Counting stock before the busy months: a four-step inventory count
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by Verpakkingdeals.nl
6 min reading time
The system says three, the shelf says zero. Here's how to conduct an accurate inventory count before the busy months: freeze movement, name locations, count blind, and reconcile differences.
There's little as frustrating as not being able to fulfill an order because your system shows three items in stock, but the shelf is empty. In a quiet month, you solve this with an email and a day of patience. In November, it costs you the customer, a negative review, and an afternoon of searching.
Therefore, late August is a good time for an inventory count. Sales are still manageable, you have time to investigate discrepancies, and anything you reorder now will arrive before the busy period. Below is the four-step approach, plus what to do with the discrepancies you're guaranteed to find.
Why now and not in December
Many entrepreneurs only count around the turn of the year because their accountant wants an inventory list then. That's a great time for administration, but a bad time for your sales: you're counting when your inventory has moved the most and is least accurate, and you no longer have time to reorder anything.
An inventory count in August or September has a different purpose: to know what you have before you start purchasing. Discuss with your accountant exactly what they need and when – then you'll only have to partially repeat that second count later, at most.
Step 1: Choose a time when nothing is moving
Counting while items are still being picked, packed, and received always leads to inexplicable discrepancies. Therefore, choose a time window when inventory is static: a Sunday morning, an evening after closing, or the first hour before you start processing that day's webshop orders.
Set aside incoming deliveries that have not yet been booked, with a piece of paper on them: do not count.
Place returns that have not yet been assessed in a separate area, not among the sales inventory.
Also, set aside orders that have been completed but not yet picked up – these are already out of your inventory.
Print or export your system data before you start, with the date and time on it.
Step 2: Give each location a name
The biggest source of counting errors is not miscounting, but double or partial counting: the same items are in three places, and no one knows which ones have already been counted. Therefore, work with fixed, named locations. A simple system like A1, A2, B1 on a shelf or box is enough – you don't need to buy software for this to work.
Step 3: Count blind, and preferably with two people
Blind counting means: the counter doesn't see what the system says. Anyone who has the expected numbers in front of them will subconsciously count towards that number — especially for twenty or more items. So, give the counter a list with the item and location, but without the quantity, and let them fill in the quantity.
If you work with two people, the fastest division is: one counts, one writes and keeps track of the order. A notepad with ballpoint pens, 10 pieces (€4.00) often works better in the warehouse than a phone. Furthermore, it helps to:
complete counting per location, not walk through the premises per item;
for quantities above fifty, count in stacks of ten;
note items with variants (color, size) separately, not add them up to one line;
do a second count for anything where the difference is greater than ten percent.
Step 4: Explain the differences, don't brush them aside
A discrepancy is not a counting error — it's information. If you only adjust the system quantity and do nothing else, the same discrepancy will appear again in three months. Therefore, for each discrepancy, determine its origin.
What you see
Likely cause
What to do about it
Always one or two short
Picking error or breakage during packing
Control moment at the packing table
More on the shelf than in the system
Return not booked back into stock
Fixed step in your return process
Large discrepancy for one item
Delivery not booked or double-booked
Compare packing slip with booking
Discrepancy only for small, expensive items
Shrinkage at the counter
Behind the register or in a display
Note the date and what you adjusted for each discrepancy. During the next inventory count, you'll immediately see if the problem has been resolved or if it recurs.
After counting: labeling, replenishment, and display
A count is only useful if it leads to action. Three things you can do immediately:
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