Gemstone inventory: spreadsheet or software?

A spreadsheet is a fine start

Most gem businesses begin with a spreadsheet: one row per stone, with weight, colour, cost and a price. With a few dozen stones and one person managing them, that works, and it costs nothing.

Signs you have outgrown it

Stones go out on memo and nobody is sure which are still out. Two people edit the sheet and one overwrites the other. You cannot say what a parcel cost per stone after you split it. A buyer asks for photos and a certificate and you search four folders.

A spreadsheet also has no history. If a price changes, you cannot see who changed it or when, and a deleted row is gone.

What gem inventory software should do

A record for every stone with weight, dimensions, origin, treatment, photos and report number. Parcels and lots that split into single stones while keeping cost. Memo and consignment tracking. Customer history. Barcode or QR labels. Invoices in the buyer's currency. Access for staff in more than one place, with roles.

Import matters too: you should be able to bring your existing sheet across rather than retype it. GemColony imports stock from Excel.

A simple way to decide

Count your stones, the number of people who touch stock, and how many stones are out on memo at any time. If stock is above a few hundred stones, or more than two people work on it, or memo is a regular part of your trade, software will repay the cost in avoided mistakes.