A daily close checklist runs at the end of trading and leaves the store in a state somebody can pick up cold. It differs from a shift handover because nobody is taking over: the next person is tomorrow's team, possibly tomorrow's you, and anything left ambiguous stays ambiguous overnight while the store keeps trading.
When to use it
Run it at the same time every day, including quiet ones. The value comes from tomorrow always starting from the same known state, and a close that only happens on busy days does not provide that.
It is not a handover. A handover assumes somebody picks up now and can ask you questions. A close assumes nobody does until morning, which means anything unclear has to be written rather than mentioned.
The template
Ten minutes, same order, every day.
DAILY CLOSE Date: [ ] Closed by: [name] 1. THE QUEUE [ ] Orders due to ship today: all shipped, or noted with a reason [ ] Anything stuck, flagged with who picks it up tomorrow [ ] High-risk or held orders: decided, or explicitly left for [name] 2. CUSTOMERS [ ] Nobody waiting on an answer overnight without being told so [ ] Anything promised for today either done or the customer updated 3. STOCK [ ] Anything that hit zero today: storefront updated [ ] Deliveries received today booked in, not left on the floor 4. TOMORROW [ ] Deliveries expected: [ ] [ ] Anyone off, or starting [ ] Anything time-critical first thing 5. THE NOTE Two lines, even when nothing happened: [what happened today that tomorrow needs to know] [what is open, and who owns it] If nothing happened, write that. Silence is ambiguous.
How to adapt it
- Keep section five even on quiet days. An empty note is information; a missing note is indistinguishable from a forgotten one.
- Do not turn it into a report. The close exists to set tomorrow's starting point, not to summarise the day for anyone.
- Name people in section one. Flagged and unowned is the same as unflagged by the time somebody reads it in the morning.
- Add a till or float step if you also trade in person, and keep it separate from the online queue so neither delays the other.
Why it is this short
Ten minutes because a close at the end of a long day competes with going home, and loses if it is longer. A short close that happens daily is worth far more than a thorough one that happens when somebody has the energy.
There is no section for metrics. Looking at the day's numbers is a worthwhile habit and a different one, and bolting it onto the close is the most common reason a close stops being done.
Common questions
What is the difference between a daily close and a shift handover?
A handover assumes somebody picks up now and can ask questions. A close assumes nobody does until morning, so anything ambiguous has to be written rather than mentioned in passing.
How long should a daily close take?
About ten minutes. It competes with going home at the end of a long day, and a longer one loses that competition and stops happening.
Should the close run on quiet days?
Yes, and the note matters most then. An empty note tells tomorrow that nothing happened; a missing note is indistinguishable from one somebody forgot.
Should the daily numbers be part of the close?
Better kept separate. Reviewing figures is a worthwhile habit, and attaching it to the close is the most common reason the close stops being done.