Wholesale and distribution business process automation
Wholesale and distribution business process automation means the supplier offer, purchase order, goods receipt, stock, customer order, delivery, invoice, payment and VAT return of a wholesaler run as one chain inside its ERP, with each fact keyed once. This is the chain we built and run for a multi-company wholesale group: supplier offer to approved purchase order, pallets booked in against it, orders taken online at the right tier, proof of delivery, invoice, payment and VAT return. Purchase order automation for wholesalers is the link we join first. Start with the Chain Map: half a day on site, one written map.
Half a day on site, a written two page map, the one link to fix first and a fixed pilot quote. The fee is credited in full against the pilot.
Purchase order automation for wholesalers: the chain we run today
For one UK wholesale group we built and run this chain today. Supplier offers are turned into approved purchase orders, pallets are booked in against them, trade applicants are verified against the companies register and order online at the price tier assigned when the account was approved, proof of delivery is taken with photo and signature, invoices are raised from deliveries and filed by customer, year and month, card payment is taken and VAT returns are generated across every company in the group. Every company runs on a single ERP, each with its own branding, sales team and pricelists.
This is the chain we built and run for a multi-company wholesale group: supplier offer to approved purchase order, pallets booked in against it, orders taken online at the right tier, proof of delivery, invoice, payment and VAT return, with each fact keyed once.
- 7
- links in the chain, from supplier offers to pos to payments and vat returns
- Half a day
- on site for the Chain Map, with the people who run each link
- 2 pages
- the written map you leave with, plus a baseline from your own data
- 1
- link to fix first, with a fixed pilot quote credited in full against the pilot
The seven links, in wholesale and distribution words
Every goods business runs the same seven links. In a multi-company wholesale group the stock is held per company and location, the sale is a trade order at the account's tier and the invoice is raised from the delivery. Here is what each link is called in your words, and what keyed once looks like at each one. This is the chain we built and run.
| # | Stage | In your words | Typed once |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Purchasing | Supplier offers to POs | Supplier offers captured and turned into approved purchase orders, with approval by role |
| 02 | Goods in | Pallets booked in | Pallets booked in against the purchase order, with discrepancies flagged for the three-way match |
| 03 | Stock | Live stock by location | One live quantity per product, per company and location, on a single ERP across the group |
| 04 | Allocation | Orders at the right tier | Customer orders taken online against live stock, priced by the tier assigned when the account was approved |
| 05 | Goods out | Pick, load and deliver | Picking on warehouse devices and delivery on driver devices, with photo and signature before the job can close |
| 06 | Invoices | Invoices from deliveries | Invoices generated from confirmed deliveries and filed by customer, year and month, untouched |
| 07 | Accounts | Payments and VAT returns | Card payment taken, overdue invoices chased from the ledger until paid, VAT return generated per company |
What we automated first
These are the four joins we made first for the wholesale group we run. Each one replaced the same fact typed by a second person into a second screen.
- 01
Supplier offers captured and turned into approved purchase orders
- 02
Customer orders taken online against live stock, priced by tier automatically
- 03
Proof of delivery with photo and signature before the job can close
- 04
Three-way match of PO, receipt and supplier invoice before payment
Map, design, build, run
- 01
Map
The Chain Map. One engineer spends half a day on site walking purchasing, goods in, stock, goods out, invoicing and accounts as they run today, and marks every point where a person re-keys or chases. You get a written two page map, a baseline taken from your own data and countersigned by both sides, the one link to fix first and a fixed pilot quote. One fixed fee, credited in full against the pilot.
Book a Chain Map - 02
Design
We decide which steps your ERP handles, which need a module, and which need a connection. Written down and agreed before anything is coded.
- 03
Build and connect
Modules, portals, device apps and integrations built and tested in staging, then released through a controlled route with rollback.
- 04
Run
Our AI specialist engineers stay on: users, changes, faults, documentation and the next stage of automation, under an agreed work plan.
Questions wholesalers and distributors ask
What does wholesale and distribution business process automation cover?
The seven links a wholesaler runs every day: supplier offers to purchase orders, pallets booked in, live stock by location, orders at the right tier, pick, load and deliver, invoices from deliveries, and payments and VAT returns. Each fact is keyed once and every later document is built from it. For one wholesale group we built the full chain and run it today.
Is this chain running today, or a method?
Running today. For a multi-company wholesale group we built the purchase to pay chain, online trade ordering, picking and delivery on device, invoice generation and filing, card payment and VAT return generation, and we run the ERP it all sits in. Every other sector on this site follows the same method, mapped in that company's own system.
How does purchase order automation for wholesalers work?
A supplier offer is captured once and becomes a draft purchase order. Approval runs by role, using the access rights we set up. Goods are booked in against the order, and the supplier invoice, submitted through a portal rather than emailed, is matched to both before payment is released. Only a difference between the three records reaches a person.
How do customer orders reach the ERP without re-keying?
Trade applicants apply on the website, are verified against the companies register automatically, approved and placed on the right pricelist tier. From then on they order online from a live catalogue and basket, and the order lands in the ERP as a sales order with nothing re-typed. Every enquiry becomes a tracked lead in the correct company of the group.
Can invoices really file themselves?
Yes. For the wholesale group we run, customer invoices are generated from confirmed deliveries and filed by customer, year and month in the ERP document system without anyone touching them. Payment terms are set per customer, card payment is live, overdue invoices are chased from the ledger, and VAT return generation was corrected across every company in the group.
How does an engagement start for a wholesaler?
With the Chain Map: half a day on site walking purchasing, goods in, stock, orders, delivery, invoicing and accounts with the people who run them. You leave with a written two page map of every point where the same fact is keyed twice, a baseline from your own data, the one link to fix first and a fixed pilot quote, credited in full against the pilot.
Start with the Chain Map for your wholesale business
Half a day on site with the people who raise the orders, book the goods in and chase the invoices. You leave with a written map, a countersigned baseline and a fixed pilot quote. No fee is published; it is credited in full against the pilot.
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