How do I check a packaging distributor’s slow-moving custom stock?

Standard boxes can be resold to someone else. Custom-printed ones usually cannot, so they deserve their own look. Ask the seller to flag every item made to a customer’s artwork or size and show the last time each one shipped. Walk the warehouse and compare what is on the shelf with the report. Dusty pallets that are listed as current are a sign the records are not being kept up.

Next, ask who ordered the stock and why there is still some left. Was it a minimum run the customer agreed to take? Is there a written commitment, or only a verbal one? Ask whether the seller has ever written off leftover custom stock, and how that was recorded.

Finally, discuss with your accountant how slow stock should be valued and whether a write-down belongs in the closing numbers. Think about what happens if a key customer changes its artwork or leaves: that stock becomes a loss that someone has to absorb. Agree in advance how such stock is handled at closing. Keep a dated list of what you find, item by item.

Key takeaways

• Sort the stock list by last shipment and mark every custom-printed item.
• Look for written customer commitments to take leftover custom runs.
• Settle before closing how unsold custom stock is valued and who absorbs it.
• Do not accept inventory values for custom-printed items without checking who ordered them and why they remain unsold.