Boxes in the doorway at eleven on a Saturday
The courier drops four boxes at the door just as the shop gets busy. Someone drags them into the back. On Monday you unpack: the mugs are there, but only three of the four colours, and two plates are cracked. The packing note is somewhere in the cardboard. The invoice arrives by email a week later with everything on it.
By then, you have half forgotten what was missing, the cracked plates are in the bin, and the invoice gets paid in full.
Goods-in is squeezed between customers
In a small shop there is no goods-in team. Deliveries are handled by whoever is free, and the checks that would catch problems take time nobody has on the shop floor.
- Deliveries arrive during opening hours, often at busy times.
- Packing notes, orders and invoices are in three different places.
- Breakages are found when unpacking, sometimes days later.
- Short items are noticed only when you look for them on the shelf.
- Invoices are paid from email, without a check against what arrived.
What unchecked deliveries cost
Paying for items that never arrived, or arrived broken, is money straight out of the margin. Suppliers are usually happy to credit shortages and breakages, but only if told promptly, often within a set number of days of delivery.
Stock figures on the till also go wrong if deliveries are booked in from the invoice rather than what actually arrived, which then affects reorders and stocktakes.
Price changes are the quiet one. A supplier who has raised prices since you ordered may invoice at the new price, and unless someone compares the invoice with the order, the margin on that line shrinks without anyone deciding it should. On a shelf price set months ago, that can turn a good line into a poor one.
How we build a goods-in check
- Your orders are recorded, whether placed by email, at a trade show or on a supplier's website, so each delivery has something to check against.
- When boxes arrive, staff open the delivery on a phone, scan items or tick them off the order, and enter quantities.
- Breakages and wrong items are photographed and noted on the spot.
- The delivery is booked into the till with the quantities that actually arrived.
- When the supplier's invoice arrives by email, it is read and compared with the order and the delivery, line by line.
- Any difference, such as short items, breakages or price changes, is listed with photos, ready to send to the supplier before you pay.
| Check | Before | With goods-in |
|---|---|---|
| What arrived vs order | Noticed later, if at all | Checked on unpacking |
| Breakages | Binned | Photographed and recorded |
| Invoice vs delivery | Not compared | Compared line by line |
| Claim to supplier | Rarely made | Prepared with evidence |
If you use Xero or QuickBooks, invoices can be held until the check is complete, so nothing is paid before differences are resolved.
Goods-in afterwards
Deliveries are still unpacked between customers, but the check is quick and done on the spot. Shortages and breakages are recorded the day they are found. When the invoice arrives, the differences are already listed, and a claim goes to the supplier in minutes.
Your till stock reflects what really arrived, and your accounts reflect what you should really pay.
Suppliers tend to respond well to clear claims with photos and line references, sent promptly. Credits arrive, and over time you can see which suppliers deliver accurately and which regularly send short, which is useful when you decide where to place your next order. The unpacking stays a job for a quiet moment, but the checking is no longer something that waits until it is too late to claim.
Signs your deliveries need checking
- Deliveries are unpacked days after they arrive.
- You pay supplier invoices without checking against the delivery.
- Breakages are rarely claimed.
- Short deliveries are noticed when the shelf looks empty.
- Stock is booked in from the invoice rather than what arrived.