How to Manage Product Inventory

Inventory management in DecoNetwork is designed to give you complete control over the products you sell and the promises you make to customers. By connecting live supplier feeds and managing your own on-hand stock, you can accurately reflect availability across your websites and Business Hub, avoid overpromising, and ensure smooth order fulfillment. Beyond simply tracking quantities, DecoNetwork helps you automate reordering, apply safety buffers, and manage discontinued or limited-run products, so customers always have a clear picture of what’s available.

This guide walks you through the core concepts of inventory in DecoNetwork, including the difference between on-hand and supplier stock, where inventory is managed in the system, and how to make use of import/export tools for bulk updates. You’ll also learn how to create purchase orders, configure stock rules, and apply settings that help you streamline purchasing while keeping fulfillment accurate and reliable.

In this article

• Prerequisites
• Why Inventory Management Matters
• Step 1: Understand Supplier vs. On-Hand Inventory
• Step 2: Update On-Hand Inventory
• Step 3: Configure Supplier Inventory
• Step 4: Adjust Purchase Order Settings
• Step 5: Import and Export Inventory
• Step 6: Set Low Stock Warnings and Reorder Points
• Step 7: Use Closeout and Display Options
• Behavior Matrix
• Best-Practice Tips
• Troubleshooting
• FAQs
• Additional Resources

Prerequisites

Why Inventory Management Matters

Effective inventory management ensures you fulfill orders reliably without overpromising or understocking. By properly configuring inventory in DecoNetwork, you can:

• Leverage supplier live inventory to prevent out-of-stock sales
• Use on-hand inventory to skip unnecessary purchase orders
• Automate reordering with low stock warnings
• Reduce operational errors and customer disappointment

Step 1: Understand Supplier vs. On-Hand Inventory

DecoNetwork tracks two types of inventory:

• On-hand inventory: Physical stock you have in your facility.
• Supplier inventory: Live stock levels provided by suppliers (updated once daily).

Step 2: Update On-Hand Inventory

Update inventory in Business Hub or at the product SKU level: Products → SKU & Inventory Settings. Enable inventory and input stock levels.

Step 3: Configure Supplier Inventory

1. Go to Products → Supplier Account Details.
2. Check the Enable SmartPO Integration checkbox (e.g., SanMar account).

3. Enter your supplier credentials.

   

   SmartPO Integration Settings

4. Set behavior in Inventory Settings (Products → Inventory Settings) for out-of-stock handling.

Step 4: Adjust Purchase Order Settings

In Settings → Production & Order Settings→ Purchase Order Settings:

• Choose whether to use inventory on order to fulfill new orders.
• Define how surplus items are allocated (to orders vs. to stock).
• Enable automatic allocation of received items to on-hand inventory.

Step 5: Import and Export Inventory

1. Go to Admin → Products.
2. Select the products for which you want to export inventory levels.

3. Choose the Export Inventory Levels bulk action export to CSV.

   

   Export Inventory Levels Bulk Action

4. Update quantities in the CSV file and set the value in the Stock Item column to 1 to enable inventory.

   

   Inventory CSV Stock Item Column

5. Import the CSV back into DecoNetwork.

Step 6: Set Low Stock Warnings and Reorder Points

1. In Admin, go to Products → Inventory Settings.

2. Set a buffer (for example, 10 units) to safeguard against overcommitting when supplier stock is low.

   

   Supplier Out of Stock Threshold

3. Configure thresholds to automate reordering:

   • Low Stock Warning: Alert when stock drops below a set level.
   • Reorder Quantity: Amount automatically added to a PO when threshold is reached.

   

   Low Inventory On Hand Levels

Step 7: Use Closeout and Display Options

Using closeout and display options helps manage customer expectations by showing real-time availability and preventing the sale of stock that isn’t actually available.

1. Enable Closeout: In the product SKU, GTIN & Inventory settings, mark the product as Closing Out.

   • Customers will only be able to purchase remaining stock.
   • No replenishment will be allowed once stock reaches zero.

   

   Closing Out Checkbox

2. Configure Availability Display: On the View Blank Product page in the Website Editor, enable inventory levels display by selecting "Yes" in the Show Inventory Levels Link field.

   • Displays on-hand stock levels to customers.
   • Helps set realistic expectations about availability.

   

   Show Inventory Levels Link Setting

3. Preview Customer View: Open the product’s blank product detail page and click View Inventory Availability to confirm how customers will see stock information.

Behavior Matrix

The table below summarizes how DecoNetwork handles inventory under different conditions:

Best-Practice Tips

• Always export before importing inventory updates to preserve CSV format.
• Apply buffers with supplier inventory to avoid committing to orders when supplier stock is nearing depletion.
• Download pull sheets for accurate on-hand stock management.
• Track blanks separately from decorated products—only blanks support inventory.

Troubleshooting

• Orders pulled stock I don’t have: Surplus items may have been allocated to stock unknowingly.
• PO didn’t trigger: Check reorder points and low stock thresholds.
• Inventory missing on decorated products: Inventory is only tracked at the blank SKU level.

FAQs

• How often is supplier inventory updated? Once per day.
• Can I display inventory for pre-decorated products? No, only blank SKUs.
• How do I view all items with inventory tracking? Use advanced search → Inventory Tracking in the Products section.

Additional Resources

• Managing Supplier Accounts
• Purchase Order Settings
• Importing Inventory Levels
• Export product inventory levels in bulk
• Product SKU, GTIN & Inventory
• Configure the View Blank Product System Page in DecoNetwork