Inventory how-to

How to price clearance inventory

Price clearance stock by how slow it is moving and how much space or cash it ties up, not by a fixed rule like "30% off everything." Start with a modest markdown, watch the sales rate for a week or two, and cut deeper on whatever still is not moving.

Short answer: Price clearance stock by how slow it is moving and how much space or cash it ties up, not by a fixed rule like "30% off everything." Start with a modest markdown, watch the sales rate for a week or two, and cut deeper on whatever still is not moving. SteadyShelf does not set or test prices, but it does show you which SKUs are dead stock candidates based on sales history.

Sort your clearance candidates first

Not all slow stock deserves the same discount. Separate items into groups: dead stock with zero sales in the last few months, slow movers with a trickle of sales, and seasonal stock you need gone by a date. Each group needs a different pricing approach. Dead stock can take a steep first cut, seasonal stock needs a schedule tied to a hard deadline, and slow movers can start gentle.

Work backward from your real cost

Know your landed cost per unit before you touch the price. SteadyShelf does not track landed cost, so pull that from your supplier invoices or your own spreadsheet. Once you know the floor price where you break even, you can decide how far below it you are willing to go to clear space, and whether some items are better donated or bundled off than sold at a loss.

Use a staged markdown schedule

Rather than guessing one discount and hoping, set stages in advance. For example 20% off for two weeks, then 40% if it has not sold through, then 60% as a final clearance price. Write the stages and dates down before you start so you are not making emotional decisions item by item as the deadline approaches.

Watch sell-through, not just the price tag

Check actual units sold per week at each markdown stage. If a 20% discount barely moves the item, do not wait out the full two weeks before cutting again, move to the next stage sooner. If something sells out fast at a shallow discount, you have learned you could have charged more and discounted less next time.

Step by step

  1. List every SKU with zero or near-zero sales in the last 60 to 90 days
  2. Pull your landed cost per unit for each one so you know your real floor
  3. Group items into dead stock, slow movers, and seasonal stock with a deadline
  4. Set a staged markdown schedule with dates, for example 20% then 40% then 60%
  5. Apply the first markdown and track units sold per week against it
  6. Move to the next markdown stage early if sell-through is weak
  7. Record what sold at which discount so future clearance pricing starts smarter

Worked example

A store has 40 units of a discontinued jacket that cost $18 landed and sold at $60. It has not sold in 10 weeks. Stage one is $42 (30% off) for two weeks, which only moves 6 units. Stage two cuts to $30 (50% off), which moves 20 units in one week. Stage three clears the remaining 14 units at $21, still a few dollars above cost, rather than letting them sit another season.

How SteadyShelf helps

SteadyShelf does not do pricing, markdowns, or margin tracking since it does not hold landed cost. What it does give you is clean sales-per-variant data, so you can see exactly which SKUs have gone cold and are worth moving to clearance in the first place, then handle the actual pricing manually in your store admin.

$29/month flat, unlimited products and suppliers, 30-day free trial. Run the numbers now with the free reorder point calculator.

SteadyShelf is launching on the Shopify App Store. Join early access to get the install link first.

Related guides

All inventory how-to guides ยท Inventory glossary

FAQ

Should I discount all clearance stock by the same percentage?

No. A flat discount across everything ignores how different items actually sell. Dead stock with zero recent sales may need a steep cut to move at all, while a slow mover might sell through fine at a shallower discount. Set the discount per item or per group based on how it has been selling, not a single number for the whole clearance section.

How do I know when to stop discounting and just write off the stock?

If a item has gone through two or three markdown stages and still is not selling, further discounts are unlikely to help much. At that point compare the storage and cash-tied-up cost of keeping it against liquidating it in bulk, donating it for a tax write-off, or bundling it with a better seller to move it out entirely.

Let SteadyShelf do this math for every SKU

Order-by dates per supplier, seasonal forecasts and draft POs for your Shopify store. $29/month after a 30-day free trial.

Get early access