In-Stock Head Start

With In-Stock Head Start, customers can find and buy your temporarily out-of-stock products when your shipment is on its way to the fulfillment center.

Even with the best inventory planning, popular products can sometimes go out of stock, and that can affect your product discoverability and sales. With this Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) feature, we will make your out-of-stock products available for customers to find and buy when your shipment is on its way and we are confident about its arrival date. Customers will benefit from a wider selection of products, and you could see higher or more consistent sales.

Your out-of-stock inventory is eligible for In-Stock Head Start once the shipment is on its way to the fulfillment center. We will use the information about your fulfillment center shipment to estimate the in-stock date for your products.

In-Stock Head Start has a number of potential benefits:

• Discoverability: Products that are on their way to the fulfillment center will appear in search results, giving customers a wider selection and helping to increase traffic to your product detail pages.
• Sales: Customers can buy temporarily out-of-stock products, which can result in improved sales.
• Inventory productivity: Taking customer orders while your products are on their way to the fulfillment center can reduce the time between shipment and sale.

You can continue using the same Seller Central reports and tools that you have been using to reconcile your inventory. The Available quantity on the Manage Inventory page will reflect the number of units of a SKU that are in the Amazon fulfillment network and that can be picked, packed, and shipped. The Inbound quantity will reflect the number of units of a SKU in shipments that are on their way to the fulfillment center, including units that are available through In-Stock Head Start. If your inventory is eligible for In-Stock Head Start, the offer for your temporarily out-of-stock item will show as Active on the Manage Inventory page.

If you want to see the number of units available through In-Stock Head Start, go to the Manage Inventory page, click the down arrow next to a product's Available quantity, and in the drop-down menu find the Future Supply Buyable quantity.

If you want to see number of units that have been purchased while inventory is on its way to the fulfillment center, go to the Manage Inventory page, click the down arrow next to a product's Available quantity, and in the drop-down menu find the Reserved Future Supply quantity.

For example, if you see 70 units of a particular SKU as Reserved Future Supply and 30 units as Future Supply Buyable, it means that 70 units have already been purchased while the shipment is on its way to the fulfillment center, and that 30 units are still available for customers to buy.

You can also find information about In-Stock Head Start units on the Manage FBA Inventory report.

How can I be sure Amazon will deliver customer orders on time?

With In-Stock Head Start, if a customer places an order for an out-of-stock item, the delivery date will be based on the estimated in-stock date. If the shipment is delayed, we will adjust the in-stock date.

Should I change my inventory replenishment cycle because of In-Stock Head Start?

In-Stock Head Start is intended for products that occasionally go out of stock. It is not meant to substitute for your regular inventory replenishment schedule. Staying in stock will lead to the best customer experience and could lead to higher sales.

Why aren't all of my products available for customers to find and buy if my In-Stock Head Start status is active?

It could take up to 48 hours to make your products available to customers after we get the estimated arrival date from carriers through Amazon Carrier Central, the Partnered Carrier program, or Amazon Global Logistics. Also, to protect the customer experience, we might not make all of your out-of-stock ASINs available for customers to find and buy before the products reach the fulfillment center. This could occur if we are not confident that the shipment will arrive on time and contain the expected number of products.

What happens if I pause In-Stock Head Start?

You can temporarily pause the feature by clicking Pause feature on the program page. Shipments created 72 hours after we confirm via email that you have paused In-Stock Head Start will not be available for customers to find and buy before they reach the fulfillment center. You can also see your In-Stock Head Start status on the program page.

Why didn't I get an email confirmation after I clicked the "Pause feature" or "Reactivate now" button?

If you haven't seen the email within 48 hours, check to see if it was delivered to your junk email folder.

If you didn't get the email, it could be because you have unsubscribed from Amazon emails or the email address on your seller account is different from the one you normally use for communication purposes.

You can always check the program page to see your In-Stock Head Start status. It can take up to 48 hours for your status to update after you pause or reactivate In-Stock Head Start.

What happens when Amazon adjusts the delivery promise to customers, but my shipment is received at the fulfillment center before that date?

Customers might receive their order earlier, based on the actual shipment received date.

My In-Stock Head Start inventory has been stranded. Does this affect my IPI score?

No. Your IPI score isn't affected by stranded inventory that hasn't arrived at fulfillment centers.

How does Amazon determine which inventory to include in In-Stock Head Start?

The out-of-stock products that will be available for customers to find and buy before products reach the fulfillment center are based on a number of factors. These factors include the history of shipments sent that contain the expected number of products, the historical accuracy of the carrier, and the fulfillment center capacity.

For example, if you consistently ship the number of products listed in your shipment plan, your products have a higher probability of becoming buyable when they go out of stock.