INVENTORY MANAGEMENT | 4 minute read
Beginning inventory is the dollar value of all inventory held by a business at the start of an accounting period, and represents all the goods a business can put toward generating revenue. You can use the beginning inventory formula to better understand the value of your inventory at the start of a new accounting period.
To save you time, we have built a beginning inventory calculator just for you:
Example: Candles cost $2 each to produce, and Jen’s Candles sold 600 candles during the year.
COGS = 600 x $2 = $1200
Example: Jen’s Candles had 800 candles in stock at the end of the previous accounting period, and produced a further 1000 candles during the next year.
Ending inventory = 800 x $2 = $1600. New inventory = 1000 x $2 = $2000
Example: $1600 + $1200 = $2800
Example: $2800 - $2000 = $800
Any change to beginning inventory compared with the previous period usually signals a shift in the business. For instance, decreasing beginning inventory could be a result of growing sales during the period, or it could be due to an issue in the supply chain or inventory management process. Increased beginning inventory could be due to a business ramping up stock before a busy period, or it could signal a downward trend in sales.
As with all business accounting, beginning inventory is a good way to better understand sales and operational trends for a business and make improvements to the business model based on the available data.
