RETAILING Tips for Conducting Your Year-End Physical Inventory – by Jeff Cinciripino, JeffCinciripino.com, Former Owner of Scuba Shack, Rocky Hill, CT
It has been a long dive season – a rewarding year with strong certifica- tion numbers, a robust travel pro- gram, a service department firing on all cylinders, and excellent equipment sales. Give yourself a big hand! With year-end approaching, however,
down and inventory levels are low, it’s the ideal time to rec- oncile your records with reality. While a full physical inventory is hard work, proper planning, preparation, and organization can make the process smooth and efficient. Planning: Just as we plan our dives and training schedules, you should plan your inventory. Start by estimating how much time the count will take. Smaller operations may finish in a
there’s still one critical task to complete before celebrating: conducting a full physical inventory. A physical inventory means counting and verifying every item in your store and warehouse. If your point-of-sale system tracks stock, you may wonder why this is necessary. As DCL Logistics notes, “Businesses rely on their inventory man-
day, while larger ones may need several days. Once you’ve determined the sched- ule, block that time on your calendar and communicate any changes in operating hours to both staff and customers. As- sign clear responsibilities and provide any necessary training ahead of time. Review the features of your inventory software and ensure that tools like barcode scan-
agement system to give them an accurate count, but that’s not always the case.” After a busy year, errors creep in. Equipment may get misplaced or stolen, small items given away for cus- tomer service might never be logged, spare parts used in re- pairs may not be linked to a work order, and new shipments sometimes aren’t entered correctly. As the holiday rush winds
ners are ready and working. Preparation and Organization: Start preparing several weeks before inventory day. Pre-counting is a great time-saver. For example, small items stored in bags can be counted and labeled with tape showing the date and quantity. If items are
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