--- title: "Inventory Management Virtual Assistant from £5/Hour | Ant Assist" description: "A dedicated inventory management virtual assistant for your UK store from £5 per hour: stock checks, reorder flags, channel sync and supplier chasing." url: "https://ant-assist.com/services/ecommerce/inventory-management/" --- E-commerce VA · Inventory Management # Inventory Management Virtual Assistant Stock watched every day across every SKU and channel, reorders flagged before bestsellers run out, slow movers reported. One dedicated VA, your systems, your rules. Here is how it works. Stock checks on schedule · Reorder flags · Channel sync · Supplier chasing [Calculate your savings](https://ant-assist.com/calculator/) · [Book a free 15-min call](https://ant-assist.com/book/) ✓ From £5/hour · ✓ UK-managed · ✓ Dedicated VA, not shared · ✓ 3-month probation, no penalty to leave Rated 5.0 on Google. · Trusted by our clients Updated 19 October 2026 Trusted by businesses ## Our Clients What They Handle ## What an inventory management virtual assistant handles each week ### Inventory monitoring Checks stock levels across your SKUs and channels on a schedule you define, daily, twice daily or weekly depending on your velocity, and records them so the trend is visible, not just the number. ### Reorder flags and purchase orders When stock drops below the threshold you set, flags it, or raises the purchase order if you have given that authority, with the supplier's lead time counted in, so the reorder lands before the stock-out. ### Channel stock sync Keeps Shopify, Amazon, eBay and your other marketplaces showing the same availability, pauses listings that have sold through and reactivates them when the delivery lands, so you never sell what you do not have. ### Slow movers and dead stock Reports the lines that are not moving, the sizes and colours that are stuck and the stock that is tying up cash, so markdowns and bundles are decisions you make on time. ### Supplier coordination Liaises with manufacturers, freight forwarders, 3PLs and couriers: confirms orders, chases delivery dates, checks what arrived against what was ordered and logs the discrepancies. ### Stock status on listings Updates the listing details that stock changes drive: back-in-stock dates, pre-order flags, variant availability and the attributes that stop a listing showing as available when it is not. Which model ## A dedicated inventory VA compared with a spreadsheet the owner keeps themselves Most stores manage stock on a spreadsheet the founder updates in the evening, and it is right until the week it matters. Stock control needs the same attention every day, and the owner's attention is the store's scarcest resource. A dedicated inventory management VA gives the job an owner. The checks happen on schedule, and you still set the thresholds and make the buying decisions. Ant Assist ### Dedicated inventory VA **How it works** Gives the job an owner; checks happen on schedule **In a busy week** Flags arrive with the lead time already counted **Who decides** You set thresholds and make buying decisions **Ant Assist fit** Provided; you stop doing the counting ### Owner's spreadsheet **How it works** Founder updates it in the evening **In a busy week** Updates slip; a bestseller sells out on one channel **Who decides** The owner, whose attention is scarcest **Ant Assist fit** The counting stays with you [Book a free 15-minute discovery call](https://ant-assist.com/book/) ## Explore more VA types Not the right fit? Compare other VA types - [Explore Admin Support](https://ant-assist.com/services/admin/) - [Explore Customer Service](https://ant-assist.com/services/customer-service/) - [Explore Lead Generation](https://ant-assist.com/services/lead-generation/) Who It's For ## Who an inventory VA is for 1. Multi-channel sellers Stock kept in sync across Shopify, Amazon and eBay. 2. Brands whose bestsellers sell out Reorder flags with lead times built in stop stock-outs. 3. Stores using 3PLs and overseas suppliers Your VA reconciles warehouse numbers and chases the gaps. 4. Seasonal stores Stock watched daily before the peak, hours scaled back after. Cost Comparison ## What an inventory management VA costs With Ant Assist the entry rate is £5 per hour for the first 6 months on the Entry tier, 3 months on Mid, 1 month on Expert. A dedicated Ant Assist VA compared with a UK in-house hire and a UK agency, full time. | What you get | Recommended Ant Assist | UK in-house hire | UK agency | |---|---|---|---| | Monthly cost | Standard price £1,040 a month, introductory price £800 for the first 6 months | ~£3,100 | approx. £3,500 to £4,500 | | Who manages the work | Included Our UK team supervises | Not included You do | Partly The agency | | Recruitment and onboarding | Included Included | Not included You recruit and train | Included The agency matches | | Employer NI and pension | Included None to pay | Not included You pay both | Partly Built into the rate | | Office and equipment | Included Included | Not included You provide | Partly Varies by agency | | Holiday and sick cover | Included Cover provided | Not included You find cover | Partly Varies by agency | | Replacement if it is not right | Included Replaced, no restart cost | Not included Re-hire from scratch | Partly Varies