pricing](https://ocally.co/pricing.md): customized, with a minimum of $500 per location per month.
- [Book a free consultation](https://ocally.co/consultation.md): 30 minutes on one store. Calendar: https://cal.com/ocally/30min.
- [See if we're a fit](https://ocally.co/fit.md): a two-minute check; an agent can submit it for its human, with consent.
- [Every doc](https://ocally.co/llms.txt): the index.

Questions a doc doesn't answer: onboard@ocally.co.