Choose items for the checkout shelf that complement main purchases, add clear price labels, and check that customers can browse and pay comfortably. Assign someone to replenish the shelf, and compare sales after changes with your store’s own earlier results.
Set the number of items and replenishment frequency for your shelf. Changing the display does not in itself guarantee higher sales. Assess it using store data and observations of checkout operations.
1. Choose items that complement the main purchase
Start with customer needs and a logical connection between products. For a stationery shop, consider pens alongside notebooks; for a bookshop, bookmarks alongside books. These are options for a test display, whose results you should assess in your own store.
The owner or employee responsible for the assortment should make a short list of candidates. Next to each one, note which main purchase it complements and what the customer might need it for. If the connection is hard to explain, review the selection.
For the first test, choose one group of compatible products. Record its contents and the start date. This gives you a specific list of items to track after changing the display.
2. Make the price visible and unambiguous
Place the price label so customers can identify the price of a specific item before checkout. For a small display, use consistent labels and colors that match the store’s presentation.
Ask an employee to check the shelf from the customer’s side: is the price visible, is it clear which item it belongs to, and is it unobstructed by packaging? If different pens or bookmarks are next to each other, check each item separately.
Repeat this check after rearranging the products. Do not leave a price label in its former spot if it no longer matches the item’s position.
3. Leave room for customers to choose and cashiers to work
Leave enough space in front of the checkout counter for customers to pay, and behind it for employees to work comfortably. Check the display as part of the full service process: choosing an item, paying, and collecting the purchase.
Ask an employee to go through this process from the customer’s side, while the cashier carries out their usual tasks. Check whether a customer can take an item from the shelf, place purchases down for payment, and collect them afterwards. Also check that the product stand does not get in the cashier’s way.
If the display has to be moved to carry out these tasks, change its position or reduce the number of items. Choose a specific solution based on the conditions in your premises.
4. Arrange items so they are easy to reach
Move items to the front edge of the shelf so customers can easily find and pick them up. Then check access to each item.
Ask an employee to pick up one item from different parts of the display. If they have to move neighboring packages or reach to the back of the shelf, rearrange the items. Set the quantity according to the available space and how easy the items are to choose.
When checking the shelf, return items to the front edge and straighten any shifted price labels. Add these tasks to the duties of the employee responsible for the display.
5. Organize replenishment and review the results
When planning replenishment, consider sales trends and supplier capacity. Separate two tasks: moving stock from storage to the checkout shelf, and ordering it from the supplier.
Assign someone to the shelf and agree on when they will check stock. Adjust the frequency based on actual sales. Before preparing a new order, check whether an empty space on the shelf can be filled from existing stock.
To assess a display change, keep a simple log:
- the change date and list of items;
- the number of units sold during the chosen period;
- product availability and instances when the shelf was empty;
- price changes or promotions during the comparison;
- cashier feedback on product access and workflow.
Illustrative example. A bookshop put bookmarks by the checkout. It sold 20 bookmarks in the previous two weeks and 28 in the next two. The difference is 8 units. These figures illustrate the calculation. Before deciding to keep the display, the owner should compare the conditions in both periods: bookmark availability, prices, and promotions. The difference alone is not enough to attribute the result to the checkout placement.
How to review sales and stock levels in Torgsoft
To review results by product group, use «Аналіз реалізації за видами товару» (Sales analysis by product type). It shows trading results broken down by product type. The owner can compare these results with their list of display items and decide which groups need closer review.
To work with stock, use «Аналіз стану на складах» (Stock status analysis). After you select an accounting center, it shows the stock status of that center and all subordinate warehouses. Compare this data with your checkout shelf check when deciding where to replenish the display from.
If the same item is sold both at the checkout and on the shop floor, you need a separate measurement method to assess the specific location. Do not attribute all sales in a product group to the checkout shelf. Supplement the analysis with a change log and on-site checks.
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