Inventory Control Software for Multiple Locations | Windward Software

Why Multi-Location Inventory Management Is So Challenging

When a retail business expands to the point where operating multiple locations becomes feasible, it’s a remarkable milestone. In order to keep their growing companies running smoothly, many owners turn to inventory control software. 

Inventory management for retail stores with multiple locations represents a logistical challenge, especially if your business features an expansive product line or has a high inventory turnover. Without a proven POS system, you’ll be prone to:  

• Lost product
• Misplaced orders
• Inefficient ordering
• More frequent out-of-stock items
• Increased customer dissatisfaction

What Is Inventory Control Software?

Inventory control software with built-in barcode tracking systems is one of the most efficient means of managing stock levels across multiple locations. Whether your business is citywide or nationwide, it’ll be monitored from a centralized database, allowing you to track your product no matter where it is in the supply chain.

Whenever a sale occurs, the barcode is scanned and the database is automatically updated in real-time. That means there’s no waiting for end-of-day reports to learn where your stock levels are at before you place an order.

Real-Time Inventory Visibility Across Stores

With fully integrated POS software, front-end employees have access to the company-wide inventory database, including offsite warehouses. This is a huge benefit in terms of customer relationship management for a number of reasons:

• Easily verify whether a particular item is in the store
• Order it from another branch or the warehouse, if available
• Ability to place and track special orders

In the event that a product is transferred from one store to another, the database will track the movement between sites and update accordingly.

Some POS solutions, like Windward System Five on Cloud, also include product information and descriptions, which allows employees to provide an enhanced level of customer service.

Better Customer Service Through Inventory Access

Mobile barcode scanners make it easy to perform product counts anywhere in the store so you know where your inventory is at any point in time. This could include:

• Warehouse
• Shop floor
• Receiving area
• Backroom storage 

By knowing inventory levels at each of these points, managers have the information they need to make remote decisions without having to perform multiple counts right after stock levels change. 

These operations can also be synced with multiple locations so that more than one user can perform inventory adjustments simultaneously.

Take Control of Multi-Location Inventory