Cannabis inventory management: what to test in a POS
Use a short delivery and a deliberate count difference to test inventory software. Keep the quantities on paper so you can check every change from receiving to the final stock balance.
PURP makes cannabis retail software. This is our buying framework, not an independent vendor ranking.
Try this with sample data: start with 8 units, order 12, receive 10 and sell 1. With no other movements, you should be able to explain the resulting 17 units and what happened to the 2 units that did not arrive.
Build a small, awkward test order
Choose two sizes of the same product, an item with more than one barcode and a product that is new to your catalogue. Use a sample of your supplier’s file, with sensitive commercial details removed. Have the vendor import that file rather than a prepared order.
Before the demonstration, write down what you expect to have on hand. Keep ordered, delivered, received and sellable quantities separate. Ask the vendor to show where each quantity lives and when a change becomes available to the register.
Inspect the matches before accepting them. Do the two package sizes remain separate? Does the existing product keep its history? If a match is uncertain, find out whether staff can resolve that row without starting the whole import again.
Receive less than you ordered
In the sample order, receive 10 of the 12 units ordered. Find the original order quantity, the receipt and the outstanding difference. Ask whether the remaining 2 units stay open, are cancelled or need a separate claim—and where your team records that decision.
In a separate test order, add a damaged unit or an unexpected product. Check how staff keep it out of sellable stock while they resolve it. Leave one row unfinished and return to the order later; the receiving team should be able to see what still needs attention.
Where your operation uses lot, potency or other product details, ask when they are captured and how corrections are recorded. A product-level value and a lot-specific value are not always the same thing. Verify what staff see when selling the affected stock.
- Which of your supplier files can be imported today?
- What happens when a row cannot be matched confidently?
- Who may change cost, received quantity and retail price?
- Can receiving staff finish their work without seeing information their role should not expose?
Trace stock through a normal day
Move an item from the back room to the sales floor. If you operate several locations, also ask to see a store transfer, including dispatch, receipt and a quantity disagreement. Write down which steps are supported and which require separate work.
Sell one unit, return it and inspect the stock record again. Ask how the retailer decides whether a returned item goes back into sellable stock. The system should make the operational result understandable; a refund and a physical stock movement are different decisions.
Test corrections as carefully as ordinary sales. Ask what happens when the same action is retried after a slow response, and how a manager can determine whether the original action completed.
Run a count with a deliberate difference
Continue the sample: the record says 17 units, but your test count finds 16. Submit the difference as a counting employee, then review it as a manager. Check the balance before submission, while approval is pending and after approval. Note who can change it at each step.
Open the movement history for that product. You should be able to trace the opening 8, the receipt of 10, the sale of 1 and the count adjustment of 1. For your real store, agree how stock sold during a count is handled; do not assume every system takes its snapshot at the same point.
| Test | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|
| Short delivery | Ordered and received quantities remain distinguishable. |
| Unmatched product | The team can review the match before stock is accepted. |
| Restricted employee | Costs and approvals follow the intended role. |
| Count difference | The adjustment and approval can be traced. |
| Sale and return | Money and physical stock outcomes are each explained. |
| Report export | A sample export matches the stock records being reviewed. |
Change a cost before trusting the price rule
Use a sample product whose supplier cost has increased. Before saving the receipt, inspect the proposed retail price, rounding and any override. Find out whether the change affects the incoming lot, existing stock or every location. The person responsible for pricing should be able to see and approve that scope.
Then ask for the purchasing and stock reports your team actually uses. Can you identify open orders, slow-moving stock and differences that still need review? Confirm the report definitions and filters rather than assuming similarly named reports calculate the same thing.
Watch the PURP receiving and audit examples
PURP Intake turns matched supplier files into purchase orders, brings available catalogue details across and applies your pricing rule. Receiving connects delivery quantities, lot potency and permission-controlled costs, with purchase-order exports for the team. Review new or unresolved product records and confirm the supplier formats used by your business.
The Admin walkthrough shows room-level stock and a count submitted for manager approval. Combine those demonstrations with your sample order when evaluating PURP. For the rest of the selection process, use the cannabis POS buyer's guide.