by agency | | Contract | Included 12-month term, 3-month probation | Not included Employment contract | Partly Varies by agency | Entry offer: standard rate £6.50, introductory offer £5/hour for your first 6 months. UK agency figures are an approximate range around the £25 per hour agency benchmark our calculator uses. [Book a free 15-min call](https://ant-assist.com/book/) ### What the £5/hour entry rate includes - Dedicated VA, never shared - UK-hour aligned support - Management and supervision included - Recruitment and onboarding included - Office infrastructure included - VA replacement available - No NI, pension, or holiday costs - 3-month probation, no penalty to leave These are typical estimates. Get your exact numbers in the full calculator. Or read [how much a virtual assistant costs in the UK](https://ant-assist.com/resources/virtual-assistant-cost-uk/). [Calculate your exact savings](https://ant-assist.com/calculator/) Process ## How to hire an inventory management VA 1 First call A short call about your tasks, your tools and the hours you need covered. 2 Matching We pick a VA from our in-house team for your work and introduce them to you. 3 Onboarding Together we write down your rules and set up your access before day one. 4 Live Your VA starts on your hours from our managed office, supervised from the UK. 5 Ongoing management A UK team reviews the work each week; hours scale up or down as you need. ## Guides for this service - [The cost of not hiring an e-commerce VA](https://ant-assist.com/resources/cost-of-not-hiring-an-ecommerce-va/) - [E-commerce tasks to delegate to a virtual assistant](https://ant-assist.com/resources/ecommerce-tasks-to-delegate/) - [How to hire a VA for e-commerce: the UK guide](https://ant-assist.com/resources/how-to-hire-a-va-for-ecommerce/) - [How to hire an e-commerce virtual assistant](https://ant-assist.com/resources/how-to-hire-an-ecommerce-va/) Why Managed ## Why a managed inventory VA beats a spreadsheet the owner keeps themselves Managed, not just placed. Your VA is recruited, trained and supervised from our own in-house office. Not a freelancer profile, not a tool you have to keep feeding. The same eyes every day. One person watches the stock, so the patterns, the lines that always run short and the supplier that always slips, are seen and acted on. Replaceable without restart cost. If the fit is wrong, we replace the VA and carry the handover. No re-recruitment, no starting from zero. No NI, pension, or holiday overhead. One hourly rate; the employment costs sit with us. Your data stays yours. Every VA signs an NDA and a data-processing agreement, works inside your admin through password managers at the access level the job needs, and you can revoke access at any time. 3-month probation, no penalty to leave. The initial term is 12 months, including a 3-month probation in which you can end the engagement without penalty. After 12 months it continues monthly with 30 days' notice. FAQ ## Common questions about hiring an inventory management VA ### What does an inventory management virtual assistant actually watch? Stock levels across every SKU and channel, reorder points against your lead times, the slow movers tying up cash, supplier order status, and the gap between what the system says and what the warehouse counts. The output is a daily stock line and a reorder list you approve in minutes. ### Can the VA place purchase orders with my suppliers? Within the rules you set. Reorders below an agreed value are raised and chased by the VA in your name; anything above it, or with a new supplier, a price change or a long lead time, comes to you as a recommendation to approve. Nothing is committed without that rule written down first. ### How does stock stay accurate across Shopify, Amazon and eBay? By one person holding one view. The VA reconciles counts across channels, adjusts listings when a channel oversells or a return comes back, and flags the products that keep drifting so the root cause is fixed. ### Will I still run out of bestsellers before a peak? That is what the reorder points are for. The VA works backwards from your lead times and sales rate, raises the reorder before the stock runs out, and builds the peak forecast with you in advance. ### Does the VA work inside my inventory system or in a spreadsheet? Inside your systems: your store admin, your marketplace accounts and whichever inventory tool you already use, at the permission level each task needs. Your data stays in your accounts. ### What does an inventory management virtual assistant cost? £5 per hour for the first 6 months on the Entry tier. After the promotion the e-commerce rate card applies: £6.50 per hour full time, £1,040 a month for 160 hours, or £6.80 per hour part time, £544 a month for 80 hours. Didn't find your answer? Browse [more common questions](https://ant-assist.com/help/) in the Help Center. Get Started ## Never sell what you do not have. One dedicated inventory VA, from £5 per hour. Book a free 15-minute call. [or book a free 15-minute call](https://ant-assist.com/book/) [Calculate your savings](https://ant-assist.com/calculator/) Discovery call · Role brief · VA matched · Onboarded into your tools A free 15-minute call, no obligation. Or get an instant estimate with the calculator.