Import the range once
Bring in a supplier list or spreadsheet, check it in a preview and save. Duplicate warnings catch the same notebook listed twice.
Shops
Inventory software for stationery and school supply shops
A stationery shop has two speeds: quiet most of the year, and a flood before school reopens. Shopkeepa helps you plan for the rush, keep the small items counted and see what is selling when parents arrive with long lists.
Sound familiar?
Back-to-school week brings more customers than the rest of the term combined, and you run out of the basics first.
Exercise books, pens and pencils are cheap, so nobody counts them until the box is empty.
Customers arrive with a school list and want everything in one go.
Leftover stock after the season sits for months and ties up money.
How Shopkeepa helps
Minimums raised before the rush
Raise the minimum on school basics a few weeks ahead. When stock crosses it you get one reminder and the item lands on the restock list.
Fast checkout for long lists
Search, tap favourites or scan barcodes to add many items to one sale. Record how it was paid and give a receipt on screen, in print or by share link.
Last year's numbers
Sales by week and month, and best sellers, show what moved during back-to-school last time and what did not.
Slow movers after the season
The slow movers report shows what is left once the rush ends, so you can discount it.
Back-to-school week at a stationery shop
Open: check the restock list
Exercise books, pens and geometry sets under their minimum are on the list. Call the supplier first thing.
Morning: a delivery arrives
Scan or search each product and add the packs received with Stock In.
All day: parents with school lists
Add each item to a single sale, record payment as cash, card or transfer, and move on to the next customer.
Afternoon: a shelf looks thin
Count the pencils and rulers, enter the numbers and let Shopkeepa record any difference.
Close: see what to order for tomorrow
Check the day's best sellers and the items running low.
Planning for the weeks that make your year
For many stationery shops, the few weeks before school reopens bring a large share of the year's sales. Parents come with printed lists from the school: so many exercise books, a certain ruler, a particular type of pencil. Every item on that list is something you must have, because a customer who cannot find one thing often goes elsewhere for all of it.
The way to prepare is with last year's sales. Shopkeepa keeps sales history, so you can see how many of each product moved in the same weeks last year and order against that. If a school changes its list, a new product will not have history, so treat it as a new line and order cautiously.
| Product | Normal minimum | Back-to-school minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Exercise book 80 pages | 30 | 200 |
| Blue pen, pack of 10 | 10 | 40 |
| Geometry set | 3 | 20 |
Raise minimums three or four weeks before the rush, then lower them once it ends. The restock list will show what to order, with a suggested quantity, so you are not guessing from memory.
Many small items, sold fast and in whole packs
Stationery is a long tail of cheap items. A shop might hold hundreds of lines, each worth little on its own, and the counter gets busy exactly when you have the least time to write anything down. That is where a fast till helps.
Shopkeepa counts stock in whole units. That works well when you decide what the unit is. A pack of ten pens and a single pen are two products. A ream of paper and a single sheet for the photocopier are two, if you sell both. Shopkeepa does not handle selling by length or weight in the first release, so something like ribbon or card by the metre is not supported. Each size or colour of an item is also its own product, as there are no variants. A black pen and a blue pen are two lines.
- Use favourites for the items that appear on every school list.
- Use categories such as books, writing, art, paper and office to keep the sale screen tidy.
- Scan barcodes where products have them. Scanning finds products already in your own list.
After the season, look at the slow movers report and decide what to discount or return to the supplier. Leftover stock is cash on a shelf. Slow-moving and dead stock helps you decide. If you also sell printing or copying as a service, you can add it as a product with a price, but Shopkeepa tracks it as a sale, not as a job.
Common questions
Can I raise minimums just for back-to-school?
Yes. The minimum is set per product, so raise it before the rush and lower it afterwards.
Can I sell a single sheet and a ream?
Yes, as two products. Shopkeepa counts whole units, so each pack size is its own line with its own count.
Can I add many items to one sale quickly?
Yes. Search, tap favourites or scan barcodes, and add each item to the same sale before recording how it was paid.
Can I import last year's price list?
Yes. You can import a CSV or Excel file and check it in a preview before anything is saved.
Is it available now?
Not yet. Shopkeepa is in development, and early access shops will help shape it. Join the waitlist to be one of the first in.
Related
Guide
How to stock up for a busy season without overbuying
Plan stock for holidays, back-to-school and other busy seasons in a small shop: use last year's sales, adjust reorder points early and avoid being left with extra stock.
FeatureLow-stock reminders before you run out
Set a minimum for each product and get one reminder when stock drops to it. A restock list shows what to order and how much, so you find out before customers do.
GuideWhat to do about slow-moving and dead stock
How to spot slow-moving and dead stock in a small shop, measure sell-through, see the cash it ties up, clear it sensibly and buy less of it next time.
GuideHow to set reorder points so you never run out
Learn the reorder point formula for a small shop: average daily sales times lead time, plus safety stock. A worked example with plain numbers and a checklist.
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