Where a medical store quietly loses money
Expiry and dead stock, in that order. Both are inventory problems before they are anything else.
Batch is the unit, not the medicine
Each batch carries its own expiry and its own cost. The same batch number with a different expiry stays a separate row, because treating it as one would record short-dated stock as lasting years.
Expiry with a rupee figure on it
Expired, and expiring in 30 / 60 / 90 / 180 days, with what each band is worth and which supplier to send it back to while you still can.
Reorder from what sold
The list comes from your own movement, not from a minimum you set a year ago. Slow movers are shown apart so you stop reordering them by habit.
Count the shelf, keep the record
Audit by category or the whole shop. Counted against system, batch by batch, with the shrinkage in units and rupees and every correction logged.
What the shelves are worth
At cost, at selling price, at MRP - by medicine, category or manufacturer, with expired stock counted separately rather than padding the figure.
Two shops, two shelves
Stock belongs to the counter it sits at. Move it between shops with a record of who sent what, and read any stock report for one shop or the whole business.
A stock figure you can check against the shelf
Stock moves when a bill is rung up or a distributor's bill is booked in - never as a separate chore. That is the only way the number on the screen still matches the strip in your hand at six o'clock.
Looking for something more specific?
Each of these answers a different question about running a medical store.
Questions people ask about stock
Does it track stock by batch and expiry?
Every batch is its own row with its own expiry, cost and quantity. Two deliveries of the same medicine with different expiry dates stay separate, because they are different stock - and the one that runs out first is the one the counter sells first.
When does it warn me about expiry?
Expiry is reported on a calendar - already expired, and expiring within 30, 60, 90 and 180 days - with the money at risk in each band and the supplier to return each batch to while the return window is still open.
How does it know what to reorder?
From what you actually sold, not from a fixed minimum you set once and forgot. Slow movers are listed separately, so a reorder list does not quietly refill the thing that has not sold since March.
Can I count the shelf and correct the figures?
A stock audit lets you count by category or the whole shop, records counted against system per batch, and shows the shrinkage in units and in rupees. The corrections are logged, so a difference has a date and a person against it.
What is my stock worth?
Valued at cost, at selling price and at MRP, by medicine, category or manufacturer, with expired stock counted apart so it does not flatter the total.
What if I have more than one shop?
Each shop keeps its own stock. A strip on the shelf in one is not offered at the other's counter, stock can be transferred between them with a record of who sent what, and every stock report can be read for one shop or for the whole business - the shops always add up to the total.
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