Consignment shop records
When you run a consignment shop, the money sitting in your till isn't all yours. Every time a consignor's dress, lamp, or guitar sells, part of that sale is your commission and the rest is money you're holding to pay back the person who owns the goods. Cash Workspace gives you a clean place to keep a per-consignor ledger: each item that sold, the sale price, your split, the consignor's share, and a running balance of what you still owe them. You record this manually as items sell and as you cut payout checks, so at any moment you can open one consignor's record and see exactly what's accrued and what's been paid. This is organizational guidance and record-keeping, not accounting or tax advice, and Cash Workspace does not sync with your bank or read your sales reports automatically.
The problem
The hard part of consignment isn't selling the goods, it's keeping straight who is owed what. The proceeds of a single day's sales belong to dozens of different consignors, each on a different commission split, and the balance you owe each one changes every time something sells or you write a payout. Without a per-consignor running balance, payouts turn into arguments and guesswork.
How it works
The goal is one record per consignor that holds their sold-item ledger, their commission split, and a running balance of payout owed. You update it by hand as items sell and as you pay out. Here is a practical way to set it up.
Create one folder named for each consignor, for example 'Consignor 0142 - Maria Delgado'. Keep your consignor number in the name so it sorts cleanly and matches your intake tags. This folder holds their agreement, their sold-item ledger, and their payout history.
In each consignor's record, note their split as a field (for example 'Split: 60% consignor / 40% shop' or 'Furniture flat: shop keeps 35%'). Attach the signed consignment agreement so the terms behind every payout calculation are on file. Cash Workspace stores the agreement; it does not review or sign it.
When a consignor's item sells, add a line to their ledger record: item description, sale date, sale price, the split applied, your commission amount, and the consignor's share. You enter these values yourself from your point-of-sale receipt; nothing is pulled automatically.
Carry a 'Payout owed' total at the top of each consignor's record. Add each new consignor's share as items sell, and subtract each payout when you remit it. This is the liability balance: money you're holding that belongs to that third party.
When you cut a check or send a payout, add a payout entry: date, amount, method, and which sold items it covered. Attach the payout receipt or check copy. Mark those ledger lines as paid so the running balance drops to the remaining unpaid shares.
At month-end or each payout cycle, open the consignor's record and confirm: sold-since-last-payout shares, minus payouts made, equals the current owed balance. File the period's summary so the next payout starts from a confirmed figure.
Record structure
Two layers of fields keep this clean: a header on each consignor's record, and a line for every item that sold. Capture these as you go so the running balance is always reconstructable.
Example setup
Here is how a small shop's records might look for one fiscal year, with a folder per consignor and the payout ledger inside each. Names and numbers are illustrative.
Consignment agreement (attached PDF), split noted as 60% consignor / 40% shop. Sold-item ledger: 'Eames-style chair, tag A-2207, sold 03/14, $480, consignor $288, shop $192'; 'Brass floor lamp, tag A-2210, sold 03/29, $95, consignor $57, shop $38'. Header: Payout owed $345.
Split noted as 50/50, furniture category flat 35% shop. Sold-item ledger lines for a teak sideboard and two prints, each with sale price, shop commission, and consignor share. Running payout-owed balance updated after the April payout.
Estate consignment with an attached intake inventory list and the gross-to-net split shown per item: gross sale price, shop commission deducted, net consignor share. Payout-owed balance carried forward across multiple sale dates.
Per-consignor payout entries: 'Consignor 0142, check #1042, $233, covers Mar 14 + Mar 29 sales'; 'Consignor 0207, transfer, $410'. Attached check copies and a one-page run summary reconciling owed-before, paid, owed-after.
Signed agreement PDFs for each active consignor, named by consignor ID. Source documents that the split fields and payout calculations reference.
Common mistakes
How it helps
Organize one folder per consignor with their agreement, sold-item ledger, and payout history all in one place, so each person's account stands on its own.
Record sale price, split, your commission, and the consignor share on every sold-item line, building the detail behind each payout by hand as items sell.
Attach the signed consignment agreement to the consignor record and the check copy or transfer note to each payout entry. Cash Workspace stores these documents; it does not read or extract data from them.
Keep consignor and payout records in fiscal-year folders, then export accountant-ready records when it's time to hand off your books. This is organization, not accounting or tax advice.
Related
For stock you own outright: track buy price, restoration spend, and resale margin per one-off item, distinct from goods you hold on consignment for others.
Per-piece repair and custom-commission tracking with material cost and a deposit-versus-balance trail, for shops that take in work rather than sell on commission.
Per-event checkout of owned inventory you rent out, with a damage-deposit hold and return reconciliation, another held-money structure for a different trade.
A running view of refundable deposits you're holding and their expected return, a similar held-money balance pattern outside the consignment context.
Match marketplace payout statements to the orders they cover each month, useful if you also sell consignment goods through an online platform.
Set up product-defined expense categories so your shop's own costs stay organized alongside your consignor payout records.
Export your organized consignor and payout records when it's time to hand your books to a bookkeeper or accountant.
FAQ
These consignor payout records are an organizational tool for tracking items sold, your commission split, and the running balance you owe each consignor. They are not accounting, bookkeeping, or tax advice, and Cash Workspace is not certified accounting software. Cash Workspace does not sync with your bank or register, does not read or extract data from your sales reports or agreements, and does not calculate splits or process payments for you. You enter every figure manually and remain responsible for paying consignors and for how you record these liabilities. For treatment of consigned-goods liabilities and your tax obligations, consult a qualified professional.
Set up a folder for each consignor, log sales as they happen, and always know what you owe. Cash Workspace is free to start, and you can build your first consignor ledger in a few minutes. Questions? Reach the team at info@helperg.com.