Source: Deutsche Nachrichten
Store networks in the Netherlands keep changing shape. In spring 2026, Jysk took over five former Leen Bakker locations and now reports 110 stores in the country, with a stated ambition of at least 140. In grocery, Jan Linders transferred around 70 stores to Albert Heijn, and analyst Erik Hemmes told Retail Detail at the end of 2025 that the possibilities for further mergers are not yet exhausted.
Whenever a store moves from one owner or one system to another, somebody has to establish what is physically there. That stocktake is not an annual formality. Its result becomes the opening stock in a different system, and this is where many projects lose time.
Counting is rarely the bottleneck
A trained team with handhelds can count a mid-sized store in a planned window. The delay comes afterwards, when the count file meets the target ERP. Three mismatches account for most of the rework.
The first is identifiers. The shelf carries a barcode, the old system used its own item numbers, and the new ERP expects a third key. If the mapping is incomplete, counted items arrive as unknowns and have to be matched by hand.
The second is units. One system holds stock in single pieces, the other in packs or cases. A count of 24 can mean 24 units or 24 cartons, and the difference only shows when the valuation looks wrong.
The third is locations. The count is organised by zones that make sense on the floor: sales area, back store, receiving bay. The ERP may only know one stock location per store, or several defined differently. Without an agreed translation, quantities end up in the wrong place or are added twice.
Decide the handover before the count
All three questions can be answered in advance, and that is the practical lesson. Before the first scan, the project team should fix which master data the count runs against, which unit is counted for each product group, how zones map to stock locations, and in which format and rhythm the results go back: continuously while counting, or as a checked batch at the end. For a takeover, a checked batch is usually the safer choice, because finance wants one agreed figure per store.
It also helps to plan a review step between counting and posting. Unknown barcodes, implausible quantities and open zones are far cheaper to clear in a review screen than after they have been booked.
Who should do the counting?
In a takeover, the store team often stays. They know the range, and there is good reason to let them count. What they need is a common procedure, devices and somebody to turn to. This is the middle ground between a fully self-managed and a fully outsourced stocktake: the retailer’s people count, supported by software, rental handhelds and a support team, while head office keeps control of timing and results.
How COSYS supports the handover
COSYS is a German provider of mobile data capture and inventory solutions. With the COSYS Inventory Service, master data is imported from the retailer’s system before the count and prepared for the handhelds. Count lists per store and zone are created in the COSYS WebDesk and transferred to handheld devices or smartphones running the COSYS inventory app. The COSYS app supports combined offline and online operation, with the exact scope depending on configuration. After counting, results are reviewed and corrected in the WebDesk and then returned to the ERP online or in batches. Where the target system needs a specific structure, customer-specific import and export routines can be set up as part of the project. Rental devices are available for the count period.
Planning opening counts or year-end stocktakes across a store network? Contact the COSYS team to arrange an appointment: vertrieb@cosys.de or +49 5062 900 0. Alternatively, you can test the free COSYS Inventory Demo App for Android and iOS.