Definition of 'Retail Inventory Method '
An accounting procedure for estimating the value of a store's merchandise. This method calculates a store's total inventory value by taking the total retail value of the items that were originally in inventory, subtracting the total sales, then multiplying that dollar amount by the cost-to-retail ratio (the percentage by which goods are marked up from their wholesale purchase price to their retail sales price).
This method really only provides an approximation of inventory value, however, as some items in a retail store will most likely have been shoplifted, broken or misplaced. Physical inventory must also be performed periodically to ensure the accuracy of inventory estimates.
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