How to Get Your Gas Station Ready for Inventory

A good inventory count starts before the counter walks in the door. A little prep on your end makes the count faster and the numbers more accurate. Here’s what I ask gas station and carryout owners to do before I come out.

1. Face and organize the shelves

Pull product forward and keep the same items together. When the same candy bar is in three spots, it’s easy for anyone to miss one. Ten minutes of facing saves a lot of time during the count.

2. Clean up the back room

Back rooms are where counts go wrong. Stack cases with the labels facing out, keep open cases together, and set aside anything damaged or being returned so it isn’t mixed in with sellable stock.

3. Sort out the tobacco

Cigarettes and tobacco are some of the most valuable things in a gas station, so they need to be right. Keep full cartons together and open cartons separate, and put loose packs back in their slots.

4. Get the cooler and beer cave in order

Keep full cases together in the walk-in, with singles and broken cases in one spot. Make sure nothing is hiding behind the doors.

5. Hold off on deliveries

If you can, don’t schedule deliveries during the count. If a truck does show up, keep that product to one side until the count is done.

6. Tell me about anything unusual

Have a storage trailer out back? A second stockroom? Product at another location? Let me know ahead of time so nothing gets left out.

After the count

Your report is ready 15 minutes after I finish. If anything looks off, tell me. I guarantee my work, and if the count is off I’ll come back and recount it for free.

Ready to schedule? Call or text me, or read more about gas station inventory.