Retailers usually plan new product launches and need these products to be available for sale in future dates at precise times. For instance, if a retailer plans to start selling a new product at 10 AM after one month, they need the inventory to be synced exactly at that time. Previously, this required manual intervention, which was prone to errors. Manual management of inventory synchronization could lead to delays or mistakes, causing products to not be available for sale as planned, resulting in missed sales opportunities and customer dissatisfaction.

To address this challenge, HotWax Commerce offers a scheduled inventory restocking feature in the Import App. Retailers can upload a CSV file containing the products they want to restock and specify the facility and product store for which the inventory needs to be updated. Crucially, during inventory restocking, the update inventory service also runs in HotWax Commerce to ensure that inventory is increased in HotWax Commerce but also synced with Shopify.

Steps to Schedule Restocking

Access the Import App:

• Locate the HotWax Commerce Import app in the app launchpad.

• Log in with your user credentials.

Navigating to Inventory Page:

• Within the Import app, the default page opened is the Purchase Order page.

• Navigate to the Schedule Restock page from the left menu.

• Only users with Super or Admin user permissions can access the Schedule Restock page in the Import App.

Uploading CSV File with Saved Mappings:

• Click on the upload button and select the preferred CSV file.

Map CSV Fields

• Map CSV file fields with corresponding HotWax Commerce fields.

The following fields need to be mapped and filled in while scheduling restocks:

Shopify Product SKU field is the default product identifier, but users can choose the preferred product identifier from the options in the dropdown menu. HotWax Commerce supports the following product identifiers:

Saving Custom CSV Mappings:

• Save custom CSV mappings directly within the Import app for future use by clicking on the New Mappings button.

• In the future, you can utilize the saved mappings within the Import app to expedite the process of mapping.

Reviewing Inventory:

• Click on the Review button to inspect and verify all scheduled inventory updates.

• This will open an Inventory review page where you can ensure data accuracy and completeness before finalizing.

Add/Modify Restock Details:

• Merchandisers can also add or change Facilities, Product Store, or Shopify Shop by choosing the relevant options from the drop-down menus for the relevant fields.

Finalizing Update:

• Once you have verified all the items, proceed by clicking on the Upload icon.

• This will open up a confirmation module; confirm inventory upload by clicking on the Upload Button.

• You will get a success message indicating that the inventory has been updated successfully.

Reschedule/Cancel Restocking

If the merchandisers have any operational level changes, such as their sale being postponed to a later date or they want to remove some products from that sale, they can reschedule or cancel the restocking from the Schedule Restock page.

All the scheduled restocks will appear at the bottom of the page, with the scheduled date and time. Merchandisers can click on the overflow menu to reschedule or cancel the restocks as per their requirements.

The HotWax Commerce Import App enables bulk updates to inventory, especially when dealing with legacy systems that lack API-based integration. This app eliminates the need for manual editing of CSV formats. Merchandisers can efficiently upload CSV files, map CSV fields directly, and identify errors before finalizing the upload.

Step-by-Step Guide: Updating Inventory in Bulk through CSV File

1. Access the Import App:

   • Locate the HotWax Commerce Import app in the app launchpad. Log in with your user credentials.

2. Navigating to Inventory Page:

   • Within the Import app, the default page opened is the Purchase Order page. Navigate to the Inventory page from the left menu.

Only users with Super or Admin user permissions can access the inventory page in the Inventory App.

1. Uploading CSV File with Saved Mappings:

   • Click on the upload button and select the preferred CSV file.

2. Mapping Fields and Identifying Errors:

   • Map CSV file fields with corresponding HotWax Commerce fields.

   • The following fields need to be mapped in HotWax Commerce:

     Field

     Description

     Shopify Product SKU

     The unique product identifier used by Shopify.

     Quantity

     Represents the updated inventory count for the product.

     Facility ID

     Identifies the specific facility associated with the product.

Shopify Product SKU field is the default product identifier but users can choose the preferred product identifier from the options in the dropdown menu. HotWax Commerce supports the following product identifiers.

1. Saving Custom CSV Mappings:

   • Save custom CSV mappings directly within the Import App for future use by clicking on the New Mappings Button.

   • In the future, you can utilize the saved mappings within the Import App to expedite the process of mapping.

2. Reviewing Inventory:

   • Click on the Review button to inspect and verify all mapped inventory updates.

   • This will open an Inventory review page where you can ensure data accuracy and completeness before finalizing.

3. Handling Missing Facilities:

   • Merchandisers sometimes make errors in their CSV files when creating them. For example, if the CSV file has "Time Square" as the facility name instead of "Times Square" it can cause an error when updating inventory. If any missing facilities or errors are detected during the process, click on Missing Facilities.

   • This will open up a new module where you can rectify the mistake by specifying the accurate facility.

   • Click on the Save icon to save and rectify the facility.

4. Finalizing Update:

   • Once you have verified all the items, proceed by clicking on the Upload icon.

   • This will open up a confirmation module; confirm inventory upload by clicking on the Upload Button.

   • You will get a success message indicating that the inventory has been updated successfully.

5. Item Inventory Verification:

Once the inventory is updated you can verify whether the inventory is accurately reflected in HotWax Commerce.

• Confirm the updated inventory by going to the Product page in your OMS instance.

• Find the product SKU by utilizing the search bar. You can also search for products using the product name or HotWax Commerce ID.

• Navigate to the Product Details page by clicking on the product.

• Click on the View Inventory button to open the Product Inventory View page of that product.

• Here you will be able to verify the inventory changes under the Inventory Items section.