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New item

Add something you sell or stock, with its first size or pack, or change an existing item's details.

What this page is for

An item is anything you sell or keep in stock: a bottle of soda, a kilo of beef, a burger, a haircut, a service charge. Each item is sold as one or more variants: a size, pack or flavour with its own SKU (stock-keeping unit), unit and tax class. A 300 ml and a 500 ml soda are two variants of one item.

This page does two jobs:

  • New item (from Items → New item) creates the item and its first variant together. That first variant becomes the default: the one the till adds when nobody chooses a size.
  • Edit item details (from the item's own page) changes the item's details only. Variants are changed one by one from the item's page.

The item code is issued by Tulindo when you save; you never type it. Names are saved in your language, and other languages can be added later.

This page does not set a price, stock or barcodes. After you save:

  • give the variant a price with a price change;
  • add barcodes from the variant on the item's page;
  • record opening stock on Stock → Opening stock, or with a stock adjustment.

Only people whose role can manage the catalogue see this page.

Before you start

  • At least one item category (Catalogue → Item categories) and one revenue category (Catalogue → Revenue categories). You can also add either without leaving this form: press New category under Category, or New revenue category under Revenue category. The new one is chosen for the item, and nothing you have typed is lost.
  • The unit you count in (Catalogue → Units). Each, Kilogram, Gram, Litre, Millilitre, Box, Case, Crate and Pack are there from the start.
  • For a restaurant or bar: the prep stations (Floor and kitchen → Prep stations), if dishes should go to a kitchen or bar station.

Fields

The first eight fields describe the item. The rest describe its first variant and appear only on New item.

Name

What the item is called on the till, on receipts and in reports. Required. Keep it short and clear; the variant name adds the size.

Example: Tusker Lager

Category

The heading the item is listed under on the till, in the back office and in reports. Required.

Example: Beers for a lager, Grills for nyama choma.

Revenue category

Which line of your sales reports and accounts the takings go to. Required. Use a small set, such as Food, Drinks, Retail goods and Services, so your profit and loss reads clearly.

Example: Drinks

Kind

What sort of thing it is. The kind sets sensible defaults for the fields below; you can still change them.

  • Goods: bought in and sold as it is, such as a bottle of soda or a packet of crisps. Stock is counted by default.
  • Prepared: made to order from a recipe, such as a burger or a cocktail. Its ingredients come off stock.
  • Service: work you carry out, such as a car wash or a haircut. It may use up products through a recipe. Stock is not counted for the service itself.
  • Charge: an amount added to a bill that uses up nothing, such as a service charge, corkage or a delivery fee.

Example: Goods for Tusker Lager; Service for a full car wash.

Fulfilment

Whether the item is handed over straight away or made first.

  • Immediate: handed over at once, like a bottle from the fridge.
  • Prepared: goes to a kitchen or bar station before it is served, and selling it sends a ticket there.

Example: Immediate for a soda; Prepared for nyama choma.

Prep station

Where the kitchen or bar makes the item. Its tickets go to this station, and its recipe takes stock from that station's store. This field shows only to people whose role can see the floor and kitchen set-up. Choose No station for anything that is not made to order.

Example: Grill for nyama choma; Bar for a cocktail.

Track stock

When on, selling the item takes it out of stock on hand. Turn it on for things you buy in and count. Turn it off for anything made from a recipe, for services and for charges: their ingredients are tracked instead. An item that tracks its own stock cannot have a recipe.

Example: on for raw beef sold by the kilo; off for nyama choma made from that beef.

Stock leaves when

The moment stock is taken off for a sale. Leave it on The till's default unless you have a reason. The default is: for prepared items, when the order is sent to the kitchen; for other items in a bar or restaurant, when the order is placed; in a shop, when the sale is completed.

  • The order is placed
  • The order is fired to the kitchen
  • The kitchen marks it ready
  • The sale is completed

Example: The till's default.

Variant name

The size, pack or flavour of this first variant. It is shown beside the item name. Required.

Example: 500 ml bottle

SKU (stock-keeping unit)

Your own short code for this variant, used in searches, stock sheets and price sheets. Each SKU can belong to one variant only. Leave it empty and the business gives the variant the next one in its series, such as SKU-0001. Supermarkets usually use their shelf code here.

Example: TUSK-500

Unit

What one of this variant is counted in. Required. Choose Kilogram (kg) for anything sold by weight, Litre (l) for anything measured out by volume, and Each (ea) for single things.

Example: Each (ea) for a bottle; Kilogram (kg) for beef.

Pack size

How many units are in one of this variant. Use whole numbers or up to three decimals. Leave it at 1 unless the variant is a pack sold as one, such as a crate.

Example: 1 for a single bottle; 24 for a crate of 24 bottles.

Sold by weight

Turn on when the scale, or a barcode printed by the scale with the weight in it, supplies the quantity. Use it with a weight unit such as Kilogram.

Example: on for beef sold per kilo; off for a 2 kg packet of sugar, which is sold as one packet.

Tax class

The tax that applies to this variant. Required. The list shows KRA (Kenya Revenue Authority) tax codes with their names:

  • B · Standard rated: VAT (value added tax) at 16%, for most goods and services.
  • A · Exempt: no VAT and none can be reclaimed, such as some basic foods.
  • C · Zero rated: VAT at 0%.
  • D · Non-VAT: outside VAT altogether.

Check with your accountant if you are unsure.

Example: B · Standard rated for beer; A · Exempt for unprocessed milk.

Classification code

KRA's (Kenya Revenue Authority's) item classification code for this kind of goods or service. Optional; leave it empty if you do not know it.

