How to cut stock shrinkage without turning the shop into a fortress
Grace Muthoni
Store ops
Shrinkage is the gap between what the system thinks you have and what is on the shelf. It is not only theft. Receiving errors, unrecorded damage, staff snacks, and skipped scans all look the same if you never measure them.
Measure before you accuse
Pick your top 20 SKUs by value. Cycle-count them weekly. When the count disagrees, log an adjustment with a reason. Patterns show up fast: one category, one shift, one receiving day.
Close the easy holes
- Every sale through the POS — including “just this one” for a friend.
- Returns and voids need a reason and, ideally, a second pair of eyes on high-value items.
- Receiving: count boxes against the invoice, then against the product list, not “it looks right”.
- Damaged goods leave the sellable quantity via an adjustment, not by vanishing.
Access and accountability
Not everyone needs permission to change stock or issue refunds. Use roles: cashier sells, manager adjusts. If you have branches, transfers should be recorded so “it went to the other shop” is a document, not a story.
Culture beats cameras alone
Cameras help after the fact. Daily habits — scanning, receipts, counted drawers — prevent the slow leak. Tell staff the goal is a fair shop, not a witch hunt. Then follow the numbers.