In times of crisis, hoarding and overburdened supply chains can make essential goods hard to find. Even at the best of times, you can’t count on a store’s website to have an up-to-the-minute inventory of everything in the store. Retail stores probably won’t send a notification when they have toilet paper.
If a company sells all of one item and plans to restock it, that item is “sold out.” If the company does not have plans to bring the item back, that item is out of stock. To make matters more confusing, many large chains reverse this terminology. Sold Out at Target means the stock may or may not be replenished. Out of Stock indicates that Target will keep selling that item but current stock has been depleted.
Notify Me buttons will almost never appear for widely sold out goods, such as hand sanitizer, toilet paper and face masks. These goods may sell out, but will never go out of stock during the hoarding due to the pandemic we are facing.
To sign up for restock notifications, most retail websites will require you to set up a free account with an email address. Notify Me buttons tend to appear on the product details page, so look there when the item you are looking for is out of stock, sold out or otherwise unavailable.
Walmart.com has a note that the item you are looking for is out of stock, but the button next to that note can be clicked on to get an “In-Stock” alert. Enter your email address and Walmart will notify you when they receive a shipment. The same applies to Target.com where you can list add your mailing address to be notified when something is back in stock.
If you are looking to install a security camera or need a laptop, B & H has stock. If the item happens to be on back order, you can set an alert by clicking “Request Stock Alert”, enter your email address, then click on “Let Me Know.”
A website called “nowinstock.net” lets you see which stores have stock available for purchase or pre-order. The category is called Coronavirus Related Trackers and will show items such as hand sanitizers, household cleaning products, toilet paper, thermometers, and more. The website’s tracker updates every minute. They include stock from Amazon, B&H, Best Buy, BJ’s, Game Stop, Home Depot, Lowes, Microsoft, Sears, Staples, Target and Walmart.
Supply Finder checks inventory from Amazon, Target, and Walmart to help you find items in stock.
Markk (an app to download) is an emergency supply finder where users can add photos and videos of essential items in stock at stores. When someone posts, it shows up on a feed and the Markk map. Posts expire within 24 hours to keep the finder fresh.
zooLERT is constantly watching online retailers’ inventory. You can sign up to receive email or mobile alerts for when items are in stock after you’ve browsed through their categorical tracking sheets.
Another tool that helps in this time is the WhatsInStock app. It was developed for neighbors to help each other shop confidently and efficiently at any time. It also helps reduce travel and in person interactions. Users help each other by reporting the items they find or don’t find after each grocery run.
BrickSeek keeps tabs on individual products at local stores monitoring individual inventories of big-box retailers. Choose the free basic account( 1 alert, checked a few times a week) or Premium account ($9.99 per month with 5 alerts checked daily) or Extreme account ($29.99 per month with 20 alerts checked twice daily). To register for a Brickseek account –search for a desired product – choose from search results – click check inventory; choose a retailer – click “add local alert” – check your email.
Normally focused on sale items at Costco, the team at Costco97 has been putting its energy towards advising shoppers where and when toilet paper, paper towels, water, rice, diapers, disinfecting wipes and Lysol are in stock. The crowdsourced “Costco TP Tracker” is free to use , but you must keep checking back for more info.
Retail stores will not send you an immediate alert when they receive a high demand item, due to a rush heading to the store. To find out what items are in stock in your local store, call the store on the phone. Store workers will know what they have in stock that you may want.
