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Inventory Glossary
Inventory Glossary

The Inventory section from A to Z

Héctor Emperador avatar
Written by Héctor Emperador
Updated over a week ago

[A]

Stock alarm

A stock alarm is an alert that can be activated within stock management. Thanks to it, you can set the minimum number of units you want to have in your stock, so that the alert is triggered whenever there is a quantity below the desired level. Learn how to set up a stock alert here.

Delivery note

A delivery note is a commercial document that certifies that a shipment has been delivered correctly. Upon receipt of the delivery, the receiver of the shipment must sign the delivery note to inform that the order has arrived at its destination. In this way, the person making the delivery can also prove that the shipment has arrived correctly. The use of delivery notes is not compulsory, although if orders are placed continuously, delivery notes are usually enclosed and then, at the end of each month, all invoices are sent together.

Warehouse

A warehouse is a physical or virtual location where the control and management of the company's products or inventory is carried out. In Holded, you can create and manage several warehouses and assign each of them a specific location, as well as keep detailed control of incoming and outgoing products and track stock in real time. You can also select the warehouse of origin to ship your products, generate reports on the movement of inventory in each warehouse and make strategic decisions to optimise the management of your warehouses and improve the efficiency of your company.

[C]

Catalogue

Holded's online catalogue allows you to offer your customers the possibility to buy your products online in an easy, direct and personalised way. You can configure the products you want to show in the catalogue and assign the price that corresponds to each customer. Your customers can buy your products through the catalogue as if it were an online shop. They only have to add the products they want to the shopping cart and create the order.

Category

Within the product properties, categories are attributes that are assigned to products to classify and organise them in different contexts. They allow you to filter and export products in lists, documents and catalogues. They are often used internally to facilitate the search and filtering of products according to specific characteristics.

For example, the category "Season" can be used to distinguish summer and winter products, or the category "Gender" to separate products for men, women and children. Categories do not have their own SKU or price (unlike variants), and their usefulness lies in improving the management and internal organisation of products in Holded.

Barcode

The barcode is a graphical representation of data used to identify products quickly and accurately. It consists of a series of bars and spaces of different widths that represent digits or alphanumeric characters. The barcode is printed on a label and can be scanned by a barcode reader to obtain the information contained therein, such as product number or price. It should not be confused with the factory code, nor with the serial number.

Factory code

The factory code is a unique code assigned during the manufacturing process of a product to identify it internally within the manufacturing company. It may contain information such as date of manufacture, production line or other data relevant to the internal management of the company. It should not be confused with the barcode, nor with the serial number.

Cost

The "cost" or "cost" refers to the initial value of a product or service, excluding taxes, at the moment of registering that product in Holded.

Average cost

The average of the purchase costs of a product. It is calculated by dividing the total value of purchases made by the number of units of the product in stock. It is used as a reference to evaluate the average monetary value of the products stored in the company, and is automatically recalculated with each new purchase, as the average value of the stock based on the value of the purchase invoices.

The average cost is applied in the stock reports, and is editable, so it can be adjusted manually.

[E]

Product scanner

Barcode scanner labelling has become widespread in most businesses. This system, combined with an ERP such as Holded, offers great advantages, facilitating the traceability, picking and inventory of your products, also speeding up their labelling and subsequent reading when working with them.

Holded's product scanning functionality also allows you to connect your products with the platform's documents automatically. ...

Logistics stage (pipeline)

Pipelines (also called funnels) are stages or phases that you can create and assign to your orders, delivery notes or sales documents. For example, if you sell a product and you want to know if the order is in the warehouse, is in transport or has already arrived at its destination, you can create as many stages as you want to have an exhaustive control of your documents.

[F]

Product sheet

The product card is a digital summary that shows all the characteristics of a product, as well as related information. Once you have registered a product, you can access the product sheet by clicking on it and get a more detailed view than in the list view.

[G]

Inventory Gem

The Inventory gem is a paid resource that enhances the basic functionality of the Inventory section. It can be purchased from the Holded Store.

Once activated, it allows you to follow the complete product cycle, thus accessing advanced product management for your company (sales and purchase orders, delivery notes, stock management, mass actions, management of multiple warehouses, products with attributes, synchronisation with e-commerce, etc.).

Group of variants

In Holded it is possible to create groups of variants. Each group encompasses the combination of all eligible product options that belong to a common context. This simplifies the creation and management of products by applying the variant group without the need to configure each case manually from scratch.

The options form the option sets; the set of option sets forms the variant group; and each product variant takes options from different sets, as shown below:

[ I ]

Inventory

Inventory is the set of products or materials that you have available in your company for sale or use in your production processes. You can use the Inventory section of Holded to keep track of your products and materials, including stock on hand, selling price, or to keep track of your purchases and sales, generate inventory reports and track sales and purchasing trends of your products.

