Items, UPCs, Scanning & Stock — Step by Step

1 · How the backend thinks (3 minutes)

Everything in the system is built from three kinds of record. Understand these and nothing will ever feel like magic:

"On hand" is never typed anywhere. The number you see beside an item is simply the sum of its lots — and every lot got its quantity from movements. That's why the system can always answer "why does it say 48?": open Activity and read the diary.

2 · SKU vs UPC — what goes in which box

3 · Adding items, one at a time

Products page → + Item (admin). Field by field, top to bottom:

Press Save. The item now exists — with zero on hand, because quantity only ever comes from counts and receipts (§6–8).

4 · Adding a whole shelf fast

1. Stand in front of the shelf. Open + Item.
2. Fill the first item, but press Save & add another instead of Save.
3. The form clears but keeps the Section and Category — because you're probably still on the same shelf. Name → SKU (suggest one gives you the next number) → UPC → size → save & next.
4. Rhythm: about 20–30 seconds per item once you're going. A 40-item shelf is a coffee-length job.

5 · Adding items in bulk (CSV import)

For a list that already exists in a spreadsheet (Sage item lists, a supplier's product sheet), skip the typing entirely. Import page (admin):

1. Get your list into columns. Only sku is mandatory; everything else is optional. Recognized columns (Sage's names work automatically):

   Column	Also accepted as
   sku	Item, Item No, Item Number, Item Code, Part Number, Number
   name	Description, Item Description, Product
   section	type — product / packaging / fish
   category, size, upc	barcode → upc
   case_pack	casepack
   uom	unit, units — values: units / lb / kg
   shelf_life	shelflife, shelf life days
   reorder	reorderpoint
   qty + location + lot + best_by	see §8 — these book opening stock

2. Copy the whole sheet (with the header row) and paste into the Import box.
3. Press Check. Nothing is written yet. You get a preview: how many rows parsed, how many update existing SKUs, how many create new items, how many carry opening quantities.
4. If the preview reads right, press Apply. Rows that match an existing SKU update it; new SKUs are created; failures are counted and reported, never silently skipped.

6 · Entering quantities — the phone walk (the way that wins)

Quantities enter the system as counts. A count says: "I physically looked, and there are X." Here is the whole loop, tap by tap:

1. Open Count on your phone. On a phone it's automatically one-item-at-a-time card mode.
2. Top of the screen: pick the location you are physically standing in (Main Freezer, Cooler…). Every count you save goes into that location — change it when you walk to the next room. The app remembers your last location, even between sessions.
3. Set the scope: Never counted for a first stocktake (it lists exactly what's still untouched — the list shrinks as you go), or Due for count for the weekly routine.
4. Tap 📷 Scan → point the camera at the case. The item's card appears: photo, SKU, name, size, and what the system currently believes.
5. Count what's actually there and type it. Whole numbers for unit items; weights take decimals (e.g. 412.5).
6. Lot number: it pre-fills with a dated stocktake lot (COUNT-260907). If the case shows a real lot number, type that instead — real lots make recalls sharper. If not, the dated one is exactly right.
7. Best-by: type it if it's on the case; skip if not.
8. Save count → the next item slides in. Skip → passes without writing anything.
9. No barcode on the item? Don't stop — search it by name in the box at the top, count it, and put it on the §10 label list.
10. Freezer killed the wifi? Keep going. Counts save on the phone and upload themselves automatically when you're back in range — you'll see the toast when they land.

7 · Entering quantities — desk & paper

Desk table

1. Count → 🖥 Desk mode (a computer shows this by default). Every item in scope is a row: system quantity, then empty boxes for your count, lot, best-by.
2. Type the count, press Enter — it saves and jumps to the next row. Spreadsheet speed.

Clipboard first, keyboard after

1. Reports → Count sheets → print. Items grouped by section and category, with the system's number and blank columns for count / lot / notes.
2. Walk with the clipboard, then enter the results in Desk mode. Two people make this very fast: one reads, one types.

8 · Entering quantities — in bulk (CSV)

The Import page books opening stock in the same pass that creates items. Add these columns to your §5 sheet:

1. qty — the counted quantity. Any row with a positive qty books stock; rows without qty just create/update the item.
2. location — optional; matches your location names loosely ("main" finds "Main Freezer"). Blank = your first location.
3. lot — optional; blank gets the dated COUNT- lot.
4. best_by — optional; takes 2027-03-01 or most spreadsheet date formats.
5. Check first — the preview tells you exactly how many rows will carry an opening quantity — then Apply.

9 · The scanner, screen by screen

One 📷 Scan button, three behaviors depending on where you are:

• Camera: allow camera access the first time; aim at the barcode; it beeps the moment it reads. Reads UPC-A/E, EAN-13/8, and Code 128 (all our printed labels).
• USB / Bluetooth scanner at a desk: no setup — it types like a keyboard. Click into any search box (or press ⌘K) and pull the trigger.
• No match? The toast says so. Either the UPC was never entered on the item (open the item → Edit → paste it in) or the item doesn't exist yet (Count's + New item adds it and drops you straight into counting it).

10 · Making everything scannable (labels)

Three label printers, all built-in, no special hardware — any office printer works:

11 · The day-one recipe, start to finish

The exact order that gets an empty system to a running one, fastest:

1. Finish the catalog first (§3–5): every product, packaging item, and fish form gets its item row — SKU always, UPC where the package has one, shelf life wherever you know it. Don't enter any quantities yet.
2. Print Shelf & bin labels (§10) and tape them up — 20 minutes that makes every future count a scan instead of a search.
3. Walk the building with Count → "Never counted" (§6): one location at a time, scan-count-save until the Never-counted list reads zero. Split rooms between people — each picks their location at the top.
4. Verify: Reports → Count variance shows every count you just made; the Dashboard tiles come alive; the daily watchdog's "shipped with no stock on record" alarm goes quiet.
5. Then let it run: from this moment, receive every delivery (§ Manual 5), ship everything through orders, and just keep up with the small "Due for count" list each week. The system stays true from here by itself.

12 · Conventions that keep it clean

• SKUs: keep using the existing style for products (JS14H-WC…). For new packaging/fish, let suggest one build CATEGORY-001 style codes — consistent and sortable.
• Categories: few and broad beats many and precise. JERKY, SMOKED, CANS, CANDY, FRESH, BOXES, BAGS, LABELS covers almost everything.
• Units: if you'd ever say "pounds of", make it lb from day one — changing later means recounting.
• Lot numbers: whatever is printed on the case wins. Nothing printed → the dated default. Never invent pretty ones.
• One location at a time when counting — the location picker at the top is the only thing that decides where stock lands.
• Don't fear mistakes: every entry can be undone by an admin (Activity → ↩), and a fresh count always sets the truth. The only unfixable error is the one that never got entered.

Companion: the complete Manual (every screen), WCS-Opening-Stock-Template.csv, HOW-TO-load-your-Sage-data, WCS-Cheat-Sheet. Questions → Ryder.