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2026-11-06 · 2 min video · 7 min read

Where Did 8 Cartons Go? 5 Ways Your Stock Leaks

Your system says 500 cartons, your shelf says 492. The five places stock leaks in a distribution business, and how Sentribooks closes each one.

The 8-carton gap

Your system says 500 cartons. Your shelf says 492. Nobody stole them, and nobody can say where they went. Multiply that small gap across hundreds of products and a year of trading, and it becomes real money: stock you paid for, can't sell, and still carry on your balance sheet.

Gaps like this rarely come from one big mistake. They come from small, everyday moments where the physical stock and the system stop agreeing, and nobody records why. In a distribution business there are five places this happens again and again.

1. Damaged in the warehouse

A forklift crushes six cartons of oil. In many businesses, someone throws them out and maybe mentions it later. The system still shows 500. The gap appears at month-end, with no reason attached.

In Sentribooks, the warehouse manager logs the damage from their phone as a shrinkage entry, with the quantity, the reason and a photo of the damage. With approvals switched on, stock doesn't move yet: the entry waits for a manager, who sees the photo and approves it. Only then does the stock drop.

The result is that every reduction in stock has a reason, a photo and a named person behind it.

2. Stock counts

Counts are where gaps are discovered, but also where they are often hidden. A count is entered, the system is overwritten to match, and the difference disappears without anyone reviewing it.

In Sentribooks, the person counting finds the product by scanning its barcode, enters the quantity counted and can attach a photo as proof. When approvals are on, any difference goes to a manager, who can approve it or reject it and ask for a recount. Inventory reconciliation then shows counted stock next to system stock, so you can see which products drift and investigate why.

3. Overselling

It's rush season and sales books 600 cartons. You only have 492. The order goes through, the warehouse ships what it can, the customer is short, and stock in the system goes negative, which quietly breaks your stock values and cost of goods sold.

Turn on 'prevent negative inventory' and Sentribooks won't post an order that takes stock below zero. Keep the order as a draft, and post it once the stock has arrived. Sales can't promise what the warehouse doesn't have.

4. Receiving

Ordered isn't received. You order 200 cartons, the supplier sends 190, and if the system was updated when the order was placed, you're already 10 cartons out before anything is sold.

In Sentribooks, a purchase order doesn't change stock. Stock changes when the warehouse records what actually arrived, against the purchase order, and the purchase order shows whether it has been fully received. A shortage is visible straight away and can be taken up with the supplier, including through a purchase credit note.

5. Damaged on the road

One carton gets crushed in the van. The customer ordered 100, receives 99, and is invoiced for 100. Now you have a dispute, a credit note to raise, and a customer who trusts your invoices a little less.

In Sentribooks, the driver records what was actually delivered, 99 cartons, adds a note about the damage, and captures the customer's signature and a photo at the door. The invoice follows the delivery, for the 99 cartons delivered, and the delivery note carries the proof.

Loose or strict: your call

Every one of these controls is a setting, and they all start switched off. That matters, because the right level of control depends on the business:

• A two-person shop can keep things simple and move fast.
• A warehouse with a larger team can require approvals for receiving, damage and counts, and require photo proof for damaged stock.
• Any business can turn on 'prevent negative inventory' to stop overselling.

You can tighten controls as you grow, without changing systems. Approvals and photo proof are available on the plans with advanced inventory controls.

A quick checklist for stock you can trust

• Every stock reduction has a reason, a photo and a person behind it.
• Count differences are reviewed by someone other than the person counting.
• Orders can't take stock below zero.
• Stock goes up when goods arrive, not when they're ordered.
• Invoices match what was delivered, with signed proof.

If any of these isn't true today, that's where your cartons are going.

Try it free for 30 days

See how Sentribooks tracks every carton from the supplier to the customer's door. Start your free 30-day trial at sentribooks.com, or read the full product overview in Introducing Sentribooks.

Video transcript

Read the full transcript

Your system says five hundred cartons. Your shelf says four hundred and ninety-two. Where did eight cartons go?

Sentribooks closes every gap your stock leaks through. Here are five ways.

A forklift crushes six cartons of oil. The warehouse manager logs it on the phone: quantity, reason, photo. Stock doesn't move yet. The manager sees the photo, approves, and only then does stock drop and the loss hit the books.

Month-end count. The warehouse manager scans the product barcode with his phone. The eight-count gap goes to the manager. Approve it, or reject it and ask for a recount.

Rush season. Sales tries to book six hundred cartons. There are only four hundred and ninety-two. Sentribooks won't post it. The order is saved as a draft and posted when stock lands. No promises you can't keep.

You order two hundred cartons, but the stock isn't changed yet. Once the stock arrives, the warehouse manager enters it on his phone, and it's matched with the purchase order. If there's a shortage, that's accounted for.

On the road, one carton gets crushed. The customer ordered a hundred, so the driver records ninety-nine delivered, notes the damage, and gets a signature and a photo. The invoice follows the delivery: ninety-nine cartons, with the proof printed right on it.

Every control is a switch, and they all start off. A two-person shop can keep it loose. A ten-person warehouse can lock it down. And trusted users can be allowed to skip the queue.

Sentribooks. Know where every carton went. Try it free for thirty days.