Johnson and Boylan (1996) outline the key to customer service in meeting stock keeping unit (SKU) product demand, as breadth of products and depth of availability to meet demand. Syntetos & Keyes (2009) highlight managers contend with storage and manpower constraints, which are related to effective SKU management. Organization size is linked to the number of demand lines, and variety does not easily lend itself to effective SKU planning (Syntetos et al, 2009). Where corporate strategy is concerned, high emphasis placed on agile customer service or low cost efficient cost-leaders. Customers value these dimensions, because they are compatible with their goals. Supply chain interruptions are detrimental because they erode product or corporate brand loyalty (Eroglu et al, 2011). Competition on delivery speed impacts the corporate choice on make-to-order and make-to-stock strategies (Xiao et al, 2010). Ultimately, stock control becomes an extension of customer service, and how the corporation values that relationship (Syntetos et al, 2009).
Demand is viewed in two ways first,