Tax (price)

The tax rate is applied to the subtotal of a product or service, constituting its total price. In Holded you can add at the same time an option for each of the two types of taxes available (VAT, Withholding Tax, Sales Tax).

[L]

Price List

The price list is the section of the Product Panel where you can find all the prices you have created with their names and descriptions.

Some examples of prices could be Sale, Black Friday or Premium Customers.

Product list

The product list is a list that shows by rows all the products you have registered in the Inventory section, as well as their basic characteristics by columns. Within the list, you will be able to click on any product, accessing its file to obtain a detailed and global view. From the product list, you can create products, import them, update stock, or perform other advanced actions such as filtering, segmenting, or customising your list.

Batch

A batch is a set of products manufactured in the same period of time and under similar conditions. Products within a batch usually have similar characteristics and properties. The batch number is assigned to identify all products belonging to a particular batch. This information is useful for quality control, product traceability and, if necessary, for recalling specific batches from the market.

You will be able to manage your batches from the product sheet, and also specify the start date and end date, as long as you have activated them when creating the product.

[N]

Serial Number

Serial numbers (SN) are unique alphanumeric codes normally used to identify a particular product within a large batch of products. Unlike the factory and lot code, the serial number is uniquely assigned to each unit of product.

They are useful in quality control, and are often applied to products that are likely to be copied, pirated or stolen (electronics, software, films, books, etc.).

Like batches, you can manage serial numbers from the product sheet, where you can edit the SN, price, barcode, start and end dates, etc.

[O]

Operations

The operations section of the control panel is a sub-section of Inventory that allows you to control and monitor the operations and processes related to your products and stock. In this section, you will be able to access the functionalities to update and transfer stock, print barcodes, or import and massively update products through Excel.

[P]

Product packs

A product pack is a group of items that are sold together. Normally, despite being different, the items in a pack have some aspect in common. For example, a wool shop could create a pack with all the items needed to make a knitted jumper (needles, wool, scissors, measuring tape...), and sell them together.

Packing

In logistics, packing refers to the process of packing or packaging products in preparation for shipment or transport, including the affixing of labels, barcodes and other tracking information. It is an important activity in the supply chain, as proper packaging of products can help protect them during transport, minimise the risk of damage and reduce losses.

Control panel

The dashboard, within the Inventory section, provides you with an overview of your products, your stock and related documents (sales orders, purchase orders and delivery notes). This way you can access all the Inventory functionalities from a single place. It is divided into areas, from which you can access product management, warehouse management, order management, operations, and product properties.

Purchase Order

A purchase order is a request or requisition for goods or services from a specific supplier. This request specifies these goods or services, as well as price, quantity, payment and delivery conditions, among others. It is a commercial document that obliges the buyer to accept delivery of the goods or services he has ordered, provided that the agreed terms are met.

The buyer prepares the purchase order that is sent to the supplier of goods or services, and the supplier, in turn, issues the sales order to the buyer. Both the purchase order and the sales order are binding documents when accepted.

Sales order

A sales order is a document comprising a contractual agreement between a sales organisation and a requester for the delivery of products or the provision of a service with a defined price, quantities and time frame. The sales order creates a link between seller and buyer, acknowledges the fact of a sale, and is usually generated immediately after the customer submits a purchase request.

Picking

The picking process is fundamental to the preparation of orders in warehouses and has a significant impact on the productivity of the logistics chain. In many cases, this process becomes the bottleneck in the chain, which means that it limits the efficiency of the entire operation. Approximately 70% to 80% of productive time in warehouses is spent on picking.

Purchase price

The amount before tax of a product or service, used in purchasing documents such as invoices or purchase orders. The value of this field is fixed, i.e. it is not calculated automatically, but can be edited manually. Depending on the context, the purchase price is also known as subtotal.

Sales price

The amount before tax of a product or service, used in sales documents such as sales invoices, sales orders, and delivery notes. Depending on the context, the sales price is also known as the subtotal.

Product

A product is a record of a stock item that allows you to consult information on its purchase and sale, as well as to keep a detailed record of its characteristics, whether tangible (shape, size, colour...) or intangible (brand, company image, service). In Holded, products have more fields and more information than services. In case you need to control your stock or segment by families, make better use of products. You can manage your products from the product list and from the product file. Check here the available product types.

Simple product

This is the product with the simplest features, included in all Holded plans. It contains basic information such as its name and description, as well as a price or amount that will appear when you create a sales invoice for it. A simple product is, in short, one that does not have variants, serial numbers, batches, nor is it part of a product pack.

