Do I need barcode scanning on day one?

No. Start with quantities on the products you actually quote. Barcodes help later if volume explodes.

When should stock drop?

When a quote becomes a real sale or dispatch — not when you merely send a quote, unless you deliberately hold stock for that customer.

What if I sell services, not goods?

You may skip inventory. Track materials you buy per job instead, still against the quote lines.

How does stock link to cashflow?

Stock you cannot sell is cash sitting on a shelf. Seeing levels next to sales helps you stop buying blind.

Briefly. Notebooks fail when two people sell at once or when WhatsApp quotes outpace the page. Move counts onto the same items you price.

Where does the catalog fit?

Stock without a catalog is a list of mysteries. Build product records first, then quantities.

Stock tutorial for traders who sell from a phone

Phone stock tutorial for SA traders: put quantities on catalog items, update when you buy and sell, check before you quote — no warehouse system required.

You find out something is sold out when the customer is already waiting — that is the default stock system for many South African traders.

If you quote from a phone, stock tracking has to live next to the product you just priced. This spoke belongs under run your SA business from your phone.

Direct answer

Put a quantity on every stocked item in your catalog. Update it when you buy and when you sell. Check it before you promise a delivery date on a quote.

Phone stock tutorial (minimum steps)

Open your catalog on the phone.
Add quantity on each item you can run out of.
When stock arrives, increase the count the same day.
When a sale or dispatch happens, decrease it — not merely when you send a quote.
Before the next WhatsApp quote, glance at the level so you do not promise what you cannot deliver.

Minimum viable stock

You do not need a warehouse WMS. You need:

Product record (see product catalog for quote businesses)
On-hand quantity
Habit: adjust after purchases and confirmed sales
Optional low-stock note for items that kill jobs when missing

Quote vs stock reservation

Sending a quote should not always reduce stock. Many operators only reduce when the customer accepts or when you pack. Pick one rule and stick to it so two open quotes do not double-sell the last unit.

Phone habits that work between jobs

Count fast-movers weekly; slow movers monthly.
After a supplier delivery, update the same day — not “Sunday sometime.”
Before a big WhatsApp quote, glance at levels for the lines you are about to promise.

Link to cashflow

Dead stock is money you already spent. Pair stock visibility with cashflow basics for trades so buying and quoting stay honest.

Vlyt shows stock on catalog items so levels stay visible while you build quotes — built for solo operators, not warehouse teams.