There’s a moment every small business manager with inventory knows well. A customer calls for a reference, the file says ‘12 in stock.’ Someone goes to check the warehouse. Only two remain, plus an open box no one knows where it came from.
The file isn’t wrong by chance. It’s wrong because it relies on dozens of small entries that no one has time to input at the right moment.
I worked on this problem during my internship at Kodeva, on StockPME, a stock and inventory management software for SMEs and small businesses, distributed with its hardware by the company Breizhtic. It’s still in use today. Here’s what I learned from it.
Why does a stock spreadsheet always end up being wrong?
A stock spreadsheet works fine as long as only one person manages it, with a single warehouse and few references. Then, discrepancies start to creep in gradually:
- an exit noted on a sticky note, never recorded;
- two people editing the file at the same time, with one version overwriting the other;
- a transfer between two warehouses counted twice, or not at all;
- customer returns placed back on the shelf without anyone re-entering them.
After a few months, no one trusts the file anymore. You recount everything manually before every big order, and the year-end inventory keeps the whole team busy on a Saturday. If that sounds familiar, I’ve listed the signs it’s time to leave Excel.
What a stock management software should do for an SME
The goal isn’t to replicate an ERP from a large corporation. For an SME, the essentials boil down to a few key features:
- Clear product sheets: reference, description, supplier, price, alert threshold, location.
- Every movement tracked: entries, exits, returns, transfers, along with who did it and when. That’s what allows you to understand a discrepancy instead of just suffering through it.
- Inventory by location: if you have a warehouse, a truck, and a store, each has its own inventory, and a transfer happens with a single action.
- Threshold alerts: you know a product is about to run out before promising it to a customer.
- A history: what was used last month, what has been sitting on the shelves for a year.
Nothing spectacular. But when everything is in one place and up to date, inventory becomes reliable information, not just an estimate.
QR code labels: paperless inventory
On StockPME, QR code labels were at the heart of the tool. Each product or location has its own. You scan it with a phone or a reader, and the record opens: you log an outgoing item, a transfer, or a count in seconds, without searching for the reference in a list.
The labels are generated directly from the tool: you select the products, print, and stick them on. When a label gets damaged or a new product arrives, you reprint one in two clicks, without going through a third party.
This is what changes inventory the most. Instead of spending an entire day once a year, you can count one area per week: this is called cycle counting. The inventory stays accurate all year round, and December Saturday becomes a normal one again.
A concrete example: a rental company for event equipment
Take a company that rents equipment for weddings and trade shows: tents, tables, chairs, dishes. Two warehouses, a van, and an inventory that goes out and comes back every weekend.
Today, bookings live in a calendar, inventory in a spreadsheet, and returns are checked by eye on Monday morning. Result: you realize twenty glasses are missing when preparing the next order, and you don’t know if it’s breakage, a counting error, or a box left in the other warehouse.
With the right tool, every outgoing item is scanned when loading, every return when unloading. Breakage is noted immediately, with a photo if needed. Each warehouse’s inventory stays accurate at all times, and before confirming a booking, you see exactly what will be available on the requested date.
The team doesn’t count less. They count at the right time, and only once.
Off-the-shelf software or custom-built tool?
There are many inventory management software options, and some are excellent. If your business is traditional (buy, store, resell), start by looking in that direction: it’s often the right answer, and I explain how to decide in this comparison between SaaS software and custom solutions.
Custom solutions become interesting when your way of working goes beyond the standard: rentals with check-outs and returns, serial numbers or batches to track, multiple warehouses with frequent transfers, or inventory that must communicate with your quoting tool or online store.
For the budget, expect between €5,000 and €15,000 upfront for a small business or SME tool, plus €100 to €300 per month for maintenance. Everything is explained on my custom business applicationpage, and you can check out the StockPME project sheet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to buy scanners?
Not necessarily. A smartphone often suffices to read a QR code. A dedicated reader becomes useful when scanning a lot—all day long.
Can we import our current Excel file?
Yes. We import it to start with your references and quantities, then perform an initial count to ensure an accurate baseline.
What if multiple people use it at the same time?
That’s exactly the point: everyone records their transactions from their workstation or phone, and everyone sees the same up-to-date inventory.
How long for a first version?
A few weeks for a functional first tool: product sheets, movements, and labels. Alerts, statistics, or integrations with other software come later.
Want to talk?
If your inventory lives in a spreadsheet no one really trusts anymore, we can start simply: an audit of your current organization and a written action plan, over the phone or via video call. I always begin with the most critical issue, give you an honest budget estimate, and if an existing software solution works for you, I’ll tell you.
