Goods receipt and pre-sales preparation: how to organize acceptance and labeling

Goods receiving is complete when the delivery has been recorded in the system, each item has the correct product card, quantity, and price, and the product can be uniquely identified during a sale. If the manufacturer has already applied a barcode, Torgsoft uses it to identify the product. If there is no barcode, the program generates its own EAN-13 code, which can be printed on a label immediately.

This is especially important for clothing, footwear, second-hand goods, spare parts, household goods, hardware, and other product ranges where suppliers often deliver goods without a ready-made barcode. After labeling, the cashier, inventory manager, or warehouse employee works with the same product card during sales, transfers, and inventory counts.

What to do with goods during receiving

In Torgsoft, a delivery is recorded through Document → Goods Receipt. The inventory manager creates a goods receipt document, specifies the delivery details, and adds the products.

The supplier’s document number can be saved in the receipt. This makes it easier to find the delivery later and reconcile it with the original documents. A product card must be created for a new product. For an item that already exists in the database, simply find the existing card or scan its barcode.

In practice, the receiving process looks like this:

1. The employee receives the goods and the supplier’s documents.

2. Creates a goods receipt document in Torgsoft.

3. Checks whether the product already exists in the database.

4. Creates product cards for new items.

5. Enters the quantity, purchase price, and retail price.

6. Saves the manufacturer’s barcode or obtains a Torgsoft internal barcode.

7. Prints labels for products that need to be labeled.

8. Checks several labels with a scanner.

9. Transfers the prepared goods to the sales floor or storage.

This creates the following workflow:

Delivery

→ goods receipt document

→ product card

→ quantity and price

→ barcode

→ label

→ sale and further movement of goods

If the product already has a manufacturer barcode

The simplest scenario is when the product is already factory-labeled. The inventory manager scans the code during receiving. If this item already exists in the database, Torgsoft finds the corresponding product card.

For a new product, the employee completes the product card and saves the manufacturer barcode.

There is usually no need to relabel such goods with an internal code. Torgsoft has a separate setting that prints internal barcodes only for products that need them. For factory-labeled products, the store can use the code on the packaging and, if necessary, print a separate price tag.

This is convenient for cosmetics, electronics, household chemicals, food products, stationery, and other mass-produced goods.

If the product does not have a barcode

The procedure is different for unlabeled goods.

After creating the goods receipt document, the inventory manager clicks «Add» and creates a new product card. The required product characteristics are entered and the record is saved. Torgsoft generates its own barcode for this item. If label printing is enabled, the program can immediately print as many labels as there are units specified in the receipt.

Terminology is important here: an internal barcode usually identifies a product item, not an individual physical unit. Therefore, identical T-shirts of the same size, color, and item code receive the same code. Individual coding of each physical unit is used in special accounting scenarios.

What barcode does Torgsoft generate

Torgsoft uses the EAN-13 format for its own product codes. In the program settings, the prefix 29 is reserved as an indicator of an internal product barcode. Torgsoft Help also provides for automatic generation of an internal EAN-13 if the manufacturer’s code has a different format.

Separate ranges are reserved in the program for other types of codes: employees, receipts, documents, orders, and other objects. This allows the scanner to transmit the code while Torgsoft determines which object the user is working with.

It is better to define the barcode rules before filling the database with a large number of products. Torgsoft Help contains a separate warning about converting manufacturer codes and working with 12-digit codes: changing these rules after a large catalog has already been entered may affect recognition of the existing product range.

What to enter in a new product card

The amount of information depends on the product range. During goods receipt, Torgsoft allows the product to be described using the product type and its characteristics.

As a minimum, the employee specifies:

• product type;

• manufacturer;

• description or name;

• item code;

• barcode;

• quantity;

• purchase price;

• retail price or markup.

For clothing, the name and product card may include size, material, manufacturer, item code, and other parameters defined by the owner in the product type settings. Torgsoft Help uses this exact scenario in the example of receiving jeans.

It is worth establishing an internal rule here: the same item should have the same name in every delivery. Otherwise, an employee may create two cards for the same product, and the stock will be split between them.

The specific format depends on the product range. Consistency is what matters.

Item codes and barcodes serve different purposes

An item code describes a product in the store’s or supplier’s system. A barcode makes it possible to identify it quickly with a scanner.

A single product card can use both an item code and a barcode. In Torgsoft, products can be searched for and added to operations by barcode or item code.

This is especially useful for spare parts. An employee can save the manufacturer’s item code to search for the part while also applying a Torgsoft internal EAN-13 for quick work at the checkout or in the warehouse.

Therefore, you should not manually create an internal barcode from the item code. Torgsoft generates a unique code for the product card automatically.

How to print labels immediately after receiving goods

Labels can be printed directly from the goods receipt document.

In the Document → Goods Receipt form, the employee clicks «Print Labels» and selects the required mode. Torgsoft supports several options:

For example, the store received 30 items. Twenty of them have factory barcodes, while ten arrived without labels.

The employee can print labels only for products with internal codes. Factory barcodes will not be duplicated.

For this purpose, it is convenient to install a label printer at the workstation. Labeling also requires self-adhesive labels of the appropriate size.

A label printer is not mandatory

Torgsoft can also print product labels on a regular office printer. In the template settings, for example, many labels can be placed on a single sheet. Torgsoft Help provides an example with 40 labels per sheet.

