Simple stock control

[Galactus2024]

I am looking for a database style product to be used for stock control.
I simply want to be able to enter stock items as purchased recording stock number, quantity, purchase price, selling price, VAT rating and supplier. I also want to use the software to create stock check sheets and to key the resulting quantities to give me the net reductions(sales).
It goes without saying that I need this ideally to be free. Everywhere I look the offerings are much too broad as most are Epos or CRM type applications.
I am currently trying to develop an Excel spreadsheet but am having difficulty. Any help anyone can give would be gratefully received.

 

[Daybooks]

The lack of replies may well be because the forum members felt it didn’t need saying that they were not going to do it for free.

An Excel solution is perfectly feasible but as you are probably finding the only thing simple is the requirement to key some numbers in and get some output.

Your stock check sheet probably should be summarised totals of the unique stock items purchased referenced by a stock code. By using that to record the actual physical quantities on hand you can get the movement. This isn’t necessarily the same as sales as there may be stock losses for one reason or another. It also presumes there was a clean starting point; thus there was no opening stock and thus you are looking at like for like ins and outs.

Your next issue will be your following stock takes. Is your reporting going to be done on the whole database, namely cumulatively, or do you just want to look at the purchases made in the new period; at which point you have to start accounting for opening and closing stock. It is beginning to sound a bit like those systems you thought were too broad for your needs.

Lastly and perhaps more importantly is not why you want to do it, as it makes perfect sense to do stock checks, but rather why not use or utilise data from your accounting system? It may of course be that you are using one of those online accounting systems and realising that maybe they are not everything they were made out to be.

You are unlikely to get the right solution until you have the right specification.

 

[Galactus2024]

The lack of replies may well be because the forum members felt it didn’t need saying that they were not going to do it for free.

An Excel solution is perfectly feasible but as you are probably finding the only thing simple is the requirement to key some numbers in and get some output.

Your stock check sheet probably should be summarised totals of the unique stock items purchased referenced by a stock code. By using that to record the actual physical quantities on hand you can get the movement. This isn’t necessarily the same as sales as there may be stock losses for one reason or another. It also presumes there was a clean starting point; thus there was no opening stock and thus you are looking at like for like ins and outs.

Your next issue will be your following stock takes. Is your reporting going to be done on the whole database, namely cumulatively, or do you just want to look at the purchases made in the new period; at which point you have to start accounting for opening and closing stock. It is beginning to sound a bit like those systems you thought were too broad for your needs.

Lastly and perhaps more importantly is not why you want to do it, as it makes perfect sense to do stock checks, but rather why not use or utilise data from your accounting system? It may of course be that you are using one of those online accounting systems and realising that maybe they are not everything they were made out to be.

You are unlikely to get the right solution until you have the right specification.

 

[Galactus2024]

good afternoon Daybooks,
Thank you for your reply to my post.
I am in the very fortunate position that I can enlist two mathematics graduates who have extensive Excel knowledge but wanted to see if I could do it myself first or find someone to help. I now realise that this will not be possible so plan to talk to my two graduates whom will I am sure create the ideal Excel solution for me.
Once again thank you for your response.

 

[fisicx]

But you wanted a database styled solution. Excel can’t do that.

There are loads of stock control applications many low cost. A Google search gave me a long list to choose from.

This one is free and comes recommended by many forum members:

Free inventory management software | Zoho Inventory

Zoho Inventory offers free inventory management software, helps small businesses to manage their inventory effectively. Try free inventory system from Zoho!

www.zoho.com

 

[Daybooks]

But you wanted a database styled solution. Excel can’t do that.

There are loads of stock control applications many low cost. A Google search gave me a long list to choose from.

This one is free and comes recommended by many forum members:

Free inventory management software | Zoho Inventory

Zoho Inventory offers free inventory management software, helps small businesses to manage their inventory effectively. Try free inventory system from Zoho!

www.zoho.com

You can do anything in Excel.

Excel might not have what you regard as a traditional relational database but is often not needed anyhow. The tables within Excel coupled with the Visual Basic for Applications (Excel) give you the ability to do what you want.

Most people see Excel as a spreadsheet rather than the gift that keeps on giving.

 

[Daybooks]

good afternoon Daybooks,
Thank you for your reply to my post.
I am in the very fortunate position that I can enlist two mathematics graduates who have extensive Excel knowledge but wanted to see if I could do it myself first or find someone to help. I now realise that this will not be possible so plan to talk to my two graduates whom will I am sure create the ideal Excel solution for me.
Once again thank you for your response.

They should enjoy it. Hopefully they’ve asked you for your specification.

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

What about your accounts system.

Many offer inventory management and you should be able to get some form of stock sheet from it.

 

[fisicx]

Excel might not have what you regard as a traditional relational database but is often not needed anyhow. The tables within Excel coupled with the Visual Basic for Applications (Excel) give you the ability to do what you want.

Or just use a free and fully supported application.

I'm sure Excel can do all sorts of clever things but you need to know how or pay someone else who knows how. Like many, I wouldn't even know where to begin with Visual Basic for Applications.

 

[GLAbusiness]

If you are looking to build a database solution Microsoft Access may be better than Excel.

A quick google of "stock control database free" shows a lot of results, including

6 Best Free Inventory Management Software for 2024

The best inventory management software helps businesses track products and tools. Find the best free inventory management system here.

fitsmallbusiness.com

 

[Ozoid]

Excel is great for everything, but beware it does not scale well. As soon as you have multiple people using the same spreadsheet or needing to train people to use the spreadsheet, you would be better off having a solid application. Excel can get messy, and within complex spreadsheets there are many possibilities for errors.

 

[Karimbo]

good afternoon Daybooks,
Thank you for your reply to my post.
I am in the very fortunate position that I can enlist two mathematics graduates who have extensive Excel knowledge but wanted to see if I could do it myself first or find someone to help. I now realise that this will not be possible so plan to talk to my two graduates whom will I am sure create the ideal Excel solution for me.
Once again thank you for your response.

excel isn't really a math skill, it's programming and logic issue.

I know maths teachers who lack basic real life logic.

 

[Daybooks]

Excel is great for everything, but beware it does not scale well. As soon as you have multiple people using the same spreadsheet or needing to train people to use the spreadsheet, you would be better off having a solid application. Excel can get messy, and within complex spreadsheets there are many possibilities for errors.

‘Messy’ and ‘possibilities of errors’ are attributes you could apply to any application if badly written. But that is a reflection of its author only; not the tool.

 

[Karimbo]

‘Messy’ and ‘possibilities of errors’ are attributes you could apply to any application if badly written. But that is a reflection of its author only; not the tool.

well in other applications you don't have problems with the source code being editable and living side by side with the input data.

 

[Daybooks]

well in other applications you don't have problems with the source code being editable and living side by side with the input data.

That is usually because the source code is inaccessible or encrypted or both.
You do the same in Excel; because most don’t know how to does not mean you can’t.