Comparing the features and benefits of different stock management software can be overwhelming when you haven’t used software to manage your stock before.
Whether you’re a large enterprise or a small business, you need a software management system that allows you to never miss a beat with the ins and outs of your daily stock control and admin - and then some.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through what to look for when reviewing stock management software features for the inventory of food and beverages in your business.
What should the best stock management software help with?
Before we unpack the features to expect from the best stock management tools, let’s touch on the high-level perks you should expect.
- Being able to determine if you’re working at a profit or loss
- Whether you could benefit from a menu change
- How to hold back on buying the stock that isn’t moving
In a nutshell, those are the characteristics to look out for when looking for the best stock management software. Software that relieves the drudgery that’s associated with long hours counting stock, and that syncs financial stats at a click of a button.
What is stock management software for food and beverage businesses?
Stock management software's role is to record inventory levels, orders, deliveries and sales. In theory, it should make the lives of those working in the hospitality industry easier by tracking the various stages of the supply chain.
From beginning to end, the idea is that you will be able to closely monitor every aspect of your stock so that you can save time and money, sustain growth, improve efficiency, streamline operations and use data to make better decisions. When it comes to the food and beverage industry, you need to invest in the right stock management software that has you and your business's bottom line at heart.
On top of resolving human error oversights during stocktake and preventing fraud, a good stock management software should also assist in changing supplier orders in an instant—even if you've already sent the order to the supplier and without having to call them.
Key features of stock management software
The best stock management software is:
- Fully cloud-based
- Mobile accessible
- Automated for an easier stock management process
- Integrated with your point-of-sale (POS) or connected with your sales data
- Stores all your stock history
- And allows for simultaneous stocktaking
There is a great deal to consider and with various stock management systems out there, it’s easy to make a rash decision.
To make things easier, we've expanded on each feature so that you’re armed with the knowledge you need.
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A software that’s fully cloud-based
Cloud computing has and will continue to simplify the way we do business. Connecting to the cloud means that anyone, anywhere with an internet connection, can access the same applications and programmes providing convenience for any industry.
When it comes to stock management software, that’s gold! It allows for the bar or restaurant’s stocktake to take place while stats are being pulled and enables orders to be made at the same time, even from different devices. Everyone has the freedom to do their jobs with ease, speed and efficiency. From a management perspective, delays decrease while productivity increases.
Stock management that can be accessed on mobile
Most stock management systems limit you to working on a desktop computer. When you work on your feet in the bar and restaurant industry, you need to have technology that makes your life easier.
With phones as good as PCs nowadays, it makes sense to have stock management software that you can carry with you in your pocket. In the case where you may not have that luxury, you most likely will be using pen and paper to count stock, then sitting in front of a computer and manually entering everything in your excel sheet.
A stock management software that is worth its weight should allow you to work from your mobile device. All you’d have to do is log on through your browser to access the programme you need to get your job done. This also means you can use your phone's camera as a barcode scanner to speed up your stocktaking process.
Automated stock management processes
Let’s face it, day to day tasks like stocktake and admin can be as tedious as they can be boring. More so, for the bars and clubs staff members who after a crazy night before are too exhausted to stand, let alone think. Traditional stocktake involves going through the manual process of essentially counting everything twice.
The problem is more often than not, when a pen is put to paper and a million other things need checking before service starts, human error becomes the norm.
With reliable stocktake management software, admin tasks need not be the drudgery they once were.
Automated stock management means that all you have to do is count your stock (using a barcode scanner), and your system automatically reconciles this against what you should have in stock, based on orders, deliveries and invoices. If any discrepancies are found, these are flagged automatically. Other automated features allow you to compare deliveries with what you ordered, receive notifications when a supplier’s price changes, and enable reminders when you run low on stock - so you never miss an item.
POS integration
POS, or “point of sale” systems provide you with detailed sales data but alone, fail to provide you with a comprehensive overview of how your business runs.
Integrating your stock management software to your POS means you can connect what you sell, to what you order, and what you have in stock. This allows you to get accurate analysis reports so that you can make more informed decisions.
For example, by seeing which items are selling well vs which items you have in stock, you can up certain deliveries, and reduce others. This goes a long way to preventing losses and ensuring that you’re managing your food or drink venue in a sustainable way.
Stores all of your stock history
It was Robert Kiyosaki who once said that the best way to predict the future is by studying the past. When it comes to stock management however it’s near impossible to study past stock stores and patterns that fluctuate so often. This is where technology does what the human mind can’t, automating all the important components of stock management so it’s all under one roof.
The convenience of going back at any time to track patterns and understand why there were issues in the past, gives you an aerial perspective. From this vantage point, you’ll be able to see where money is being spent that can be used more effectively.
In turn, this provides you with the tools you need to grow the business, cut costs and make the necessary changes to meet your business goals. It also allows you to move from one month to the next more easily than if you were running it all manually, on pen and paper.
Allows for simultaneous stocktaking
Traditionally, counting bar inventory relies on manually recording inventory data on a piece of paper, before transferring it onto an Excel spreadsheet. Imagine the inefficiency of collecting and coordinating data from two or three staff members that simultaneously perform stocktake from different areas in your venue.
When deciding on the best stock inventory management software, the convenience your software brings should extend past being an online filing system.
With it being cloud-based it should cater for the instances when different staff members need to do stocktake simultaneously to encourage real-time collaboration. When that day comes, your stock management software should be able to handle stocktake done in the main bar, cellar and kitchen at the same time.
Why growyze is the best stock management software for small and large businesses
growyze opens a world of endless possibilities with a fully cloud-based system available on mobile and desktop. You can order from suppliers, complete stocktakes, and reconcile invoices against your orders and deliveries with a few easy taps.
Streamlining internal operations has never been easier with stock management software that not only integrates or connects to your POS, but affords you the convenience of using your phone to complete stocktakes using simple bar code scanning and a 40,000-strong database of ready built food and drink items.
Designed with bars, pubs, restaurants and any F&B business in mind, this and many other reasons have made growyze an inventory management software you can rely on.
You don’t have to take our word for it though. We’re confident that our stock management software will become the business partner you didn’t know you needed.
Book a demo to start your 30-day free trial and see how impactful growyze can be for your stock management workflows.
