Retail Store Closing Checklist (Free Template)
Closing is when stores lose stock and cash: a register left uncounted, a fitting room with a forgotten jacket, a back door nobody checked. This checklist is for keyholders closing a small store. It starts 30 minutes before closing time, so recovery and cleaning happen while the last customers browse, and ends with every door checked and the alarm set. Add your own security steps.
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What you'll need
- Keys and alarm code
- Cash count sheet
- Deposit bags
- Cleaning supplies
The checklist
Start recovering the sales floor 30 minutes before close.
Fold, hang and face the shelves, and put back items left in the wrong place.
Clear the fitting rooms and return everything to the floor.
Tell the manager about any empty hangers or security tags left behind.
Announce closing 10 minutes before, and again at closing time.
Be friendly, not rushed, and let customers finish paying.
Lock the door after the last customer and check the store is empty.
Restrooms, fitting rooms and the stockroom.
Watch out: Always check every room before you count cash.
Run the register reports and count each drawer.
Count twice, ideally with a second person, and record any difference.
Seal the day's cash in a deposit bag and put it in the safe.
Leave the starting cash for tomorrow. Write the date, the amount and your initials on the bag.
Watch out: Count cash away from windows and doors.
Clean the counters, glass and floor.
Sweep or vacuum the sales floor and empty the trash cans.
Restock the shelves that emptied today.
If there's no time, list them for the opener.
Write the shift log for the next opener.
Sales, issues, deliveries due and anything broken.
Switch off the lights, music and screens.
Leave the security lights on, and the window display lit if your store does.
Check every door, window and emergency exit is closed and locked.
Push on each door.
Set the alarm and lock up.
Lower the security gates, and wait until the alarm confirms it's armed before you walk away.
How to adapt it
- Close in pairs where you can, for safety and for cash counts.
- Add your own security steps, like checking that the cameras are recording.
- Keep the shift log in the same place every day.
- Vary the time you take cash to the bank if you do it yourself.
Turn this template into training your team will actually open
In ShowHow, your staff read each step on their phone, with photos, in their own language, and you see who has confirmed it. Start from this template or film yourself doing the job.
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