Inventory and Item Maintenance Introduction

Inventory and Item Maintenance Introduction

This is the main hub of the entire system. Here you can add new items, change item details such as descriptions and pricing as well as view and adjust your inventory quantity levels. Advanced features such as flavor and modifier lists, Item Prompts, and order ticket printing options are accessed here as well.

New – Select this to create a new Inventory item.

Edit – Select this to make changes to an existing Inventory item.

Copy – Select this to make a copy of a selected item. The Item ID will need to be changed by 1 character to make the copied item unique. This is a great option if you are creating multiple items that are similar. For example: You offer 5 types of Muffins and need to create them in Inventory Maintenance. You can create the first one with all of the sizes, pricing, sales tax and report settings saved. Selecting Copy will keep all of those settings and allow you to change the Item ID and Description to accommodate the next muffin type. It can save a lot of time when making Inventory changes.

Delete – Select this to erase an item from Inventory.

Inventory and Item Maintenance Fields

The majority of the inventory details are found on this screen. Understanding the basics of this screen is essential to maintaining your inventory and ensuring your customers are being charged appropriately. Below is a description of each field and its purpose. Since not all of the fields are required for basic inventory; the required fields in this section are italicized. The remaining fields are for more advanced topics and in-depth inventory control.

ID Number - The ID number is the defining identification for each inventory item. You will notice that there are never two ID numbers that are the same. There are no rules for what you put for this field. You can make it anything that makes sense to you. When entering a new item you must give it a unique ID. For example if you are adding a drink you would want to choose the next number in line after the highest existing ID. For example, if the last drink you entered was ID Number DRINK27 you would use DRINK28 for your next new item.

Description - This field allows you to describe your inventory item for your benefit and for inventory reporting purposes. The description is how your item will be labeled for inventory tasks, such as reconciling your inventory and all reports that list inventory items.

Size Grid - If your inventory item is sold in various sizes, styles, or colors they are maintained in this grid. The price and quantity on hand grids will only display the sizes you create in this grid.

Size - This field is for the size of the item being sold. It is not required to specify a size. It can vary from your cup sizes (12 oz., 16 oz., etc.) to the size of the shirts you sell (SM, MED, LG, XL). See section Maintenance | Sizes for more information on creating sizes.

Color - This field can be used if any of your items are sold in various colors (for example shirts). It is not required to specify a color. See section Maintenance | Colors for more information on creating colors.

Style - This field can be used if any of your items are sold in various styles (for example T-Shirt, V-Neck, Tank Top). It is not required to specify a style. See section Maintenance | Style for more information on creating styles.

UPC - If you run a high-volume merchandise location you are able to integrate a UPC scanner with CSM. Enter the UPC here to connect your inventory item to its UPC code.

Item Cost - This cost is for SELL UNIT. This means it should be the cost per ounce, or cup. It is not the cost per case that you pay your vendor. This field is used to track the cost of your Inventory item. The cost is the amount you pay your vendor for the product. It is not how much you charge your customer. That is the price field. Enter the cost per item here.

Shots Included - In order to track your espresso usage, CSM includes a feature that knows how many shots typically come in each of your drinks depending on the size. This should only be used for drinks that include espresso. If you typically put two shots of espresso in your largest drink you should enter 2 in the Shots Included field of your largest size.

The builder page will only charge for extra shots over and above the number normally included in a drink. For instance if you set a Tall Mocha to include 2 shots, the customer would be charged the base price for a double Tall Mocha. If they ordered a triple Tall Mocha the customer would pay the base price plus the price of one shot.

Counts for Free Drink - This option is necessary to understand if you are implementing a loyalty or frequent buyer program. If you want the item to count in your frequent buyer plan you will need to select this option. For example some frequent buyer plans only include espresso or coffee drinks. For this program you would have this option selected for a Latte, however it would not be selected for Italian Soda. Note: Loyalty can be tracked using Promotions or Points instead of the frequent buyer program. See section Maintenance | Promotions for more information on creating promotions.

Points Earned - If you are using Points based loyalty enter the point value to be accrued with the purchase of this item.

To Redeem - If you are using Points based loyalty enter the point value required to purchase item for free.

Prices Grid - The price grid displays the pricing information for each size, color, and style of the item. If you are using the optional price levels you will see one size, color, style set for each price level.

Price - The price field allows you to enter the sale price for one unit of the item.

Price Level - This is on optional feature that allows additional price tiers to be assigned to a specific item. See section Maintenance | Price Levels for more information on creating price levels.

Prompt for Price - The feature allows you to choose the price for the item at the time of the sale. This feature would be used for items that frequently change price. This can also be used for a general merchandise button.

Quantity Onhand - This field is used to track how many of each Stock Unit you have in your inventory. This number will change in real time every time you sell this item. If you have a conversion factor set this number will only change when the Open Units has been used.

Open Units - This represents how many of each Sell Unit you currently have on hand. If you have a conversion factor set this field will track how many individual items of an open stock unit you currently have available.

Total Units Onhand – This represents how many total Sell Units you currently have on hand. This includes the total Stock Units and Sell Units to give you an item total.

Reorder Point - This field is used to let the system know when you would like to reorder an item. For example if you order pre-wrapped brownies and you would like to order more brownies when you get down to 24 you would enter 1 for the reorder point because it refers to the Stock Unit. When your inventory is below 24 you will see the item on your Recommended Reorder report.

Reorder Quantity - This field is used to prompt how much of this item you want to order. When your item reaches the reorder point you will see it appear on your Recommended Reorder report. So when your Stock Unit reaches the Reorder Point the report will display the amount listed in this field.

