Creating POs for a Backup Supplier

You may occasionally need to place an order for products from a backup supplier or an alternate supplier, in which case it's very simple in SoStocked.

How to Place and Manage Backup Supplier Orders in SoStocked

Step 1: Add and Set Up a Backup Supplier

1. Go to the Vendors page in SoStocked.
2. Click the Add New Vendor button.
3. Under Type, select Supplier.
4. Enter a Supplier Name and fill out all required fields (marked in red).
5. Click Save to create the supplier.

Your new backup supplier will now appear on your vendor list.

Step 2: Assign Products to the Backup Supplier

1. Go to the Inventory page.
2. Select the products you want to assign to the backup supplier.
3. Click Bulk Access and select Assign Supplier.
4. If your products are bundled, agree to the prompt that appears.
5. In the supplier list, choose your backup supplier.
6. Make sure the option to toggle primary supplier is off — you’re adding a secondary supplier, not replacing the primary.
7. Click Submit.

Now those products are linked to your backup supplier.

Step 3: Create a Purchase Order from a Secondary Supplier

1. Go to the Orders page in SoStocked.
2. When you have a purchase order (PO) recommendation from your default supplier, click the button to Create Purchase Order.

3. In the PO window, open the Supplier dropdown menu.

   Select your second (backup) supplier.

   Choose which lead time to use:

   • Use the existing lead time associated with the product, or
   • Manually edit the lead time as needed.
4. Click Save & Preview to move forward.
5. If the lead time includes a receiving warehouse, open the Work Order page to confirm those details.
6. Confirm again and select Save & Preview.
7. Once everything looks correct, click Submit Purchase Order.

Step 4: Optionally Create Bulk Purchase Orders

1. From the Bulk Uploads page dropdown menu, select Bulk PO Template.

   Download the template and edit it by:

   • Changing the PO Name, and
   • Updating the Supplier Name to your backup supplier.
2. Upload the completed template back into SoStocked.

This is ideal if you need to create several POs for the backup supplier at once.

Step 5: Track Your Backup Supplier Orders

1. Go to your Order Tracker.
2. Monitor your new POs just like any others.
3. SoStocked will indicate which orders are from your backup supplier.
4. Continue managing and updating these as usual.