Moving Stock Between Branches and Warehouses Without Losing Count

Stock leaks in two places: at the point of sale, and between your own godowns. The second is the more embarrassing one, because nobody outside your company is to blame. Goods leave the main warehouse on a truck, a registry says "sent to Pokhara", and three weeks later the Pokhara counter shows less than the paper says. A good transfer process closes that gap. This guide explains how transfers work in gamitrack and a routine to run them reliably. In this article a "branch" means any stock-holding location you create: a warehouse, a godown, a depot or even a van.

What a transfer actually does

In gamitrack stock is not a number you edit. It is the sum of stock movements, each of which is a permanent record: a type (such as production in, purchase in, transfer in, transfer out, sale out, return in, damage out, adjustment), a branch, a SKU, an optional batch and a quantity.

A transfer creates two movements in a single database transaction:

1. Transfer out at the source branch,
2. Transfer in at the destination branch,

and both share a reference. Either both are recorded or neither is. Because the outbound leg is checked against what the source branch holds, you cannot transfer goods you do not have. Because records cannot be edited, nobody can quietly adjust history.

Step 1: Set up branches that match reality

Open Settings and make sure each physical location is a branch. Common mistakes:

• A single branch covering two godowns in different towns. You lose the ability to know where stock actually sits.
• A branch for every shelf. Too granular and nobody will use it.

A useful rule is one branch per place where someone is accountable for the stock.

Step 2: Plan the transfer from data, not feelings

Before sending anything, look at Stock for each branch. You want to answer:

• Which branches are below their reorder level (the low-stock list)?
• Which branches hold more than they sell?
• Which batches are close to expiry in one place but could sell faster in another?

A hypothetical example: the Kathmandu godown holds a batch expiring in ninety days that sells slowly in the valley, while a regional branch is out of that SKU. A transfer solves two problems at once. Use sales data to decide, as described in using sales data to plan production.

Step 3: Record the transfer before the truck leaves

Make the transfer in the system at the time of loading, not when the truck arrives. Choose the source and destination branch, the SKU, the batch if applicable, and the quantity. Write the vehicle or challan number in the note or reference as your process requires.

Two rules for the stock keeper:

1. Count as you load. The quantity on the system should equal the quantity physically loaded.
2. One transfer per SKU and batch line. It keeps reconciliation simple.

Step 4: Confirm receipt

Even though the transfer-in is recorded at the same time as the transfer-out, goods are not physically at the destination until the truck arrives. Build a process on top:

• The receiving stock keeper checks the delivery against the transfer reference.
• Any shortage or damage is recorded immediately at the destination as a damage-out or an adjustment with a note, with a photo kept outside the system if needed.
• The difference is reported the same day to the manager.

A common policy is to treat the quantity in transit as the sender's responsibility until a named receiver signs. Document your policy and keep it consistent.

Step 5: Reconcile weekly

Once a week, per branch:

Check	How
Physical count of five fast SKUs vs system	Count and compare in Stock
All transfers have both legs and a reference	Review movements list
Adjustments have notes	Review adjustment movements
Expiring batches reviewed	Expiry list

Pick the five SKUs differently each week. Over a quarter, every SKU gets counted without a full stocktake.

Batches travel with the goods

If you track batches, always specify the batch on the transfer. Without it you lose first-expiry-first-out discipline at the destination: the receiving branch cannot tell which units are oldest. See batch and expiry control for the full routine.

Using branches as vans or depots

Some businesses create a branch for each delivery vehicle or depot. Loading the van is a transfer from the godown to the van branch, and unloading unsold goods is a transfer back. At the end of the day the van's expected stock equals what was loaded less what was delivered, which is a powerful check. The cash side is covered in van sales and cash reconciliation.

Correcting mistakes

If you transferred the wrong quantity, do not look for an edit button, because there is none by design. Instead record a reverse transfer for the difference, or an adjustment with a clear note. The ledger then tells the true story: what was sent, what was found, and when it was corrected. An auditor will prefer that to a clean-looking edit.

Common mistakes

• Transferring after the truck arrives. Memory fails; do it at loading.
• No reference. You cannot match both legs to a physical document.
• Ignoring in-transit time. If goods sit on the road for two days during monsoon, plan accordingly; see monsoon route and delivery planning.
• Transfers to hide shortages. A transfer that is not matched by a receipt is a red flag; review it.

A simple transfer note template

Whatever your paperwork looks like, make sure each physical transfer carries the same few facts, so the paper and the system can be matched later:

• the date and the system reference,
• source and destination branch,
• SKU, batch and quantity for each line,
• the vehicle or person carrying the goods,
• name of the person who loaded and the person who received.

When these five are always present, most disputes can be settled in a minute by reading the two documents side by side.

Next steps

Transfers work with the same branches and SKUs that your orders use, so there is nothing separate to set up. Compare plans on the pricing page and find the stock articles in the Help centre.