Inventory Management System
Every SKU tells you whether it needs reordering. You don't have to work it out.
About the inventory management system
Running out of a product you sell well is more expensive than carrying it, but noticing you're about to is the part that requires attention nobody has. This template sets a reorder point per SKU and flags anything that has fallen to or below it, so the check becomes reading one number rather than scanning a stock list.
Each item carries a SKU, description, category, supplier, quantity on hand, reorder point and unit cost. Stock value and reorder status are both derived. The summary strip totals stock value across the whole catalogue, counts SKUs, counts how many need reordering, and totals units on hand.
A category roll-up underneath breaks value down by product category with each one's share of total stock value. That's usually the number that matters when you're deciding where working capital is tied up, as opposed to which individual line needs a purchase order.
What’s in the template
Everything below is already built into the file. Open it and it’s there.
Summary strip
Total stock value, SKUs tracked, how many need reordering and total units on hand.
Forty item rows
Ten worked examples across four categories with realistic suppliers and costs, plus formatted blank rows.
Automatic reorder flag
Reads REORDER when quantity falls to or below the reorder point, OK otherwise, and blank for rows you haven't filled.
Per-SKU stock value
Quantity times unit cost, totalled at the bottom of the table and in the summary strip.
Category roll-up
Units, value and percentage of total stock value for each product category.
Frozen headers and SKU columns
SKU and item name stay visible while you scroll across to supplier, cost and status.
Who it’s for
Small retailers and e-commerce sellers
Covers the stock control an inventory system provides, at the catalogue size where a full system is more overhead than help.
Makers and craft businesses
Track raw materials and finished goods in the same sheet using the category column to separate them.
Office and facilities managers
Consumables with a reorder point stop running out unexpectedly, which is most of what supplies management involves.
Anyone doing a stock take
The quantity column is where the count goes, and stock value recalculates as you work down the shelves.
How to use the inventory management system
- 1
Load your catalogue first
SKU, item, category, supplier and unit cost change rarely. Get those in once and day-to-day use is only the quantity column.
- 2
Set reorder points deliberately
A sensible starting point is however many units you sell during your supplier's lead time, plus a buffer. Guessing low is what causes stockouts.
- 3
Update quantity after each count
Stock value and the reorder flags follow from it. Nothing else needs touching during a stock take.
- 4
Filter on the status column
Filtering to REORDER gives you the purchase list, already grouped by supplier if you sort on that column too.
The formulas that ship with it
Every one of these is already in the file. They’re listed so you can see how it works, and change it if you want to.
Stock value (column H)
=IF(A8="","",E8*G8)Quantity times unit cost, blank for unfilled rows so the column doesn't show a run of zeros beneath your catalogue.
Reorder status (column I)
=IF(A8="","",IF(E8<=F8,"REORDER","OK"))At or below the reorder point triggers the flag. The wording matters: the summary counts the word REORDER literally.
Needs reorder count
=COUNTIF(I8:I47,"REORDER")The one number worth checking daily. Matches the exact text the status formula writes.
Value by category
=SUMIF($C$8:$C$47,A51,$H$8:$H$47)Totals stock value for one category, which is how the roll-up shows where working capital is concentrated.
Tips for getting more out of it
- Value stock at cost, not at retail price. Valuing at what you hope to sell it for overstates your position and is not how accountants will treat it.
- Review reorder points quarterly. They're set from sales velocity and lead time, and both drift.
- If a SKU is permanently at REORDER, either the reorder point is wrong or the product is being under-ordered systematically; both are worth ten minutes.
- Keep the SKU column as text. Codes with leading zeros lose them if the cell is treated as a number.
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Pre-tested formulas that just work.
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