What changes when you open a second branch
With one shop, the owner sees everything: which tray a chain sits in, who sold the ring yesterday, how much cash is in the galla. With two shops, you can only stand in one at a time.
That is when the notebook stops working. A necklace leaves the main shop on Monday for a customer at the other branch. By Saturday nobody is sure whether it was sold, sent back or is still in a drawer there. Both stock counts are now wrong, and nobody was dishonest. The move simply wasn’t written down.
Good multi-branch jewellery software fixes this: every branch has its own stock, bills, cash and staff, and every move between branches is recorded as sent, received, by whom and when.
What multi-branch jewellery software must handle
- Stock that belongs to one branch. Every piece sits at one branch at a time, so it is never counted twice or not at all.
- Transfers with a send and a receive. The sending branch marks the pieces out; the receiving branch checks the tag, weight and HUID and marks them in. Until then the pieces show as “on the way”.
- Bills and cash per branch. Each branch’s sales, returns, old gold and galla stay its own, so each manager answers for their own counter.
- Staff who see only their branch. A salesperson at one branch shouldn’t see the other branch’s cash or cost prices.
- One view for the owner. Sales, stock and dues for all branches together, and branch by branch, from your phone.
- Rates that match how you price. One rate for all shops each morning, or a different rate at one branch: check the software works the way you do.
- Customers shared across branches. A customer who buys at one branch and pays dues at the other should have one record, not two.
- GST that follows your registrations. Bills and GST figures must sit under the right GSTIN, especially when a branch is in another state.
Stock transfers between branches, done properly
A good transfer has three steps, and the software should not let you skip one.
1. Send. Pick the pieces at the sending branch by scanning their tags. The software lists each piece with gross weight, net weight, purity and HUID, and the pieces leave that branch’s stock.
2. Carry. Whoever carries the pieces takes a printed or shared list. While the pieces travel, they belong to neither counter, so neither manager can sell them by mistake.
3. Receive. The receiving branch scans each piece, checks the weight on its own scale, and accepts it. If something doesn’t match, it is flagged straight away, not found at the next stock check. The stock and HUID guide explains how each piece gets its tag and HUID.
GST for jewellers with more than one branch
Owners often get this part wrong. The rules below are from the CGST Act, 2017 and the CGST Rules, 2017, as published by CBIC. Your CA should confirm how they apply to your shops.
Branches in the same state. Under section 25(2) of the CGST Act, a business gets a single registration in a state. Your second shop in the same state is usually added to your existing GSTIN as another place of business. The Act also allows a separate registration for each place of business in a state, on conditions, if you choose it.
Branches in different states. Section 25(1) says you must register in every state where you are liable. So a shop in Delhi and a shop in Jaipur need two GSTINs, with two sets of returns.
Each GSTIN is a separate person for GST. Section 25(4) says each registration is treated as a “distinct person”. Schedule I of the Act then treats supply between distinct persons, in the course of business, as a supply even when no money changes hands. In plain words: sending stock from your Delhi GSTIN to your Jaipur GSTIN is a taxable supply, and needs a GST invoice from one to the other, even though both shops are yours.
Moving stock within one GSTIN. Moving pieces between two shops under the same GSTIN isn’t a sale. Rule 55 of the CGST Rules lets you send goods on a delivery challan, instead of an invoice, when they move for reasons other than a supply. Ask your CA what your challan should show.
“Consolidated GST” means one view, not one return. You can see all your branches’ GST figures together for your own planning, but returns are filed per GSTIN. If your branches are in two states, your CA files two sets of returns, and the software must keep each branch’s bills under the right number.
For the rates and how CGST, SGST and IGST appear on a bill, read the GST billing guide and the HSN code guide.
| Your branches | GST registration | Moving stock between them |
|---|---|---|
| Two or more shops in one state | Usually one GSTIN, with each shop added as a place of business | Not a sale; goods can move on a delivery challan |
| Shops in one state, registered separately by choice | One GSTIN per shop | Each GSTIN is a distinct person, so a transfer is a supply with a GST invoice |
| Shops in two or more states | One GSTIN in each state | A supply between distinct persons, with a GST invoice |
Staff access when you can’t be in every shop
With two shops, you rely on rules set in the software. Before you buy, decide who should do what.
A common split: the owner sees everything; a store manager runs one branch and approves bigger discounts there; salespeople bill and take payments; the accountant sees the books; your CA gets a read-only login for GST. Cost price stays hidden from anyone who doesn’t need it.
