Sampling inventory when the warehouse spans two islands

Companies that hold stock in Naha and a second facility on a neighboring island face a scheduling problem: auditors cannot be in both places at the same hour, yet year-end counts must support the inventory balance in the financial statements.

Agree the count plan early

We ask management to nominate count supervisors at each site, freeze shipping windows for the count day, and share location-level stock listings two weeks ahead. That listing becomes the sampling frame for selecting high-value SKUs and slow-moving items that deserve full observation.

Observer coverage without doubling the fee

For many engagements we observe the primary warehouse in person and arrange a simultaneous video walk-through of the secondary site with a local count supervisor we have briefed in writing. The secondary site still completes a full physical count; we test roll-forward movements between the count date and the balance-sheet date if those dates differ.

What usually goes wrong

Transfer notes between islands dated on the count day are the classic source of double-counting or omissions. We reconcile inter-location transfers for the week surrounding the count and ask for signed dispatch logs, not only system entries.

If your inventory sits in more than one prefecture or island, raise the geography in the planning meeting. It changes how we price fieldwork and how many days we reserve on the closing calendar.