Low-Stock Alerts and Reorder Discipline for Distributors

A stock-out looks small on the day. One SKU is missing from the truck, the shop buys a competitor's pack instead, and everybody moves on. But the shopkeeper remembers, the officer remembers, and next month the shelf space has gone to someone else. The opposite problem is just as costly: godowns full of slow SKUs while cash is short. Reorder discipline means having a number for each SKU that tells you when to act, and a habit of looking at it. This guide shows how to build both with gamitrack.

The idea of a reorder level

A reorder level is the quantity at which you start replenishing. The logic is simple: when stock reaches this level, there should be enough left to cover sales during the time it takes new stock to arrive, plus a buffer for surprises.

Formula:

Reorder level = average daily sales x replenishment days + safety buffer

A hypothetical example: a SKU sells about 40 cartons a day on average, and production or purchase takes 6 days to arrive. Cover during replenishment is 240 cartons. Add a buffer of, say, three days of sales (120 cartons), and the reorder level is 360 cartons. These numbers are invented to show the method; use your own.

Step 1: Get honest averages

Do not guess average daily sales. Use order history: take the last eight to twelve weeks, exclude unusual events such as a one-off bulk order, and divide by working days. If a SKU is seasonal, use a shorter window around the relevant season. For festival peaks see Dashain-Tihar season demand and stock planning.

Step 2: Measure replenishment time properly

For each SKU, write down how long it really takes from the day you decide to reorder to the day stock is on the shelf at the branch. Include approval time, production or supplier time, transport and receiving. Add the extra days in the rainy season if roads close; see monsoon route and delivery planning.

Step 3: Set levels on each SKU

Open Products, choose a SKU and set its reorder level. Start with your top twenty SKUs by volume, because those cause the pain. Then work down the list. Items that rarely sell can have a simple level of one carton, or none.

Remember that a level is applied per SKU, and low stock is shown for a branch. If a regional branch carries a very different volume from the main one, interpret the list with that in mind, and consider transferring stock instead of reordering. See moving stock between branches and warehouses.

Step 4: Make the low-stock list a morning habit

Every morning, the stock manager opens Stock and reads the low-stock list for each branch. It shows SKUs at or below their reorder level and the quantity on hand. Take five minutes and classify each line:

Case	Action
Fast SKU, below level, no order placed	Reorder today
Below level, order already in transit	Check arrival date
Below level but slow seller	Question the level; maybe it is too high
Zero stock	Escalate: tell the sales manager so officers can offer substitutes

The owner's routine in the 10-minute morning dashboard routine includes a glance at this list.

Step 5: Tell the field

Low stock is also a selling issue. If a SKU is nearly out, officers should not promise it. If a substitute exists, they can offer it. If a promotion is running on a SKU that is low, pause the push. Use Broadcasts to send a quick notice to the relevant region or the whole team, which arrives as a push notification. A two-line message from the manager avoids a day of broken promises.

Step 6: Review the levels monthly

Levels decay. A SKU that doubled its sales needs a higher level; one that has slowed needs a lower one. At month-end, compare each level with the current average daily sales. A reasonable rule is to review any SKU that triggered low stock more than twice in the month (level may be too low) or never triggered while stock keeps rising (level may be too high, or the SKU is overstocked). The month-end routine is in the closing checklist.

Balancing stock-outs and overstock

Both have costs, but they are different costs:

• Stock-out: lost sale, lost shelf space, unhappy dealer.
• Overstock: blocked cash, storage, expiry risk (see batch and expiry control).

For a high-margin fast SKU, a bigger buffer is cheap insurance. For a low-margin, perishable SKU, run lean and replenish often. Decide the buffer per SKU class instead of one rule for all.

Tips for avoiding false alarms

• Check units. A level in cartons and stock in pieces will give nonsense.
• Count transfers correctly. A SKU low in one branch may be rich in another.
• Watch the returns. Returns approved into a branch put stock back; do not reorder before checking.
• Use batches. If a large part of stock is near expiry, effective stock is lower than the number suggests.

A weekly rhythm

Day	Task
Daily	Read the low-stock list, place orders
Weekly	Review top ten SKUs by sales against stock cover
Monthly	Reset reorder levels from real averages
Quarterly	Review SKU range: drop or push the slowest

A worked morning (hypothetical)

Imagine the stock manager opens the list at 9:00 and sees three lines for the main branch. The first is a fast SKU at 340 cartons against a level of 360, with no order placed: she calls production and asks for the next batch to be scheduled. The second is a slower SKU slightly under its level, but a transfer from a branch holding surplus is already on the road: she notes the expected arrival and does nothing else. The third is a SKU that has not sold for six weeks and keeps showing as low only because someone set the level too high: she lowers the level. Three lines, three different decisions, ten minutes in total. That is the discipline: the list does not make decisions, it makes sure someone does.

Who should own the list

Give one named person the job, with a deputy for leave days. The owner of the reorder routine should have the authority to ask production or purchasing for stock without waiting for a meeting, and should report weekly on how many stock-outs occurred and why. When a stock-out happens, ask three questions: was the level wrong, was the replenishment slower than planned, or was demand unexpectedly high? Each answer leads to a different fix.

Next steps

The low-stock view needs only products, branches and stock movements, which you already set up for orders. See the options on the pricing page and more stock articles in the Help centre.