Yesterday’s stock figure
Stock is synced at the end of the day, so every order taken today is promised against a number that has already moved.
FMCG
Stock that turns in days needs a record that keeps up.
FMCG distributors move hundreds of small orders a day in products that expire. A stock figure from last night is already wrong by lunchtime. OrbitWix updates stock as each order is picked, suggests the earliest-expiring batch first, and applies trade schemes without anyone working them out on a calculator.
The problem
Where fast stock goes wrong.
The products are simple. The volume and the speed are not.
Expired stock found on the shelf
First-in, first-out is a habit rather than a rule, and the oldest batch is found when it is already past its date.
Schemes worked out by hand
Buy ten get one, slab discounts, customer-group rates — calculated invoice by invoice, and differently by each salesperson.
Branches run out while the depot is full
Nobody can see days of cover by branch, so one runs dry while another holds a month’s worth.
Typical workflow
How a day’s order runs.
Hundreds of these a day. Each one moves stock the moment it is picked, not at the end of the day.
An order moves through six stages: booked, scheme applied, picked by earliest expiry, dispatched, invoiced, and replenishment raised for the branch.
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01 Order
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Booked
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02 Scheme
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Applied
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03 Pick
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Earliest expiry
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04 Dispatch
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On route
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05 Invoice
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Raised
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06 Replenish
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Transfer raised
The solution
What OrbitWix puts in place.
Six parts for speed: of the record, the pick and the reorder.
Live stock per branch
Every pick, receipt and transfer moves stock as it happens, per warehouse, so the figure is the figure.
Batches and expiry
Batch and expiry on every receipt; the earliest-expiring batch suggested first on every pick.
Trade schemes and price lists
Quantity slabs, free items and customer-group rates with start and end dates, applied as the order is entered.
High-volume dispatch
Pick lists across many orders at once, and delivery notes that carry their batch numbers.
Branch replenishment
Transfers from the central depot to branches raised from what each branch is actually selling.
Daily visibility
Days of cover, near-expiry stock and scheme cost, read from live records.
Example
One day at a regional distributor.
An illustration of an ordinary day. The names are made up; the sequence is the ordinary one.
- 07:30 Orders from 84 retailers are booked by mid-morning. The scheme on 1 kg detergent is applied to every qualifying line without anyone checking it.
- 09:00 Pick lists suggest the earliest-expiring batch of tea first: B-0912, expiring 30 Nov, before B-0930.
- 12:00 Biscuits are down to 1.6 days of cover at the North branch. A transfer from the central depot is raised before lunch.
- 15:00 Vans go out. Every delivery note carries the batch numbers that went on it.
- 18:00 312 orders invoiced. Stock was exact all day, because every pick moved it as it happened.
Visibility
Reports you read, and work you stop doing.
Both read the same records the work is done on, so neither needs an export to stay current.
Reports
- Days of coverBy item and by branch, from what is actually selling.
- Near-expiry stockWhat expires in the next 30, 60 and 90 days, and where it is.
- Scheme costWhat each scheme gave away, against what it sold.
- Sales by territoryBy route, by salesperson and by customer group.
- Fill rateOrdered against delivered, per day and per branch.
Automation
- The earliest-expiring batch is suggested on every pick
- Schemes are applied to qualifying lines as the order is entered
- A watch on items below two days of cover at any branch Early access
Items marked early access run on Watcher, which is still being finished.
Recommended apps
Where to start.
FMCG distributors start with stock, selling and dispatch together, because all three move every hour.
Inventory
Live stock per branch, batches, expiry and transfers.
Sales
High-volume orders with schemes and customer-group pricing.
Dispatch
Pick lists across many orders and notes with batch numbers.
AI & Analytics
Days of cover, near-expiry and scheme reports, live.
FAQ
Questions from FMCG distributors.
Does it pick by earliest expiry?
Yes. When a batch-tracked item is picked, the batch with the nearest expiry is suggested first. The picker confirms the batch, and it is recorded on the delivery note.
How are trade schemes applied?
Schemes are pricing rules — quantity slabs, free items, discounts by customer group — with start and end dates. They apply as the order is entered, so every salesperson gives the same scheme.
Can we see days of cover by branch?
Yes. Stock per warehouse is read against what each branch has been selling, so days of cover is a report rather than a calculation someone does on Monday.
Can it keep up with hundreds of orders a day?
Yes. Orders are ordinary records, and pick lists can be raised across many orders at once, so the warehouse picks a wave rather than one order at a time.
Have a different question? Talk to us.
See a day of your orders, live.
Bring yesterday’s order count and your near-expiry list. We will show what the same day looks like when stock moves with every pick.