Supplier Purchase Plans - AKA The Reorder Wizard

Modified on Mon, 20 Feb, 2023 at 9:48 AM

Overview

Supplier Purchase plans represent a tool with which you can use one of two methods to calculate reorder information and automatically create related Purchase Orders in Cloud Retailer.

Procedure

The two methods by which we can use to create a purchase plan are;

Minimum and Maximum Quantity
Past Sales

The process is basically the same for both, the only difference being the target quantity of a particular item. Here's the basic process;Please note the order of operations below is very important and that each option must be applied with the magnifying glass. This includes suppliers, filtering, and custom views. Using QTO tools before all filtering is completed can result in unwanted items on saved PO's. Please pay special attention to step 7 below.

Navigate to Tools and Select Supplier Purchase Planning
Click on 'Create New Supplier Purchase Plan'
Create a Description for the Purchase Plan.
Choose a Location(s).
Choose 1 or more Suppliers from the list, or use the top option to select or unselect all. This will determine which suppliers will be evaluated during the QTO calculations later on.
(Optional) Set a Filter for the Purchase Plan - for Example, Limit the plan to only reorder Items from the Department Misc. If you wanted to order only items in the Wine Department, you could use a filter like this;
VERY IMPORTANT - Click the magnifying glass (search) after your supplier, filters, and custom views are selected. This action will apply all the selected filters. Skipping this step can result in unwanted items in purchase orders.
Click the Calculate QTO Button, and then select either Reorder Points or Past Sales. If using past sales, specify a date rage.
Review the QTO Column, and if needed adjust the numbers. If you'd like to review Sales statistics during your review, check the Show Statistics Window, select a product, and you'll see a graph like this:
After you're satisfied with the contents of the QTO column, save the Purchase Plan.
At this time, each Supplier with items that have a been included in the Purchase Plan will have a Purchase Order created with the items from the plan that are supplied by that supplier.
After creation, the Quantities on the Purchase Orders can be changed. For example, you can add more items, increase the quantities, or otherwise manipulate the individual Purchase Order by clicking on the PO Number.

Here is a video covering Supplier Purchase Planning in Cloud Retailer:

Q&A

1. I don't have any Minimum or Maximum quantities, can you create them for me based on a formula?

YES! Please contact your Customer Success Manager to schedule time with one of our Customization Engineers to implement this.

2. I'd like to order based on past sales, can Cloud Retailer order in Cases?

YES! When selecting your past sales date range, make sure to check the option to order in round cases.

This is also available when you order based on Reorder Points.

3. I don't have time to finish this task and I already entered hundreds of changes, can I save this and continue working on it later?

Yes, you can! and the good part is, if you go back and continue working, the purchase order created by supplier purchase plan will be updated as long as you did not change their status.

To save you progress, click on the save button on the upper right corner of the screen and click on save.

And when you are ready to get back in, go to the Suppler Purchase Plan list by clicking on Tools > Supplier Purchase Planning

Select the Supplier Purchase Plan you just created in the list and click on Edit "Selected Supplier Purchase Plans"

4. I have a really good idea that I'd like to see implemented in Supplier Purchase Planning

Awesome! We love ideas, and we're open to implementing novel new ideas that could help make the purchasing process easier. Please consider submitting your idea using our feature request form Here.