Are Consumer Goods Manufacturers and Retailers Favored by the Same Inventory Policy? The Case of Port Harcourt
Asiegbu, Ikechukwu F.; PoweiDaubry M.

Abstract
The paper was poised to ascertain if manufacturers and retailers of consumer goods in Port Harcourt, Nigeria adopt the same type of inventory policy. To achieve this, a case study involving a consumer goods manufacturer – Vital Products Industries Limited, and a top Class consumer goods retailing firm – EveryDay Supermarket, both of which operate in Port Harcourt,was conducted using ideographic methodology. Personal interview was used in qualitative data collection from these firms. It was found that the consumer goods manufacturer prefers a hybrid inventory policy that consists of predominantly periodic review and a slight application of re-order point for its raw materials, work-in-progress and semi-finished goods respectively. But the consumer goods retailer endorses only re-order level policy in its finished goods inventory. It appears that consumer goods manufacturing firms adopt more of periodic review inventory policy because of the physical characteristics of their raw materials and fluctuations in suppliers’ lead time caused by seasonal changes and weather conditions. But consumer goods retailers view re-order level of inventory as the best policy that can help them satisfy their customers and achieve their desired customer service level. The paper therefore, concludes that consumer goods manufacturers are not favored by inventory policies that are found effective among consumer good retailers and vice versa.

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