Therefore, a small store can start with:

As the number of deliveries increases, a dedicated thermal label printer reduces the number of operations: the employee prints a ready-to-use sticker and immediately applies it to the product.

For regular barcode work, you can select a suitable barcode scanner.

What to print on a product label

Label templates in Torgsoft can be customized. The program comes with ready-made templates, and the store can choose its own format.

Data from the product card can be passed to the template. Torgsoft Help provides support for additional product parameters, manufacturer, size range, full product type name, pictogram, and photo.

For a typical store, the following is sufficient:

There is no need to place all information from the product card on a small label. Its main purpose in internal inventory accounting is to help the employee and customer correctly identify the product and see the necessary information.

Different products require different labeling rules

Clothing and footwear

The employee usually works with the model, size, color, manufacturer, and item code. If the supplier does not label the product, the Torgsoft internal code can be printed together with the name, size, and price.

It is especially important not to mix similar variants. A black T-shirt in size M and the same T-shirt in size L must be correctly represented in the accounting system according to the adopted product structure.

Second-hand and individually accounted goods

If each item is actually accounted for separately, the employee creates the product, receives a code, and immediately prints a label.

This process makes it possible to work with a scanner after receiving goods without manually searching for each item in the catalog.

Auto parts

For a spare part, the manufacturer’s item code can be used as the main search identifier, while the Torgsoft internal barcode can be used for physically labeling the shelf, packaging, or the part itself.

Hardware and small household goods

For goods sold by the piece, the internal barcode works according to the standard procedure.

Goods sold by weight require a separate accounting and labeling scenario. They should not be mixed with ordinary piece goods.

Pre-sale preparation after printing

Printing a label does not yet mean that the batch is ready for sale. Before putting the goods on display, it is worth checking that the physical product matches its product card.

The employee takes several units from the batch and scans the labels. The code should open the correct product with the correct name, price, and characteristics.

Torgsoft has an «Description and Verification of New Products» mode. The employee scans a product from the current goods receipt document. If the code is found, the program opens the product card for checking and editing. If the product is not included in the current receipt, Torgsoft displays a notification.

For a large delivery, this provides a separate control stage:

Receiving

→ entering data into Torgsoft

→ printing

→ labeling

→ test scanning

→ displaying goods for sale

Why goods should be labeled during receiving

If unlabeled goods reach the sales floor before the accounting process is complete, employees have to work with them manually. The cashier searches for the item by name, warehouse staff cannot scan it quickly, and during inventory counts the same product has to be identified manually again.

If the product is labeled immediately after receipt, the same code is then used in subsequent program operations.

During a sale, the cashier scans the product and Torgsoft adds it to the sale. Scanning is also used in other goods movement operations. Barcode printing in Torgsoft is available directly from the goods receipt form and from the warehouse stock view.

Therefore, it is advisable to organize receiving as a complete process after which the product is ready for further accounting operations.

How to organize a goods receiving workstation

A separate workstation is not necessary for a small store. The inventory manager can work at the same computer where the program is installed.

Basic setup:

Goods receipt, tag printing, and label functions are included in Torgsoft-Start. This is also shown in the separate list of features for this version in Torgsoft Help.

For a store with a central warehouse and several retail outlets, the process can be organized centrally: the warehouse receives the goods, creates product cards, sets prices, labels the products, and then transfers the prepared goods to the stores. This model is also described in Torgsoft Help.

How to reprint a damaged label

There is no need to create the product again.

Labels can be printed not only during goods receipt. Torgsoft allows printing from Warehouse → Warehouse Stock. There you can generate one label per product or print the quantity according to the current stock balance.

This is useful if:

• the label is damaged;

• the product has been repackaged;

• the price tag has changed;

• part of the remaining stock needs to be relabeled;

• the label was lost during transfer.

Common labeling mistakes

Creating a new product card for every delivery

If the same product already exists in the catalog, the next receipt should be linked to the existing item. Otherwise, duplicate cards with separate stock balances accumulate in the database.

Printing a new code over a valid manufacturer barcode

If the factory barcode reliably identifies the product, it can be used. An additional internal code is needed where there is no factory labeling or where the store deliberately uses its own coding system.

Confusing product quantity with the number of labels

For a batch of 20 identical units, printing according to the received quantity will generate 20 labels. The single-item mode will print one label for the selected product item.

Not checking the code after printing

Before labeling the entire delivery, it is better to print one or several test labels and scan them.

Changing barcode generation rules after filling the catalog

Code format settings affect subsequent product recognition. The rules for working with EAN-13 and non-standard manufacturer codes should be defined at the beginning of implementation.

Overloading the label with information

The font becomes too small, the product name gets cut off, and the barcode has too little space for reliable scanning. It is better to create several templates for different product groups.

Checklist for receiving unlabeled goods

Before transferring the batch to the sales floor, check that:

• the goods receipt document has been created;

• the supplier and the supplier’s document number are specified if required;

• the quantity matches the actual delivery;

• new products do not duplicate existing cards;

• names and item codes are completed according to the store’s rules;

• purchase and retail prices have been checked;

• internal barcodes have been generated for unlabeled items;

• the correct number of labels has been printed;

• labels have been applied to the correct products;

• several test scans open the correct product cards;

• after verification, the goods have been transferred to the sales floor or warehouse.

After this receiving process, the product already has a digital product card, a physical identifier, and a recorded quantity. Subsequent operations use the same item, so sales, transfers, and inventory counts are based on consistent data.