I used to work in a shoe shop and, although, I would only work during holidays, I would occasionally be involved in the stock take. A stock take is a methodical appraisal of what you have at any moment in time compared to what you think you have - identifying discrepancies between your inventory and the physical goods you hold. We use the phrase ‘taking stock’ as an expression to describe the moment where you assess the situation, working out where things are.