2. Once the stock has been opened and unpacked the
next task is to inspect the goods. The goods need
to be checked that:
there is no damages or breakages
the stock is of the quality ordered
the stock is not out of date
the package hasn’t been tampered with
The following are issues that need to be considered
when checking the quality of goods.
3. Damage
The goods may arrive at your store damaged. This
could be due to a manufacturing error or has more
likely occurred during transit.
Cartons may be damaged if they are incorrectly
packaged, squashed or dropped. They could also
be damaged by rough use of trolleys and poor
manual handling.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q6_9A90cUk
4. All goods should be checked for damages
including:
• dirty marks
• broken pieces
• cracks or chips
• faded areas
• crushed boxes
• loose shrink wrap could indicate an issue with
freshness for food products
5. Fragile items
Fragile items should be checked to ensure they
have not been damaged. This is especially the
case if the cartons or boxes are crushed or
damaged.
6. Use by dates
Goods with an expiry date should be checked
closely. Any that are past the date should be
returned.
This is particularly important for food items, as if
items are passed the date they are legally not
allowed to be sold, due to health impacts on
customers.
7. Best before dates
Food items with a shelf life of less than two years
will need to have a best before date. These should
also be checked when processing incoming stock.
The best before date gives customers an idea of
how long they good will last before it starts to loses
quality. This date is often conservative and the
good may stay good well after this date. As this is
the case, some stores may sell certain products
past their best before date at a reduced rate.
8. If an item arrives in store with a small use by date
or best before date, a store may reject these items
due to the problems they can cause for the store.
Finding out of date goods on the shelf will have a
negative impact on customer’s perceptions of the
store and ultimately sales.
It can also lead to problems if people become sick
from eating out of date goods from your store.
9. Shelf life
Other items may also have a shelf life too, such as
clothing, footwear and seasonal items. They may
become outdated or soiled as there are waiting in
storage. These items would then need to be sold at
a reduced rate, which impacts on profit.
This should be taken into account when ordering
items.
14. Temperature issues
Certain goods will also have to be stored at the
correct temperature. Frozen goods should be less
than -18 degrees Celsius and chilled items no more
than 4 degrees Celsius
You need to ensure all delivery drivers use the
correct type of transport to ensure this occurs.
15. Liquid items
Items containing liquid should be checked to
ensure they have no spilt or nothing has leaked or
evaporated. If boxes are damp, this could indicate a
problem.
You need to check the level of the liquid in the
bottle to check to see if the quantity is correct.
16. Electrical items
Electrical items should be checked to see if they
work. Most stores will just check one rather than
the whole delivery. However if there appears to be
an issue with that delivery, i.e. customers returning
the product, the whole delivery should be checked.
17. These types of items may also be damaged during
transit if they are transported in the incorrect way.
The carton will show an arrow to indicate which way
to stand the item up. You should ensure the
delivery driver follows these procedures.
18.
19. Security concerns
Another issue that should be considered is
items, liquids, powders etc that look suspicious.
The store will have policies to deal with this, it may
require a phone call to the police or fire department.
Whilst this may never occur, it is better to be aware
of these issues.
20. Discrepancies
If you notice any problems straight away, you
should not accept delivery of the damaged goods.
You should note the problem on the delivery docket
and have the delivery driver take it back.
If you realise the problem after, then you will need
to contact the supplier and deal with the problem.
21. If you accept goods that are of poor quality, it is
unlikely you will be able to sell them for the correct
price. This will affect your profit and will also affect
your store’s reputation as a supplier of quality
goods.
