Online auction marketplace streamlines supply chain to fill orders quickly

After Americans stuff themselves full of Thanksgiving dinner, many are then likely to unleash their appetites for a different kind of consumption: consumers will gorge on post-holiday sales, beginning on "Black Friday" and continuing through the duration of the holiday season. How, though, will businesses handle the onslaught of increased traffic amid inventory worries?

Liquidation.com, an online marketplace that sells surplus goods from retailers, specializes in inventory control, buying excess goods from businesses. The company is gearing up for its busiest day of the year, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, dubbed "Restock Tuesday" by the company. Companies flock to the website to restock their shelves after the busy shopping days that precede it.

Already prepared for the uptick in business, Liquidation.com increased staff at its warehouse locations, each facility optimized to better serve businesses of varying size. Cayce Roy, executive vice president of the online auction house, said that the company's incredibly efficient supply chain allows it to "meet merchants' inventory needs quickly enough to sell before the end of December," a feat few other organizations can duplicate.

Because of rising consumer confidence and spending, the company anticipates that it will close 20 percent more auctions this year than in 2009.