Product with variants

A product with variants consists of different versions that differ in some eligible option (colour, size, shape...). In other words, each of the possible combinations of product options constitutes a variant and has its own SKU (e.g. size S variant in blue, size S variant in black, etc.). In Holded they are available by activating the Inventory gem.

Product with serial numbers (SN)

A product with serial numbers e is a product that has a unique number assigned to each unit that is manufactured or distributed. These serial numbers are used to track and trace each unit of a product, which can be useful in case of needing to track product traceability or to keep track of product warranty. By creating a product with serial numbers in Holded, you can assign a serial number to each unit of that product and keep track of each unit. In Holded, you can activate the Inventory gem to manage your products with serial numbers.

Product with batches

A product with batches in Holded is a product that is divided into groups or batches for management and control. These batches can be used to keep track of the expiry date of the products or to keep track of the traceability of the products. In Holded, you can activate the Inventory gem to manage your products with batches.

Product properties

The product properties are a series of options or characteristics through which you can better define or narrow down your products, facilitating their subsequent management. Access them from the control panel, or from Configuration > Inventory, and create your categories and groups of variants (for example, size and colour), different rates for the same product, or even logistical stages or pipelines that define the status of your shipments.

Supplier

A supplier is a company or individual that supplies goods or services to another company. Suppliers can be an important part of managing the activities of a business, as they supply the products or services that are necessary for the operation of the business. In Holded, users can keep track of their suppliers and manage their relationships with them more efficiently, even assigning multiple suppliers to a single product.

[S]

Option set

An option set, within a product with variants in Holded, is a set of attributes that are applied to a specific product to create different variants of it. An example would be a T-shirt available in different sizes and colours.

S, M and L would be options within the 'Size' set; blue, white, black would be options within the 'Colour' set. These options are used to create variants of the product, each with its own reference number, price, etc.

The total of all the option sets together results in a set of variants.

Stock system

Holded offers you the choice between an automatic and a simple stock system. The main difference between the two is the way in which the inventory control is carried out.

  1. Simple stock system: This system requires manual management of incoming and outgoing products, the user must manually update the current stock, generate minimum stock alerts and generate reports. This system is suitable for small businesses with small inventory and little change in inventory.

  2. Automatic stock system: This system is more advanced and automates much of the inventory control process. Product receipts and issues are automatically recorded as sales or purchases are made, the system automatically updates current stock, generates minimum stock alerts and generates reports. This system is suitable for companies with larger inventory and higher inventory turnover.

Simple stock system

Automatic stock system

SKU (Stock Keeping Unit)

A unique code used to identify and manage a particular product or service. It is often used to keep track of inventory and to track orders and sales. The SKU is indispensable for identifying your products when importing invoices or when integrating with your online shop. It is necessary to be able to differentiate products in the Sales by Product report.

Stock

Stock refers to the set of products or materials that a company has in stock and can use to meet the demands of its customers. One of the functionalities offered by the Inventory gem is stock management, which includes keeping an accurate record of the number of units of each product or material in stock, as well as the management of incoming and outgoing products in the warehouse.

Subtotal (price)

This is the taxable amount, i.e. the amount before tax used in purchasing documents, e.g. invoices or purchase orders. Unlike the average cost, the value of this field is fixed, it is not calculated automatically, but can be edited manually. The sum of the subtotal plus tax constitutes the total.

[T]

Tag

Tags allow you to mark items such as contacts, products, documents and journal entries within Holded. Thus, tags make it easy for you to consult and analyse the information you have added in the platform. You can quickly filter these elements in the corresponding list or carry out a detailed analysis of your business.

Rates

Rates are the additional prices that can be assigned to a product in addition to its main price or rate. This way, you can choose the rate you need depending on the moment.

You can assign them to your products, your contacts, or your Holded documents, and consult them in the price list section. Some examples of rates could be Sales, Black Friday or Premium Customers.

Total (price)

This is the amount including taxes. It is automatically calculated from the subtotal and taxes. Normally it is editable, but if you modify it, the subtotal will also be modified.

[V]

Variant

Variants are different available versions of the same product, which are distinguished by selectable options such as colour, size, shape, among others. Each unique combination of these options forms an individual variant which, as opposed to categories, has its own SKU and associated price. This allows for more accurate product management and a more personalised shopping experience for customers, who can choose the specific combination they want, e.g. "size S in blue", or "size S in black".

Variants are displayed in the product card, in the received documents (in the "Description" field), in the documents generated in Holded, in the inventory view of orders and in the catalogue.

Variants are combined to form variant groups.

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