Figuring Out HD's UPC #'s

Tonkadad

I buy the majority of my supplies from HD. When invoicing my customers going back over the HD receipts is a pain in the neck. Trying to decipher what (1-3/8 WHT PL 16) is obnoxious, and calling them up for 20 items is a PITA. Anybody got a better way to figure out what you bought?

thanks,

Bruce

Teetorbilt

Why bother? Recipt tot. + 25% + addl =. My head stores all of this stuff to round numbers. If you are working all of this out to pennies, you're done.

__________________
You can't solve you're problems with the same level of thinking that created the problems.

Albert Einstein

mdshunk

I think he's saying he buys items for multiple jobs during one trip to HD. He has trouble sorting out what is what from the hard copy.

Have you tried just typing in the item# or SKU# into the search bar on their website? That works for most of Lowes' stuff.

RobertCDF

I also buy a lot of my supplies at HD and I understand what you are talking about but I usually just round it up some and call it good. The only time I dont do this is if I bought a new tool over $15 otherwise the customer pays for the tool too.

__________________
Robert Shaw
Colorado Springs Custom Decks
Colorado Custom Decks
Custom Composite Decks

Tonkadad

When I buy for multiple jobs I ring it up seperately. When I bill customers I just copy the receipt and attach to invoice. I want a simple way to know what the item is.

My understanding is that for tax purposes you need to show that the items are connected to the job so you can write them off. If you don't list each item how can you prove you used it on that job?

Tonkadad

MD, I have tried typing in the SKU and nothing comes up.

Teetorbilt

I'm lost. You supply materials at cost? Can't you go by quantity #s? Say 24 2X4's and 8 sheets of drywall?
My Dept. of Rev. isn't that picky, all that they care about is the $ and how many of them ar taxable. I don't need to itemize every nut, bolt and screw.

__________________
You can't solve you're problems with the same level of thinking that created the problems.

Albert Einstein

Mike Finley

First you don't have to prove anything unless somebody asks you to prove it, as in being audited.

Second, all you have to do is prove the expense. Lets say the IRS asks you to show the accounting trail on a job. You show you billed $500 and had a profit of $400, with $100 in material expenses. You have a receipt that adds up to $100.00, that's all the proof you need. Nobody in the IRS is going to ask you to prove that SKU 307433 means a box of nails.

If you really want to decipher the SKUs and take the time, get the Home Depot WorkSite CD from them, the SKUs are all listed on there, you could look them up if you wanted to.

HandyAl

Go to the contractor's desk at HD and pickup the Worksite CD. IT gives you update pricing on all HD's products for a given store. I use it when I'm working on quotes.

slickshift

I've never done enough business with them for it to be worth it for me to try out, but the local HD here does have a similar service
I didn't realize it was a CD
I think it comes with the package if you get the Contractor's HD credit card

Also a contractor only order, service, and fax line
I don't ever call their regular line
The contractor lines help bypass some of the "usual gang of idiots"* that answer phones at those places

It might be worth checking that out

*Is Mad Magazine still around?

noreast05

Ok for the HD shoppers I'm sorry. You just brought your quality to a lower level. We take a moment in the truck when we leave a real lumber or hardware store and write down on the receipt which items belongs to which customer. We have an idea what things cost, so when they're on the receipt we can pick out which is which by quantity or price regardless of it's sku# . The key is doing it in the truck before you leave the lot. Then of course we add a mark up.

ConcreteGuy

The aforementioned 25% markup may account for your time spent with little or no customer service. Maybe.