Managing Stock

Import, update, and manage your products, stock levels, inbound shipments, and factory inventory.

Stock Information

The Stock Information panel displays all locations where your product is stocked and provides a snapshot of your stock availability for that product.

Understanding Stock Levels

Curosa's stock management system allows you to sell products from three different stock locations, each with different delivery times and optional pricing. Customers can see and purchase from all available stock levels simultaneously, choosing their preferred balance of price and delivery speed.

The three stock levels:

Factory Stock - Stock held at your factory location. This represents the longest lead time, requiring you to set an expected ship date for at least one distribution centre linked to the country site before it can be sold.
Inbound Shipment Stock - Stock currently in transit to a distribution centre. This stock is on its way but hasn't yet arrived at the distribution centre. You can optionally set different pricing for inbound shipment stock.
Distribution Centre Stock - Stock already available at distribution centres, ready for immediate shipment to customers. This includes both your own supplier-run distribution centres and Curosa-managed distribution centres.

Stock Management Permissions

Note: You can edit factory stock quantities and stock levels for your own supplier-run distribution centres. Stock figures for Curosa-managed distribution centres and inbound shipment stock are read-only and managed by Curosa.

You can adjust stock levels on a product page for any supplier-run distribution centre directly from the product details page.

Factory Stock

Factory stock allows you to sell products that are still at your factory location, providing customers with longer delivery times in exchange for potentially better pricing (if you've configured factory stock discounts).

How Factory Stock Works

When you sell factory stock to customers:

Customers see the product with an expected delivery date based on your factory shipment schedule
The system requires you to have an expected ship date set for at least one distribution centre linked to the country site
After a customer purchases factory stock, you need to create an inbound shipment that includes the product they purchased
When you mark the inbound shipment as "in transit" (see Inbound Shipments section below), any factory stock allocations for that shipment are automatically moved to the inbound shipment

This workflow ensures that factory stock orders are properly tracked through the fulfillment process, from factory to distribution centre to customer delivery.

Managing Factory Inventory

The factory inventory page provides comprehensive tools for managing your factory stock:

View all products - See all products and their quantities currently held at your factory
Filter sold stock - Filter the view to show only factory stock that has been sold, helping you identify what needs to be shipped
Import and export - Import factory stock information via CSV and export factory stock data, including the ability to export only factory stock that has been sold

Factory Stock Report

The factory stock report is a powerful tool for fulfillment planning. It shows:

All items that have been sold from factory stock
Which distribution centre each item needs to be shipped to in order to fulfill customer orders
This information helps you plan your inbound shipments efficiently, grouping products by destination distribution centre

Use this report when creating inbound shipments to ensure you include all necessary products for each distribution centre.

Creating inbound shipments from the report:

You can create inbound shipments directly from the factory stock report, which streamlines the fulfillment process. To do this:

Select the items you want to include using the checkboxes in the report
Click Create Inbound Shipment from the toolbar

This automatically creates an inbound shipment with the selected items, saving you time by eliminating the need to manually add products when creating the shipment.

Setting Factory Shipment Dates

To sell factory stock, you must configure factory shipment dates for your distribution centres. This information is used to calculate and display expected delivery dates to customers.

To set or update factory shipment dates:

Navigate to the factory inventory page
Locate the panel showing next planned factory shipment dates for each of your distribution centres
For each distribution centre, set:
- Next shipment date - The date you're planning to send the next shipment of stock to that distribution centre
- Delivery days - The number of days it typically takes for shipments to travel from your factory to that distribution centre

This information is automatically used to inform customers of the expected shipping date when they view or purchase factory stock.

Tip: Keep your factory shipment dates up to date to ensure customers receive accurate delivery estimates. If your shipping schedule changes, update these dates promptly to maintain customer trust.

Inbound Shipments

Inbound shipments allow you to sell products that are in transit to distribution centres, providing customers with intermediate delivery times between factory stock and distribution centre stock.

Understanding Inbound Shipments

Inbound shipments represent stock that has left your factory but hasn't yet arrived at the distribution centre. This stock level:

Can be sold to customers with potentially different pricing than factory or distribution centre stock
Provides customers with delivery times that are shorter than factory stock but longer than distribution centre stock
Must be tracked through the system to ensure proper fulfillment

Creating an Inbound Shipment

To create a new inbound shipment:

Navigate to the Inbound Shipments section
Click Create Inbound Shipment
Select the distribution centre you are sending the stock to
Add the products that are being shipped, including any products that customers have purchased from factory stock

When creating an inbound shipment, include all products that need to be shipped to that distribution centre, whether they're fulfilling factory stock orders or being sent as general inventory.

Marking Shipments as In Transit

When the shipment has physically left your factory, you should mark it as "in transit":

Open the inbound shipment record
Click to mark it as In Transit
Enter the following information:
- Expected delivery date - When you expect the shipment to arrive at the distribution centre
- Container number - The container or shipment tracking number

Important: When you mark a shipment as "in transit," any factory stock allocations for products included in that shipment are automatically moved from factory stock to the inbound shipment. This ensures proper tracking and prevents double-allocation of stock.

Curosa uses the container number to track the container as it travels to the distribution centre, automatically updating customers if there are any unexpected delays. This proactive communication helps maintain customer satisfaction even when shipping issues occur.

Arriving at Distribution Centre

When the stock has physically arrived at the distribution centre:

Open the inbound shipment record
Click Arrived at Distribution Centre

This action performs two important functions:

Increases distribution centre stock - The inbound shipment stock is added to your distribution centre inventory
Moves customer allocations - Any customers who were allocated to the inbound shipment are automatically moved to the distribution centre for shipping

This ensures a smooth transition from inbound shipment to distribution centre stock, and customers can now receive their orders from the distribution centre inventory.

Tip: Mark shipments as "in transit" and "arrived" promptly to keep stock levels accurate and ensure customers receive accurate delivery estimates. Delayed updates can cause confusion and impact customer satisfaction.

Distribution Centre Stock

Distribution centre stock represents products that are immediately available for shipment to customers. This is the fastest delivery option and typically commands premium pricing (no discount).

Types of Distribution Centres

There are two types of distribution centres in the system:

Supplier-run distribution centres - Distribution centres that you manage yourself. You can edit stock levels for these centres directly from the product page or through bulk import/export operations.
Curosa-managed distribution centres - Distribution centres operated by Curosa. Stock levels for these centres are read-only and managed by Curosa's operations team.

Managing Distribution Centre Stock

For your own supplier-run distribution centres, you can:

Adjust stock levels - Update quantities directly on the product details page
Import stock data - Use CSV imports to update multiple products at once
Export stock data - Export current stock levels for reporting or external systems

Stock levels for Curosa-managed distribution centres are automatically updated when inbound shipments arrive and when orders are fulfilled, but you cannot manually edit these figures.

Stock Allocation Priority

When customers place orders, the system allocates stock in the following priority order:

Distribution Centre Stock - First priority for fastest delivery
Inbound Shipment Stock - Second priority for intermediate delivery times
Factory Stock - Third priority for longest delivery times

This ensures that customers receive the fastest possible delivery while allowing you to maximize sales across all stock levels.

Note: Customers can see all available stock levels simultaneously and choose their preferred option based on price and delivery time. The system doesn't automatically allocate the fastest option - customers make the choice themselves.