How to track stock, set reorder points, manage product variants, and connect inventory directly to your sales flow.
Why inventory management matters
Running out of stock means missed sales. Overstocking ties up cash in items sitting on shelves. Poor inventory management is one of the leading causes of cash flow problems in product-based businesses. Knowing what you have, where it is, and when to reorder is not optional once you are operating at scale.
Setting up your product catalogue
Every product should have a unique SKU (stock keeping unit), a name, a category, a cost price, and a selling price. If you sell variants of the same product (different sizes, colours, or configurations), each variant should have its own SKU and stock count. This might seem like extra work upfront but it makes tracking much cleaner.
Reorder points and minimum stock levels
A reorder point is the quantity at which you need to place a new order before you run out. Calculate it by multiplying your average daily sales by your supplier lead time. If you sell 10 units per day and your supplier takes 5 days to deliver, your reorder point is 50 units. Set alerts so you are notified automatically when stock drops below this level.
Connecting inventory to sales
Every time you sell a product, your inventory count should update automatically. Manual counting is error-prone and always lags behind reality. When your invoicing system is connected to your inventory, stock levels reflect actual sales in real time. You always know what is available and what needs to be restocked.
Doing stock counts
Even with a good system, periodic physical stock counts are important. They catch shrinkage (theft or damage), data entry errors, and discrepancies between your system and reality. A full count once a quarter is reasonable for most businesses. High-value or fast-moving items may warrant monthly counts.
Put this into practice with Kuvra
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