A customer has just arrived at the store to purchase a number of household cleaning products and kitchen supplies. With a warm smile, you remember the things he needs, then help get them. Even so, it turns out that most of the products these customers are looking for are not on the shelves or in warehouses. Because you are not used to taking notes, you forget to place an order, so a lot of stock runs out without realizing it.
What will you do when faced with this? Of course, as a business actor, this is not a pleasant experience.
As a business actor, operational management is one of the important pillars that you need to pay attention to. In simple terms, operational management is the management of every factor that plays a role in the process of producing goods or services. For MSMEs who have retail kiosks or grocery stalls, this management is no less important in maintaining product availability for consumers.
The business of recording product stock is often underestimated by business people, especially small traders or MSMEs. This activity seems complicated and tedious, so entrepreneurs tend to put it aside. In fact, neat stock management is one indicator to assess whether a business is healthy or not. It is not uncommon for traders to feel capable of remembering all the stock amounts by heart, but in reality human memory capacity is very limited. If the number of items in stock is small, maybe this will be quite easy to do, but what happens if we have large amounts of various stocks? There's no way we can remember them accurately, let alone manage them. As a result, MSMEs often do not realize when goods are missing or damaged. How can a business be successful if it only prioritizes things that seem important without paying attention to every aspect that actually supports the sustainability of the business?
When you don't know the number of items in stock accurately, you may face some of these consequences. First, merchandise can be lost, damaged, or even changed hands without your knowledge. With an irregular system, it is also easy for errors to occur in calculating goods during transactions or in the goods delivery schedule. Plus, as in the previous case example, a store that is short or empty of goods can disappoint customers, thereby increasing the potential for business losses.
Practical Tips for Managing Stock for Entrepreneurs
After we understand the importance of operational management and the dangers of product stock that is not properly recorded, the next question arises: how can we as business actors manage stock of goods effectively and efficiently? Qasir has a number of practical tips for managing stock for you.
Tip #1: Organize Storage Neatly By Category
Neat organization will make it easier for you to find products. When product management is not neat, there may be a difference between the stock amount in the recording system and the actual stock amount. In addition, damaged or missing products will be much easier to detect.
Citing an explanation in the blog of the software retail Lightspeed company, storing merchandise neatly can be done in several steps. First, you need to determine a plan of your sales area and storage warehouse, which is then explained to all employees in the store. Small or large, this step can help you manage your shop more neatly.
After that, store the goods in storage sections and shelves based on each category and type, which are then marked with clear labels, making it easier to search and inspect the goods. Every employee in the store also has clear guidelines for putting and taking goods in their place.
Tip #2: Make a Stock List
With this list, you can easily find out which items are often sold and which are not so popular. You can also start with simple note-taking. In the stock records, you need to have the name of the report and the reporting period written clearly. After that, record all the basic information about the products in your business, such as the item code, item name, number of items available, price of the item, as well as several other necessary information. With this simple format, you already have the most basic data for monitoring stock in your business.
Tip #3: Monitor Goods Movement and Place Orders
If you already have notes, you will automatically know if merchandise is running low, before the stock is completely empty. You can also order again immediately without having to wait for the item to run out. However, the next question arises: when do we need to reorder? Based on information from Veeqo, the reorder point is when the safe stock figure is reached. One formula given is to multiply the number of days from ordering until the goods are received by the number of sales of goods each day. The figure obtained is then added to the amount of stock that is considered safe, for example 50 products. The last number obtained from this formula is the determining number for us to immediately place another order. With a more organized system like this, customers will not be disappointed because what they are looking for is always available.
There are several ways you can place an order. For entrepreneurs whose sales are stable, you can order products in regular quantities. Entrepreneurs who are adept at gauging estimated market demand can adjust order quantities periodically. For retail businesses in smaller quantities, orders can be placed after the stock amount is below a certain limit.
Tip #4: Make Regular Stock Checks
Business actors also need to ensure that the recorded stock is the same as the physical stock, both in quantity and quality. That way, you will know if there are items that have a difference in quantity or are in bad condition. For entrepreneurs with quite large amounts of stock, Vend recommends one method for calculating stock, namely cycle counting. This method includes the process of counting some merchandise continuously, either every day or every week outside of store operating hours, so that stock levels can be continuously monitored without disrupting buying and selling activities. Entrepreneurs do this by calculating the amount of physical stock in a certain area, comparing it with the overall data in the system, then making corrections. This turns out to be known as the most efficient method for entrepreneurs.
Regarding physical recording, the frequency of implementation can be determined by each entrepreneur based on their needs, either once a year, once every two years, or even more often. The most important thing is to determine a clear frequency and explain it to each store employee, so that everyone can be ready and do their part well.
Looks like a hassle? Yes, we understand that managing stock of goods, especially in high quantities and variety, is certainly very troublesome and takes time. This is certainly felt when recording is still done manually, namely with pen and paper. What's more, if the notes are scattered. Meanwhile, customers are already queuing to shop at the store.
Then why not try the Qasir application?
With Qasir, you can carry out transactions, record the number of items available, monitor stock conditions, and place orders for the products you need. All in one handy and free app! It's as easy as pressing the download button, registering, and selecting the “Products” feature in the application. In this feature, you can easily record all items according to type, variety, price and number of products. All incoming and outgoing products will be monitored systemically, so you don't need to count and record manually repeatedly. This feature can also help you see which products are selling best and which are almost out of stock and which are still in stock in your storage space.
Ease of recording and managing product stock is only one of the various conveniences that Qasir can provide. Whatever the form of your business, Qasir can be a friend who is ready to help make your business run optimally.
After this, try to develop the habit of managing stock neatly, BossQ. Make your business more organized, more trustworthy, and more profitable!