Stock Units - This represents the unit you purchase the product in (for example case, gallon, etc). Select the stock unit from the drop-down list. See section Maintenance | Stock/Sell Units for more information on creating Stock Units.

Sell Units - This represents the unit you sell the product in (for example bar, oz., etc). Select the Sell Unit from the drop-down list. See section Maintenance | Stock/Sell Units for more information on creating Sell Units.

Conversion Factor - This represents the amount of Sell Units in a Stock Unit. For example, if you purchase a case of 24 and you sell each item individually your conversion factor is 24. This only controls the level of inventory; it does not calculate cost for you. When the item is sold if there is an available Open Unit the Open Units will lower. If there are no Open Units then Quantity Onhand will lower and the Open Units will increase by the Conversion Factor. For example if you start with 3 cases of brownies and sell one the Quantity Onhand will be 2 and your Open Units will be 23.

Other Settings:

Taxable Item - This feature should be checked for items that are always taxed. If you have merchandise that is not taxed for Take Out use the following option.

Taxable On Premises - For stores that only tax for items that will be consumed in the store, this feature allows you to tax those items and not To-Go orders.

Taxable To Go - This feature allows tax to be collected on items that are taxable if sold as Take Out or To Go.

Stock Item - Our inventory system allows you to keep track of inventory on an individual basis. If you want to track the item you will need to select this option. If an item is not a Stock Item it will not show up on Inventory screens such as Receive Inventory or Reconcile Physical Inventory. You are unable to adjust inventory for items that are not Stock Items.

Waste Item - This feature is used to track fresh bakery or pastry at the end of every day. If you wish to track your unused pastry or bakery, select this option. When you choose the Waste Report any item that is marked as a waste item will appear in that report. To alter your inventory for spills or to waste individual items, use the Adjust button.

Count Cups - Select this option to track cup usage when the purchase is made. Once selected the Cup Style drop-down list will appear. Select the appropriate Cup Style from the list.

Tax Group - Select the appropriate tax setting for this item from the drop-down list. See section Maintenance | Tax Group Maintenance for more information on adding additional tax groups.

Vendor - This field is an optional way to link the item back to a specific vendor. Select the appropriate Vendor name from the drop-down list. See section Maintenance | Vendors for more information on creating vendors.

No Discounts - If you do not want to allow Discounts on a specific Inventory item you can select this option. This will prevent all Discounts including Discounts tied to Membership Types or Customer Cards as well as preventing a Discount to be selected from the Register screen.

Prompt for Quantity/Weight - This feature allows you to choose the Quantity/Weight you want to purchase at the time of the selection. This is useful for items that are always purchased in multiples or bulk items.

Item Type – This field is used to define and separate your Inventory items. It was formerly used to assign items to specific tabs. Now those tabs are all customizable. Select the appropriate Item Type from the drop-down list to assign it to an Inventory tem.

Available Item Types:

Modifier - A Modifier provides the option of having descriptions associated with your bar drinks such as Extra Hot or Room for Cream. Modifiers can also be used for food items such Add Cream Cheese for Bagels. Any Inventory item labeled Modifier under Item Type will can be attached to a Modifier List to group like Modifiers together for various Inventory items. You are able to have Modifiers that are free and those that charge an additional cost.

Flavor – A Flavor provides the option of having flavor choices to associate with your drinks such as Caramel or Vanilla. Any Inventory item labeled Flavor under Item Type can be attached to a Flavor List to group like Flavors together for various Inventory items. For example: You may want to have a Flavor List for espresso drinks and a separate Flavor List for Italian Sodas.

Roast – A Roast provides the option of having roast choices to associate with your beans such as Dark, Light, Medium and Decaf.

Milk – The Milk option allows you to label Milk types for selection on Builder pages. The Milk button must be added to a Builder page and acts as a toggle to navigate through the various Milk types entered in Inventory Maintenance.

Standard - This is what you will assign the majority of your items to. This is a ‘basic’ Item Type.

Shot – This attaches prices to the Shot Panel offered on Builder pages. Each Shot size price will need to build upon the previous Shot size. For example: A Single Shot is charged at $.50. The next Shot price (Double) will need to be charged at $1.00.

Merchandise - This allows an item to be specified as a Merchandise or retail item.

Ingredient – This marks an item to be used as part of a Recipe. See section Inventory | Recipe for more information.

Sales Class -This field is used for reporting purposes only. Select the Sales Class in the drop-down list. You are able to customize your Classes to individualize your reporting needs. Most reports are able to be separated by Sales Class. This is used for Inventory and Cost of Goods reporting as well. See section Maintenance | Sales Class for more information on creating classes.

QB/Acct Class - This field will determine the Class to be listed when exporting to QuickBooks. The Sales Class is unrelated to the Class used for QuickBooks. Select the Class to be exported into QuickBooks in the drop-down list. See section Maintenance | Accounting Links for more information on creating QuickBooks Classes.

Show Only - Using this feature will limit the number of Inventory items you are viewing so your search will go much faster. It allows you to view only specific Sales Classes. This is especially effective for customers who have large amounts of items in Inventory Maintenance and only want to view a specific group of items. Select a specific Sales Class from the drop-down list and only the items associated with that Class will be available for selection.

Inventory | Instructions  

Inventory | Modifiers 

Inventory | Flavors 

Inventory | Printers 

Inventory | Recipe List 

Inventory | Item Prompts 

Inventory | Reconcile Physical Inventory 

Inventory | Purchase Orders 

Inventory | Inventory Adjustment 

Inventory | Inventory Waste 

Inventory | Global Price Updates 

Prompt Designer