Title here
Summary here
Guide
Perform a Stocktake
Count stock, record variances, and use Duku barcode devices for accurate inventory tracking.
Screenshots and Final Touches Coming Soon Images and final formatting are still being added to this guide.
A stocktake is a physical count of your stock, used to check what you actually have against what Paimnt’s system says you should have. The difference between the two is called a variance — and tracking variances over time helps you identify shrinkage, theft, counting errors, or unrecorded wastage.
| System Stock | Physical Count | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | What Paimnt calculates based on sales, invoices, and movements | What you physically count on the shelf |
| Product | System Says | You Count | Variance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Example: | Vodka 700ml | 20 bottles | 17 bottles |
A negative variance like this might mean spillage, a wastage that wasn’t recorded, a theft, or simply a counting error. The stocktake gives you the data — it’s up to you to investigate the cause.
Critical Concept: Start Time Locks the Stock Level
🚨 Important — Read Before You Start
The start time of a stocktake is when Paimnt locks in the stock level for variance calculation. Paimnt compares your physical count against the stock level at the moment the stocktake was created — not when you finalise it.
What this means: Sales that happen while you’re counting do not affect your variance calculation. You don’t need to adjust your count for anything sold during the count.
Example: You start a stocktake at 6am — system shows 80 bottles. Staff count 70 bottles during the morning. You finalise at 1pm. Result: Paimnt records a −10 variance and sets the stock level to 70, as of 6am.
Other important things to know before starting:
- If a product is added to the stocktake but no count is entered, it will be set to 0 when finalised. If you don’t want to count a product, do not add it to the stocktake (or remove it before finalising).
- The new count does not update the stock level until the stocktake is finalised.
- If you’re using Duku barcode devices, you still need to start the stocktake in HQ first before counting begins on the device.
- You can combine Duku device counts and manual count sheet entry in the same stocktake — counts from both methods add together automatically.
✅ Recommended Frequency
| What to Count | How Often |
|---|---|
| Full venue stocktake | Monthly |
| High-value items (spirits, premium wine) | Weekly |
| Kegs | Weekly |
| All other items | At least monthly |
Step 1 — Start the Stocktake
- In HQ, go to Stock → Stock Takes
- Click + New Stock Take in the top right
[Screenshot: Stock Takes screen showing the list of in-progress stocktakes and the + New Stock Take button in the top right]
- Tick the stock locations you want to count in this stocktake
- Click Create stock take(s)
[Screenshot: Location selection screen with checkboxes next to each stock location and the Create stock take(s) button]
The selected locations will now appear as In Progress stocktakes. You can continue to use the tills normally — sales will keep processing as usual.
Method A — Printed Count Sheets
Use this method when counting manually — for example, physically counting bottles behind the bar, items on a shelf, or products in a cool room.
Creating a Product List and Printing Count Sheets
- In HQ, go to Stock → Stock Takes
- Double-click the location you want to create count sheets for
- Click + Add Products at the bottom left
[Screenshot: Open stocktake screen for a location showing the product list and + Add Products button at the bottom left]
- Choose which products to add:
| Option | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Multiple Products (by tag) | Add all products in a tag and its child tags at once |
| Single Product | Add one specific product using the search dropdown |
For multiple products:
- Click the arrows to expand the tag tree
- Tick the tags you want to include — this adds all products in that tag and any child tags
- Choose whether to include Only products with stock on hand (excludes products already at 0) or All counted products (includes everything regardless of current level)
- Click Add Products
[Screenshot: Add Products panel open on the Multiple Products tab, showing the tag tree expanded with some tags ticked and the stock on hand/all products toggle]
- Once your product list is ready, click Count Sheets at the bottom of the window
- Choose your print options:
| Option | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Show expected values | Prints the current system stock level next to each product — useful for a comparison. Untick to do a blind count. |
| Show a total column | Adds a blank column for writing in a summed total across multiple count sessions |
| Only those with variance | Prints only products that already have a variance — useful for a recount |
[Screenshot: Count Sheets options panel showing the three toggles and the Print button]
- Click Print — then send to a connected printer or save as a PDF to print from another device
- Count your physical stock and write the quantities on the sheet
Entering Counts from the Count Sheets
Once you’ve counted and filled in the sheets, enter the counts back into HQ:
- In HQ, go to Stock → Stock Takes
- Double-click the location you want to enter counts for
- At the top right you’ll see two modes — Add and Replace — and a text input box
[Screenshot: Stocktake count entry screen showing the Add/Replace toggle and the count input box at the top right, with the product list below]
Choose the right mode:
| Mode | Current Count | You Enter | Result | When to Use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Add | 10 | 5 | 15 | Adding counts from a second count sheet for the same area |
| Add | 10 | −5 | 5 | Reducing a count (use a minus sign) |
| Replace | 10 | 5 | 5 | Correcting to a known final total |
- Click on a product in the list to select it, then click in the count input box
- Type the quantity from your count sheet and press Enter
- The next product in the list is automatically selected — continue entering counts down the sheet
- If you have multiple count sheets for the same location, keep the mode set to Add and continue entering counts from each sheet in sequence — they add together automatically
Finalising the Stocktake
Once all counts are entered:
- Review the variance column — confirm any large variances are expected or need investigation
- Click Finalise to lock in the counts
[Screenshot: Stocktake screen with the variance column visible and the Finalise button highlighted]
Paimnt will record the variances, set the new stock levels as of the stocktake start time, and close the stocktake.
⚠️ Before finalising: Double-check that any product showing a count of 0 was genuinely counted as 0, not accidentally left blank. A blank entry and a 0 count look the same in the list — but both will set the stock level to 0 on finalisation.
Was this page helpful?
Help us keep the docs accurate and useful for your whole team.