The News
WD-40 cut more than $7 million from its supply chain costs in fiscal 2026, which ended in August. The savings came from changes to packaging, logistics and sourcing.
Inventory fell to 95 days on hand from 99 a year earlier. The goal is 90.
On-time delivery stayed above 96%.
The details
Cheaper cans and fill fees won back almost half of a jump in input costs. Pricier specialty chemicals and raw materials cut Q4 gross margin by about 370 basis points. Lower aerosol can costs and fill fees added back about 170, mostly from changes in Europe, India, the Middle East and Africa.
Q4 gross margin was 52.8%, down 190 basis points.
Contract manufacturers make WD-40’s finished goods.
Inventory still grew to $83.3 million from $79.9 million as net sales rose 11% to $688 million.
WD-40 added a manufacturing partner in Europe and invested in strategic inventory. Together, those give it “more flexibility to manage cost volatility,” CEO Steve Brass said.
Freight cost about $1.5 million more in Q4, mostly to keep product moving through Middle East disruptions.
Shipping to customers cost $21.0 million for the year, up from $18.2 million.
Freight and oil-based inputs are still the main costs running high.
Worth knowing
WD-40 has used the same three levers two years running. Packaging, logistics and sourcing saved “several million dollars” in fiscal 2025 and more than $7 million in fiscal 2026. WD-40 expects about the same again in fiscal 2027.
The DC network savings mostly come later. WD-40 is reviewing where its 3PL-run distribution centers sit to cut delivery miles. Some of that “won’t impact the business until FY ‘27 and beyond,” CFO Sara Hyzer said in January.
What’s next
Keith Stauffer becomes CFO on Nov 2. WD-40 reports its first fiscal 2027 quarter in January.
(Photo: ajay_suresh / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0)
