# Setting up accounting system



## Señora_Soap (Oct 5, 2008)

Hi,

I sell soap in the local farmers' market, and I bought Quicken Home and Business only to find out that it was too limited.  So, I bought QuickBooks Professional. It's still too limited. 

My problem is that QB Pro doesn't allow an accounting system where one buys products for inventory and depletes them to make a final product.  It expects you buy, say 100 completed widgets for inventory and sell them off as widgets.  It turns out their Manufacturing version (something like $500!) supports the concept of buying parts and making a final product. There is no way I can justify spending $500 more now, so I need a workaround.

I am sure other people here use QB Pro.  What do you do to account for your inventory and products you sell?

Thanks in advance!


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## Deda (Oct 5, 2008)

I have QB pro, I set it up to add ingreds as purchases, COGs and then I remove them from COG and place then by portion into inventory.  It took me all day to set up but now just a few keystrokes to bring materials over to finished product.

Edited to say I bring the finished items over as inventory assets.


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## beadella (Oct 5, 2008)

Isn't there someone on here that has a soap program that manages inventory for about $65??  I went and looked at the demo a while back (long enough ago to forget what it's called... :roll:  )  and it seemed like just the thing to do that kind of function.

I didn't really think of it in terms of accounting then, but it seems like something like that would do a really good job for what you need and also it is written just for soapers!!  

Of course, I could be all wet...................


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## Becky (Oct 5, 2008)

Soapmaker manages inventory. You enter your stock as it comes in, and by using the 'make batch' button, it removes ingredients from your stock list & creates a batch of whatever you are making.

It will give you a cost per batch, a cost per portion, and the recipe will have the cost of each ingredient against it. 

It is not an accounting system, but you could use it to get your cost of goods, then put those goods into Quicken & go from there.


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## Zenobiah (Nov 21, 2008)

I am in the process of making one myself in Excel. 
I can enter the cost of the ingredient, the shipping cost and how many lbs it is for and then I get the cost per bar.

I will also make a price comparison per supplier but that isn't done yet.


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## Greenman (Nov 21, 2008)

*Hrmmmm*

I have worked as a proramer before...

Maybe i should write a soap accounting program - trouble is that would take time away from my soap making. I 'll think about it, if I do what features should I include?

~Roy


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## Soapmaker Man (Nov 28, 2008)

Della, the Soapmaker program is from our member Woodi.  You can PM her or go here to get a free 30 day trial.

http://www.soapmaker.ca/tools.htm

Paul


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## NMAriel (Dec 21, 2008)

What you're looking for is an accounting system that does "kitting".  QB for Manufacturing has it.  It takes time to set up your "kits", but once it's done it will pull individual items out of raw material inventory and produce a "kit" in inventory.  Then you sell the Kit.


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