Inventory Shrinkage (Reselling)

Where resellers lose stock

Four common sources of shrinkage:

• In transit. A parcel gets lost, misdelivered, or damaged during shipping. The buyer may get a refund through buyer protection, but you — the seller — do not recover the item or its cost.
• After returns. A returned item arrives damaged, worn, or in a condition that prevents reselling at the planned price. Some platforms cover this partially; others leave you holding the loss.
• In storage. Items get crushed, water-damaged, stained, or otherwise degraded while sitting in your stockroom. This includes boxes crushed by other merchandise and items forgotten in corners.
• Miscounts. An item was never logged correctly at entry, was given away accidentally, or simply vanished from your tracking. This is the hardest shrinkage to trace — regular counts are the only defence.

What marketplace protection covers

Vinted Buyer Protection covers private sellers only for "Buy now" purchases. If the item does not arrive, arrives damaged, or is significantly not as described, the buyer is refunded — but Vinted does not compensate the seller for the lost item. The loss stays on your side of the ledger. See how to handle lost Vinted parcels.

OLX Pakiet Ochronny (Protection Package) is paid by the buyer, with the amount shown in each listing. It covers two situations: an empty parcel, or an item that does not match the listing — including functional issues or undisclosed damage. The buyer has 48 hours to file a claim. If the claim is accepted, the buyer returns the item via OLX Returns at your cost and receives a refund that includes the item price, delivery cost, and the Pakiet Ochronny fee.

Returned OLX parcels under Pakiet Ochronny wait for pickup by the following deadlines: InPost parcels wait 48 hours, Orlen Paczka parcels wait 72 hours, and Poczta Polska parcels wait 7 days. Uncollected returns become abandoned and may be handled per OLX rules.

How to measure it

Count your full inventory at regular intervals — monthly is practical for active resellers. Compare the counted total against your purchase records at the price you paid. The gap is your shrinkage in zł at cost.

Calculate shrinkage both in items and in zł at cost. For example, say you bought 100 items for 5,000 zł total (50 zł each on average) and count only 95 — your shrinkage is 5 items or 250 zł at cost.

Keep it low: prevention checklist

• Label every item with a SKU when you log it in (see the SKU system for resellers)
• Photograph each item before packing — use consistent lighting
• Seal parcels securely and use appropriate packaging for the item type
• Count your inventory monthly or at minimum quarterly
• Check returned items immediately; note damage in photos before opening
• Store items off the floor and away from moisture or crushing weight

Regular counts catch shrinkage early. The earlier you spot a pattern — say, always losing items in transit to a specific carrier — the faster you can switch to a more reliable option.