Discount limits matter more with branches. If a salesperson at the other shop can give any discount they like, you only find out at month-end. A limit per person, with bigger discounts waiting for approval, and a history of who changed what, keep your margin in your hands.
Questions to ask in a multi-branch demo
- Show me a transfer of ten pieces from one branch to another, with one piece missing on arrival.
- Can a salesperson at one branch see stock, cash or cost price at the other?
- How do I set today’s rates for all branches, and can one branch use a different rate?
- My second branch is in another state. How are its bills, GSTIN and returns kept apart?
- What does each extra branch and each extra login cost, with GST?
How CaratOS handles more than one branch
CaratOS is jewellery shop software for Indian jewellers, used in a browser on a phone, tablet or computer. Here is what it does for branches.
Branches are on Growth. Starter covers one branch. Growth gives you more than one branch, each with its own stock, bills, cash and staff, and transfers between them. Custom has unlimited people and branches for larger retailers.
People. Growth has 5 logins, including you, and your CA’s read-only login is free on top. Each person gets a role (owner, store manager, salesperson or accountant), their own Home, and sees only their part.
Control from a distance. On Growth you can hide cost price from staff, give each salesperson a discount limit with bigger discounts coming to you or your store manager to approve, and see an audit history of who changed what. Each person can use CaratOS in English or Hindi.
Billing and stock at every branch. Every branch bills at your rate with old gold on the same bill, prints the HUID and shares the GST bill on WhatsApp. Growth adds stock checks, GST e-invoices with IRN, e-way bills and the nightly WhatsApp summary of your day’s figures. See WhatsApp.
Your CA and Tally. Reports give the GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B figures with the HSN summary. Starter exports to Tally; Growth adds Tally live sync.
Prices. Starter is ₹1,199 a month. Growth is ₹3,999 a month or ₹42,999 a year. Both include GST. See pricing for the full comparison.
If your branches need different gold rates from each other, or sit under different GSTINs, bring that to the demo and we’ll show you how it fits before you decide.
What CaratOS doesn’t do today
CaratOS doesn’t do girvi (gold loans), RFID or manufacturing bills of materials, and there is no Android app. It runs online in the browser, so every branch needs internet. CaratOS Desktop, which keeps records on your own computer, is coming soon.
Try it with your own branches
The 15-day trial is of Starter, which has one branch, so the best way to judge branches is a demo. Book a demo and tell us how many shops you run, which states they are in and how stock moves between them. We’ll show you a transfer and the owner’s view.
You can also read the jewellery shop management guide for the rest of the day’s work, and the jewellery ERP guide if you also run wholesale or a workshop. Wholesale shows trade parties, memo and rate fixing in CaratOS. Write to hello@caratos.co.in or call +91 92208 22217.
Questions shop owners ask
What is multi-branch jewellery software?
It is jewellery software that runs two or more shops on one system. Each branch keeps its own stock, bills, cash and staff, every piece moved between branches is recorded as sent and received, and the owner sees all branches together and one by one.
Do I need a separate GSTIN for each jewellery branch?
Only if the branch is in a different state, or if you choose separate registrations. Under section 25 of the CGST Act, you register in every state where you are liable, with a single registration per state; a second shop in the same state is usually added as another place of business. Confirm with your CA.
Is a stock transfer between my own branches taxed under GST?
Between two GSTINs, yes. Each registration is a distinct person under section 25(4) of the CGST Act, and Schedule I treats supply between distinct persons as a supply even without payment, so you issue a GST invoice. Within one GSTIN, it isn’t a sale, and goods can move on a delivery challan under rule 55 of the CGST Rules.
Can I file one consolidated GST return for all my branches?
Not across states. Returns are filed per GSTIN, so branches in two states mean two sets of returns. Branches under one GSTIN in the same state report together under that number. Software can show all branches’ figures together for your own planning.
Which CaratOS plan supports more than one branch?
Growth, at ₹3,999 a month or ₹42,999 a year with GST included. It gives more than one branch with transfers between them and 5 logins, including yours. Starter is for one branch. Custom has unlimited people and branches.
Can I try CaratOS with two branches before paying?
The 15-day trial is of Starter, which has one branch. It is on request, starts when CaratOS approves it, and needs no card. To see branches and transfers, book a demo and we’ll walk through Growth with you.