The problem

Window film has a unit problem. Stock arrives and gets counted in rolls, but sales get recorded in linear feet, and the roll length hides in the middle of each product description. So "how much do we actually have left, and what do we reorder before it runs out?" meant someone doing mental math across mismatched spreadsheets. Reorders ran on gut feel, which meant either dead stock or a bestseller on backorder.

What we built

A single inventory workbook that does the reconciling itself:

  • Feet-to-rolls conversion built in. Every SKU that sells by the foot gets converted using the roll length in its own description, so sold quantities and stock counts finally speak the same unit.
  • One current-inventory column that updates from each new count. When a fresh warehouse count comes in, it flows into the order plan in one step instead of a re-keying session.
  • An order plan, not just a stock list. Current stock sits next to what's been selling, so the reorder decision reads directly off the sheet.

No new software to learn. It's still a spreadsheet, because that's what the team already uses. It's just a spreadsheet that does the math.

Results

  • Reorder decisions come from the sheet in minutes instead of an afternoon of cross-referencing.
  • The feet-versus-rolls confusion that used to distort every count is gone. One conversion rule, applied the same way every time.
  • Monthly inventory updates went from an error-prone chore to a routine refresh.