How to Estimate the Size of Liquidation Merchandise

If you’re new to the art of liquidation resale, you may find it difficult to understand exactly what you’re purchasing when bidding on an auction. Some lots include a full manifest, giving buyers an easy way to estimate the size they’ll need to store their goods. Others only provide vague details, with information like “2 pallets” or “full truckload” taking the place of a size estimate.

If you’re new to purchasing pallets, you will need to learn how to estimate the size of liquidation merchandise quickly.  Read on for helpful details to estimate the physical size and space required for these auction lots!

How Much Warehouse Space Do I Need?

If your products are relatively small and contained in regularly shaped boxes, you can likely stack them in the same amount of space as the original pallet required. On the other hand, if your goods are extremely large, such as furniture, appliances, or irregularly shaped and difficult to stack, you may need far more space.

This is, of course, not an exact science. In fact, scientific papers have been written on the concept of estimating and maximizing warehouse storage space. In general, you’ll want to account for extra space when items can’t be easily stacked. Also consider items that might expand when no longer compressed by packagings, such as the case with pillows or comforters.

You’ll also want to ensure that you have enough space in your warehouse for unpacking and moving products around. Don’t forget to factor in walkways for smaller goods or dolly and forklift lanes for large or heavy goods.

No matter how much space you think you’ll need for any given shipment, it’s always good to err on the side of caution. Try to plan for more space than your estimate, whenever possible. This will give you more room for sorting, unpacking, and even trying out your newly acquired merchandise as needed.

Next, we will go over pallet size and how to estimate the size of liquidation merchandise by different lot types like truckload and LTL.

What is the Size of a Pallet Liquidation Lot?

Many liquidation auctions are for a pallet or a few pallets of goods. The standard US pallet size is 48″x40″. It takes up about 13 ⅓ square feet of floor space in your warehouse. But that doesn’t really begin to tell the story.

As a reseller, you probably won’t be keeping your products in pallets. You’ll want to unpack each shipment as soon as it arrives. So how much space will you need for a pallet of goods? Well, this depends entirely on the type of products you’re stocking.

What is the Size of a Truckload Liquidation Lot?

A full truckload of goods will obviously be much larger than a single pallet. In fact, the standard is that each truckload contains 24-26 pallets worth of merchandise, though in some cases it can be even more. Most often, this means anywhere from 5,000 lbs. up to 45,000 lbs.

When receiving a full truckload of goods, you’ll need space to unload the truck, and also space to unpack, sort, and store your new merchandise. You’ll probably also want to have helpers on hand to deal with such a large volume of goods all at once.

What is the Size of an LTL Liquidation Lot?

LTL lots fall somewhere between the size of a pallet and the size of a truckload. In fact, the acronym is commonly translated as “less-than-truckload.” Typically, these shipments make up somewhere between one and 10-12 single pallets. Be sure to read the details of LTL auctions carefully to get a sense of how much space you are likely to need.

The good news is there’s a starting place for everyone. B-Stock offers auctions from single pallets of inventory up to truckloads of merchandise. This gives you the opportunity to start small, learn, and grow from there.

If you’re new to liquidation auctions, you’ll probably need to get a few under your belt before you have an innate sense for the amount of space needed. In the meantime, try to set aside more space than you need, and always carefully consider all of the details in each auction listing before placing a bid.