How to Do an Inventory Count Without Closing Your Shop

An inventory count — physically counting what you actually have and matching it to your records — sounds like a chore you put off forever. But a drifting count is what causes oversells, bad reorders, and that nagging "do I actually have this?" feeling. The good news: for a maker, a count doesn't have to take a weekend.

When to count

Do a full count at least once a year — the end of your slow season is ideal — and spot-check your fastest movers more often. The busiest products drift the most, so counting just those every few weeks catches problems before they cost you a sale.

Count both kinds of stock

• Materials — your supplies, in the units you track them in (ounces, feet, sheets).
• Finished products — the items you sell, by variation.

Counting one without the other leaves half your picture wrong. If your system links them through recipes, the two should also reconcile against what you've made and sold.

Make it quick

1. 1Work in one area at a time so nothing gets counted twice or skipped.
2. 2Count into your records as you go, rather than on paper to re-enter later.
3. 3Note any big gaps between counted and expected — that's where a process is leaking.
4. 4Update your records to match reality, then move on.

A count isn't about catching yourself out — it's about starting from the truth again.

Keep it from drifting again

The reason counts feel painful is that records drift far from reality between them. The fix is to update stock as you make and sell — or better, scan items in and out so the count stays right on its own. Hivara lets you scan stock with your phone, so a "count" becomes a quick reconcile instead of a dreaded all-day audit.