Supplements

Zesti Greens

Stockouts 25% to 12% | OTIF 91% to 94%

12%
Stockout Rate
94%
OTIF Rate
4.6%
Return Rate

The Situation

Zesti Greens is a greens powder and superfood supplement brand selling all-in-one greens, reds, and mushroom blend powders through Amazon as the primary channel, with a secondary DTC site. The business operates a subscription model typical for the supplement category, relying on a US-based contract manufacturer with imported raw ingredient inputs.

A fast-growing Amazon-native brand with strong demand and a weak operational foundation. The business was scaling on instinct rather than systems.

  • No demand planning -- ordering based on gut feel and urgency
  • Inventory swings between stockouts and overstock with no logic bridging them
  • Product inconsistency issues (germination and quality problems)
  • High return rates
  • Leadership culture oriented toward chasing viral demand spikes rather than building stability

Our Role

Supply chain and inventory planning ownership. We were brought in to build the operational infrastructure that would allow sustainable growth.

  • Demand forecasting model build and management
  • Supplier scorecard implementation
  • Packaging standardisation
  • Forecast-driven ordering cadence
  • Inventory planning discipline

Engagement Phases

Phase 1 -- Stabilisation

0-6 Months
  • Built demand forecasting model from scratch
  • Implemented supplier scorecards
  • Standardised packaging across product lines
12%
Stockout Rate
from 25%
4.6%
Return Rate
from 6%
94%
OTIF
from 91%

Phase 2 -- Attempted Systemisation

6-9 Months
  • Tried to implement ongoing inventory discipline and forecast-driven ordering
  • Leadership behaviour became the constraint: chasing viral demand spikes, ignoring forecasts, switching suppliers reactively
  • Systems were built but not adopted

Phase 3 -- Regression

9-12 Months
  • Without leadership buy-in, systems degraded
  • Stockouts climbed back above entry levels
  • Review scores declined as product consistency issues returned
20%
Stockout Rate
from 12%
6.2%
Return Rate
from 4.6%
Declining
Review Scores
were improving

Outcome

We exited this engagement. The core issue was a leadership orientation toward growth acceleration without operational control. Systems were delivered; they were not used. This is a documented negative-outcome engagement -- we include it because honest reporting matters.

Dealing with similar challenges?

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