The problem: the count that never happens
Most restaurants know they should count stock every week or month, and most put it off. A full count on paper means closing early or staying late, copying numbers into a spreadsheet, and arguing about differences nobody can explain. So the count slips, stock drifts, and the food cost report stops meaning anything. A good stock take app lets you count while you trade, one area at a time, and does the maths for you.
Start a count
- Open Inventory, then Count stock, and click Start a count.
- Under What do you want to count? choose Full count, Some areas (tick the areas, for example the dry store), or Quick list. You can also choose Count one category instead.
- Optionally tick Blind count, then click Start count.
Items appear in their shelf order, so the counter walks the store once. For each item, type the full packs, then the loose units, for example seventeen sleeves of cups and twenty loose cups, or two bags of sugar and one loose kilo. Each number saves by itself. Use Scan to find an item by its barcode, and Mark area done when an area is finished. Several people can count at once on their phones, and numbers typed without signal are sent when the connection comes back.
Counting without closing
You do not have to stop selling. The expected amount for each item is taken at the moment that item is counted, so sales before and after the count land on the right side of the line. Items you do not count stay as they are, which is why counting by area or by category works: count the walk in fridge on Monday and the dry store on Thursday if that suits your week. A branch can have one open count at a time.
Blind counts and recounts
In a blind count, staff do not see how much the system expects, so they count what is really there instead of typing the number on screen. The owner and branch managers still see the expected amounts and the differences. When a number looks doubtful, open the count, click Review differences, use the filters Big differences, Missing and Extra, tick the doubtful items, and send them back for a recount. The first count stays visible next to the recount, and while items wait for a recount only the owner or a manager can finish the count.
Review, finish and read the results
Review differences shows, for each item, what is missing or extra and what it is worth. Click Finish count, then Finish and update stock, and your stock matches the shelf. Every finished count stays under Count stock with its Net difference, Items down, Items up, the Top 5 losses by value and the Net difference by area, and you can download a count sheet as PDF or the results as Excel. Money differences use average cost, and items with no cost are left out of the value.
Prefer paper? Print a count sheet
On Stock items, check the branch at the top, choose a Storage area to count one place at a time, and click Print count sheet. Each line has the item and the unit to count it in, with a blank Counted column. Staff write on it, then someone types the numbers in from Count stock. Inside an open count, More actions offers a blank count sheet for the area you are counting.
What is and is not included
A count can be cancelled before it is finished; the numbers are kept for the record but nothing is applied. A finished count cannot be edited or cancelled, so a mistake is fixed with a new count or Correct stock on Movements. Counting needs the Manage stock, purchase orders and counts permission, and counts can start only at an open branch. Wink You does not count for you and does not connect to shelf scales: someone still counts the shelf, while the app takes away the paperwork and the arithmetic.
Tips for getting it right
- Set up storage areas first, so items appear in shelf order and each area can be counted on its own.
- Count high value and fast moving items more often than the rest, for example meat and coffee weekly and dry goods monthly.
- Use a blind count when staff count, and keep the expected amounts for the manager's review.
- Count at a quiet hour. You do not need to close, but fewer orders mean fewer interruptions.
- Look at the Top 5 losses by value after each count. Those five items are where to look first.
Frequently asked questions
How do I do a stock take without closing the restaurant?
Start a count by area or category and keep selling. Each item's expected amount is taken when it is counted, so live sales do not spoil the result.
What is a blind count?
A count where staff cannot see the expected amount, so they count what is really there. Managers still see the differences and can ask for a recount.
Can several staff count at the same time?
Yes, on their phones. Each number saves by itself, and numbers typed without signal are sent when the connection returns.
How do I print a count sheet for counting on paper?
On Stock items, choose the branch and the storage area, then click Print count sheet. Print it or save it as a PDF, and type the numbers into Count stock afterwards.
Make counting a habit
Counts are part of Inventory at winkyou.com/products/inventory. Guides: winkyou.com/support/inventory/how-to-do-a-stock-take and winkyou.com/support/inventory/how-to-print-a-count-sheet-for-a-stock-take.
