Stock write-offs with a reason and a photo
Damaged, expired, lost or sample stock is written off on a slip with the item, place, batch, quantity, the reason and a photo. Every write-off waits for a manager's approval, and only then does the stock leave the books at its cost.
PLANSFrom Growth
Why it matters
Stock that is broken, expired or simply missing is the quiet leak in a trading business. In most shops anyone with access can lower a stock figure. Months later nobody can tell whether the forty litres of oil were spilt, given away or stolen. In SmartMy Trade a write-off is never a silent stock change. The storekeeper fills a slip with the item, the place, the batch, the quantity and one of five reasons. They attach a photo of the damage from the phone or the PC. The slip shows its value at cost and goes to the manager through your approval chain. The chain can ask for a second level above an amount you choose. Only an approved slip takes the stock out, and a rejected one moves nothing. Each slip keeps who asked, who decided and why.
The problem it solves
- Stock is reduced to match the shelf, and nobody can say later why.
- Broken goods are thrown away without anyone seeing them.
- Samples given to parties are never recorded, so the stock is always short.
- The owner learns of large losses only at the year-end count.
How it works
- Open Trade > Stock > Stock > Write-offs > New.
- Pick the item, the place it is in, and the batch if the item is tracked. Type the quantity.
- Choose why: Damaged, Expired, Lost / Short, Sample or Other, add details, and attach a photo. The value at cost is shown.
- Press Send for Approval. The slip moves to To Approve and a hold is raised for the managers, with the quantity, item, reason and value.
- A manager approves or rejects with a reason, on the web, in Approvals or in the app. Approved, the stock is scrapped from that place at its cost and the slip shows Written Off. Rejected, nothing moves.
- The person who asked is told the decision.
Everything it does
The write-off slip
- Numbered by itself: WO/2026/00001 and on
- Item (stocked items only), From (a place in a shop or godown), Batch, Quantity and Unit
- Why: Damaged (to start with), Expired, Lost / Short, Sample, Other
- Details: free text
- Photo: one picture, kept at up to 1600 by 1600 pixels
- Value: quantity at the item's cost
- States: Draft, To Approve, Written Off, Rejected
- Item, batch, quantity, place, reason and details are locked once sent
Approval
- Every write-off is held, whatever its value: there is no amount below which it goes through
- Through the approval chain Trade hold: Trade Managers decide to start with
- Add levels, or a second chain for holds above an amount, in Approvals
- A reason is needed to reject
- Approved: the stock is scrapped from the place at cost, and the scrap is linked on the slip
- Rejected: the slip shows Rejected and the stock stays
Lists
- Filter To Approve
- Group by reason or by place
- Each slip's history: who made it, who sent it, who decided and when
Who uses it
StorekeeperFills the slip with a photo and sends it for approval.
Billing ClerkRecords damage found at the counter.
Trade ManagerApproves or rejects each write-off with a reason.
OwnerReviews write-offs by reason and place.
Where you use it
- Web: Trade > Stock > Stock > Write-offs
- Web: Approvals > To Approve, and the Holds of Trade
- The SmartMy Trade app: write-offs waiting appear under Approvals for Trade Managers to decide (built and in testing, not in the app stores yet)
- Not in the app: making a write-off slip; it is made on the web
What you control
Settings
- Approval chain Trade hold: Trade Managers to start with; add levels or conditions on the amount
- Requester May Approve: on for every chain the system makes. So a manager who raised a write-off may decide it at a level they approve. Switch it off on the chain if you want a second person
Approvals
- Trade hold: every write-off, decided by Trade Managers to start with, or the levels you set
Notifications
- Request Waits for Your Approval: to the approvers of the next level, in the app and by email. It comes as a phone notification once app push is switched on
- A to-do for each approver while the write-off waits
- Hold Decided: to the person who sent it, when it is approved or rejected, in the app and by email
Questions
Is a photo required?
No. The photo field is there on every slip and we suggest using it, but a slip can be sent without one.Can small write-offs go through without approval?
Not as built. Every write-off is held. You can make the chain lighter, for example one level for small amounts and two above an amount.Can the person who made the slip approve it?
If they are an approver at that level, yes, because Requester May Approve is on for the chains the system makes. Switch it off on the Trade hold chain to need a second person.What about goods short in a transfer?
Goods sent between your shops that never arrive are written off on the transfer itself, with the value shown there.Does it reduce the stock value?
Yes. The approved quantity leaves the place at the item's cost, and the value is shown on the slip.Related features
BILLING AND STOCKBatches and expiry with batch MRPTrack items by batch or serial number, with the expiry date and the MRP printed on each batch. See what expires in the next 30 days and what has expired, and pick the earliest expiry first when goods go out.ACROSS SMARTMY TRADEApproval chainsHeld sales, big purchase orders, write-offs and indents go to the right people in order before they go through. With no set-up the Trade Managers approve; you add levels, such as the owner for credit above an amount, without code.GST AND APPROVALSApprovals in the appA sale held for credit or rate, a big purchase order or a write-off waits for you on your phone. Open Approvals in the SmartMy Trade app, read why it was held and the amount, and approve or reject with a reason. The bill or order goes through at once, and the person who asked is told.BILLING AND STOCKSeveral godowns, racks and transfers between shopsKeep stock in as many shops and godowns as you have, down to the rack and bin. Stock sent from one place to another leaves on a delivery, stays in transit at its value, and arrives on a receipt. What never arrives is written off as short on the transfer.BILLING AND STOCKStock on hand, goods in and out, and stock countsStock moves by itself when you bill, return, receive or dispatch, so the stock on hand is the real figure. Storekeepers receive and dispatch goods by scanning on the phone, and a count started on the floor is applied by a manager.ORDERS, PURCHASE AND CREDITCredit limit, overdue and cash-only holdsSome credit bills and sales orders wait for a manager's approval. That is when over the party's credit limit, to a cash-only party, or to a party with overdue bills. Approved, it posts or confirms by itself.
See your shop on it.
Tell us what you sell, how many shops and godowns you run and how you bill today. We will set up your items and parties with you and print your first bill.