Items and Products

Comprehensive guide to managing your organization's products and services.

Interface Overview

Typical "Create Item" workflow with advanced pricing and batch tracking.

Business Overview

Items are the building blocks of your sales and purchases. QOBooks distinguishes between Products (physical goods tracked for inventory) and Services (non-physical labor or professional fees).

Actions

1. Creating a New Item

1. Go to Inventory > Items and click Add Item.
2. Item Type: Select "Product" for physical stock or "Service" for labor.
3. Identity: Enter the Item Name and a unique SKU/Barcode.
4. Batch Tracking (PRO): Enable this if you need to track expiration dates or manufacturing batches.

2. Advanced Pricing Dynamics

Our system supports multi-dimensional pricing, allowing you to define different rates for Retail, Wholesale, and Distributors in a single item profile.

The Pricing Grid

• Label / Unit: The name of the pricing tier or unit (e.g., "pcs", "Box of 12", "Wholesale").
• Dim (Dimension): The quantity multiplier.
  • Example: If your base unit is 1, a "Box" containing 12 items should have a Dim of 12.
• Rate: The actual price charged for this unit/tier.
• Pricing Factor: Use this to define how the system calculates the unit cost relative to the base price (Multiplication or Division).

Managing Wholesalers vs Retailers

Simply add multiple rows to the pricing grid:

1. Row 1: Label: "Retail", Dim: 1, Rate: 50.
2. Row 2: Label: "Wholesale", Dim: 1, Rate: 40.
3. Row 3: Label: "Distributor", Dim: 1, Rate: 35.

3. Inventory & Branch Settings

• Quantity on Hand: Initial stock count when creating the item.
• Cost Price: Your buying price. This is used to calculate Profit Margin.
• Restock Level: The "Safe Zone". When stock hits this number, the item is flagged as "Low Stock".
• Track Stock: Toggle this OFF if you want to sell the item without decreasing inventory counts.
• Negative Sell: Enable this if you want to allow sales even when the system shows 0 stock (useful for pre-orders).

4. Accounting Links

Expand the Advanced Accounting Settings to choose:

• Income Account: Where sales revenue is recorded.
• Expense/COGS Account: Where purchase costs are recorded.
• Asset Account: Where inventory value is held on the Balance Sheet.

Modifying Items

Editing Items

• Direct Editing: Click the Edit Item button on the item details view to modify item information including name, SKU, pricing dimensions, and accounting settings.
• Stock Adjustments: For significant cost price changes, use the Adjust Stock feature instead of direct editing to preserve historical valuation and maintain accurate inventory records.
• Branch-Specific Pricing: Prices can be configured per branch, allowing different selling prices for different locations.

Disabling Items

• Active/Inactive Status: Toggle the "Active" status to hide items from active selection while keeping their complete transaction history.
• Effect: Inactive items won't appear in dropdowns for new transactions but will remain visible in reports and historical records.

Deleting Items

• Permanent Removal: The Delete action permanently removes the item from the system.
• Constraints: Deleting is typically constrained to items that have no transaction history (no invoices, bills, or stock movements).
• Effect: The item is completely removed from the database. This action cannot be undone.
• Use Cases: Only use Delete for items that were created in error and never used in any transaction.

[!IMPORTANT] Disable vs Delete:

• Disable (Recommended): Use for items you no longer sell but need to keep in records for historical reporting and audit purposes. The item remains in the system but hidden from new transactions.
• Delete (Use with Caution): Only use for items created in error with no transaction history. Once deleted, the item cannot be recovered and all references are permanently removed.

Item Details View

Comprehensive item details with stock summary, transactions, and movement history.

Overview Tab

The Overview tab provides a complete snapshot of the item:

• Stock Summary: Displays current stock on hand, committed stock (reserved for orders), and available quantity
• Item Details: Shows item type (Inventory Item or Service), inventory account, and valuation method (FIFO)
• Order Status: Displays quantities to be invoiced and to be billed
• Purchase Information: Cost price and expense/COGS account
• Sales Information: Selling price with multi-dimensional pricing dropdown, and income account
• Inventory Controls: Reorder point settings and notification preferences

Transactions Tab

The Transactions tab shows all transactions involving this item:

• Transaction Types: Invoices, Bills, Transfers, Adjustments, Opening Stock, and Returns
• Search & Filter: Search by reference or entity name, filter by transaction type, and filter by date range
• Transaction Details: Date, type, reference number, entity name, quantity, and unit price
• Totals: Summary totals for filtered results showing total quantity and total value

History Tab

The History tab tracks all inventory movements for this item:

• Movement Tracking: Shows all stock additions (IN) and deductions (OUT) with running balances
• Reference Types: Opening Stock, Sales, Purchases, Transfers, Adjustments, Returns
• Balance Calculation: Displays balance before and after each movement
• Search & Filter: Search by reference, filter by movement type (IN/OUT), and filter by date range
• Summary: Total additions and deductions for the filtered period

[!TIP] Batch Tracking & Expiry: Using the "Track by Batch" feature allows the system to warn you about expiring stock on your dashboard before it becomes a loss.