Example: the code KRA lists for beer.

KRA unit code

Not typed. It shows the KRA code of the Unit you chose, which is set once on Catalogue → Units. If the unit has no KRA code yet, the note says so, and the variant cannot be registered until the unit has one.

Example: KG for a unit counted in kilograms.

How to…

How to add an item

  1. Go to Catalogue → Items and press New item.
  2. Fill in the item's details: Name, Category, Revenue category and Kind. Check Fulfilment, Track stock and Stock leaves when; the kind has already set sensible values.
  3. Fill in the first variant: Variant name, Unit, Pack size and Tax class, and the SKU if you use one.
  4. Press Create item. The item's page opens, with its new item code.
  5. Give it a price: raise a price change on your price list.
  6. If it is stocked, add opening stock on Stock → Opening stock.

How to add another size or pack

  1. Open the item from Items.
  2. Under Variants, press Add a variant, fill in its details and press Add variant.
  3. Price the new variant with a price change.

How to give an item a recipe

Recipes belong to variants. Turn Track stock off on the item first, then open the item and press Recipe beside the variant. A variant that tracks its own stock is not offered a recipe.

How to change an item's details

  1. Open the item and press Edit item details.
  2. Change what you need and press Save item. Variants are not changed here.

Worked examples

Butchery that also roasts meat

Mama Njeri's Butchery in Kiambu sells raw beef by weight and roasts nyama choma (roast meat) to order.

Raw beef, sold by weight. Name Beef (steak cut), Category Raw meat, Revenue category Meat sales, Kind Goods, Fulfilment Immediate, Track stock on. Variant name Per kg, SKU BEEF-STK, Unit Kilogram (kg), Pack size 1, Sold by weight on, Tax class as your accountant advises. The scale sends the weight, so 0.750 kg rings up as three quarters of the kilo price.

Nyama choma, made from the beef. Name Nyama choma, Category Grills, Revenue category Food, Kind Prepared, Fulfilment Prepared, Prep station Grill, Track stock off. Variant name Half kg, Unit Each (ea), Pack size 1, Tax class B · Standard rated. Then open its Recipe and add one line: component Beef (steak cut) — Per kg, quantity 0.5, unit Kilogram (kg). Each half-kilo plate sold takes 0.5 kg of beef out of stock, and a ticket goes to the grill. Add a Full kg variant the same way with a recipe of 1 kg.

Restaurant and bar

The Acacia Grill & Bar in Westlands, Nairobi, cooks to order, sells spirits by the bottle and by the tot (a single measure), and adds a service charge.

A dish. Name Chicken burger, Category Mains, Revenue category Food, Kind Prepared, Fulfilment Prepared, Prep station Kitchen, Track stock off. Variant name Regular, Unit Each (ea), Tax class B · Standard rated. Give it a recipe of its ingredients: a bun, a chicken fillet, lettuce and sauce.

The bottle. Name Jameson Irish Whiskey, Category Spirits, Revenue category Drinks, Kind Goods, Fulfilment Immediate, Track stock on. Variant name 1 litre bottle, SKU JAM-1L, Unit Litre (l), Pack size 1, Tax class B · Standard rated. This is what you buy, count and sell whole.

The tot. A tot is a measure poured from that bottle, so it is its own item with a recipe. Name Jameson tot, Category Spirits, Revenue category Drinks, Kind Prepared, Fulfilment Immediate (the barman pours it, no ticket), Track stock off. Variant name 25 ml, Unit Each (ea), Tax class B · Standard rated. Recipe: component Jameson Irish Whiskey — 1 litre bottle, quantity 25, unit Millilitre (ml). Forty tots empty one bottle in your stock.

The service charge. Name Service charge, Category Charges, Revenue category Service charge, Kind Charge, Fulfilment Immediate, Track stock off. Variant name Standard, Unit Each (ea), Tax class as your accountant advises. Then, in Settings under Selling and the till, set Service charge to 10 and Service charge item to this item's code (shown on its page).

Supermarket

Tumaini Supermarket in Nakuru sells thousands of barcoded packets and prices them twice: retail and wholesale.

A packaged product. Name Jogoo Maize Meal, Category Flour and grains, Revenue category Retail goods, Kind Goods, Fulfilment Immediate, Track stock on, Stock leaves when The till's default (when the sale is completed). Variant name 2 kg packet, SKU JOG-2KG, Unit Each (ea), Pack size 1, Sold by weight off, Tax class as your accountant advises. After saving, open the item, open the variant and scan the barcode from the packet into Barcodes. Add a Bale of 12 variant with Pack size 12 for wholesale buyers.

Then raise one price change on the Retail list and one on the Wholesale list, and load the shelf counts on Stock → Opening stock. With thousands of products, Import items on the Items page is faster than this form.

Salon or car wash

Sparkle Car Wash & Salon on Mombasa Road sells services that use up products.

The product used. Name Car shampoo, Category Wash supplies, Revenue category Retail goods, Kind Goods, Track stock on. Variant name 5 litre can, Unit Litre (l), Pack size 5, Tax class B · Standard rated.

The service. Name Full car wash, Category Car wash, Revenue category Services, Kind Service, Fulfilment Immediate, Track stock off. Variant name Saloon car, Unit Each (ea), Tax class B · Standard rated. Recipe: component Car shampoo — 5 litre can, quantity 50, unit Millilitre (ml). Add a Van or SUV variant with a recipe of 80 ml. Every wash sold takes the shampoo out of stock, so a missing can shows up in the stocktake.

A salon works the same way: Relaxer treatment (Kind Service) with a recipe drawing 100 g of Relaxer — 500 g tub.