Manage Inventory

On the Inventory tab of a merchandise record, you can manage the inventory items available.

  • If the merchandise includes dimensions, you can add specific inventory items. For example, if the merchandise record is a T-shirt with a dimension of size, you can add inventory items for each available size.

  • If the merchandise record doesn't include dimensions, it includes one inventory item. You cannot add more than one inventory item to a merchandise record that does not include dimensions.

Tip: From Merchandise, you can access and run reports that help you monitor sales numbers and inventory levels. With the Inventory Report and the Merchandise Sales Report, you can stay aware of sales trends and react appropriately. For example, you can reorder popular items to maintain stock levels or create discounts to spur sales of less popular items. For more information, see Merchandise Reports.

  1. On the merchandise record, select the Inventory tab.

    Note: You cannot add inventory items for merchandise without dimensions. To add dimensions to merchandise, you must delete the existing merchandise record and add it again with dimensions.

  2. Select Add.

  3. Enter the dimension information for the inventory item. For example, if a T-shirt has a dimension of "Size", you can enter “Medium."

  4. In the Cost field, enter the amount that your organization paid for the item.

  5. In the Retail price field, enter the amount that your organization sells the item for.

  6. In the Quantity field, enter the number of items you have available.

  7. In the Barcode/alternate lookup grid, enter the merchandise barcode. The barcode is usually shipped on the merchandise. If the merchandise doesn't have a barcode, you can enter your own barcode in this field using letter and numbers.

    You can also enter alternate lookup IDs to make items easier to find in searches. For example, you can store the ISBN for a book, or enter different barcodes for an item that comes from multiple distributors. You can search for the item by the SKU, user-defined barcode, or the alternate lookup ID.

    Note: Altru does not generate barcodes automatically.

  8. Select Save.

When necessary, you can update your inventory on-hand, such as to adjust inventory quantity or add a shipment. For more information, see Change Inventory.

The History tab of a merchandise item record displays every update made to its inventory, such as new shipments of the item, and changes to the physical count.

You can filter the list to display changes made in specific date ranges, changes of specific action types, and whether the update to inventory was made manually or through batch.

Note: Unit cost and quantity appear on the History tab of the item record, but vendor and barcode information only appears on the Inventory tab.