ERP for wholesale & distribution. Order to cash for distributors, with credit, stock and VAT watched daily.
Order to cash for a wholesaler: credit checked before the order ships, the right lot out first, VAT checked on every invoice, and the money chased by how late it is.
From early 2027How does Kinnow help a wholesaler? Credit is checked before the order ships, not after. The right lot leaves the warehouse first, the VAT invoice is checked before it is raised, and overdue customers get a reminder whose tone follows the days overdue. This edition is from early 2027; nothing here is running in the UK today. Nothing is filed, paid or posted without a person.
Your business in one paragraph
A wholesaler buys from a manufacturer or importer and sells on credit to trade customers: independent shops, caterers, garages, small chains. The margin is thin, so the money is made or lost in four places: how much credit goes out, how fast it comes back, which lot leaves the warehouse, and whether the VAT on every invoice, bought and sold, is right. Reps work their rounds on phones and paper; the warehouse works from pick slips; the bookkeeper matches everything up at month end. The same customer exists as a name in four places.
Credit that lives in someone's head
A customer crosses the limit and the order still goes, because the check is a person remembering.
Receivables that age past 90 days
Reps chase the next order, not the last payment, and old invoices turn into bad debt.
Stock that dies on the shelf
Slow movers and near-expiry stock tie up working capital that nobody sees until the stock count.
Bring your three biggest trade customers and we will show the credit check on their accounts.
How your month runs on Kinnow
This is the loop from order to payment, with the buying and delivery routines that feed it.
| # | Step | Who | Application | Where a person signs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rep visits the customer on the call plan; the enquiry is entered and becomes a quotation | Sales rep | Sell, Field | Quotation approved before it converts |
| 2 | The order goes through the credit check: limit, overdue invoices, any hold placed on the customer | Credit controller | Sell | Credit hold cleared by a person with the right; reason recorded |
| 3 | Sign-off by order value, in order (automatic, sub-manager, manager, managing director) | Sales manager, MD | Sell | Each tier signs its band |
| 4 | Stock is set aside; the pick list puts the earliest-expiry lot first | Warehouse supervisor | Stock & Ship | Pick confirmed; a different lot than earliest-expiry is flagged |
| 5 | Dispatch: delivery order, trip and delivery by the driver | Dispatch clerk, driver | Stock & Ship | Dispatch confirmed by a person |
| 6 | The VAT invoice is checked for the required details, then approved; the VAT lines go into the sales register | Accounts executive | Account, Comply | Invoice approval; a large invoice is read before it is raised |
| 7 | Driver or rep confirms delivery; the delivery order closes | Driver, rep | Field, Stock & Ship | Delivery confirmed |
| 8 | Collections: reminders by days overdue, receipts allocated to invoices | Credit controller | Account, Sell | Reminders above the amount you set go to a person |
| 9 | Restock: reorder suggestions that take open purchase orders into account; bill, receipt and order are matched | Purchasing manager | Buy | Purchase orders above a value you set need approval |
| 10 | Month end: purchase VAT reviewed, VAT return draft (groundwork completed before launch), books closed, payroll for reps and drivers | Finance manager, adviser | Comply, Account, People | VAT return and close signed by a person |
What the industry setup includes
The ready-made setup for wholesale & distribution (we call it an industry pack) has 7 safeguards, 4 lists of who signs off, in order, 8 reports, 10 starter questions for Ask Kinnow, 9 agents and 20 ready-made routines. For the UK it adds extra VAT rules with 3 VAT registers and 13 starter questions. The setup is completed with early-access customers. Every limit is a value set with you; none is printed here.
| Safeguard | Effect | Why it is there |
|---|---|---|
| Credit limit above a value you set | Needs approval | Credit is the wholesale business; a limit above the bar is a lending decision |
| Sales order above a value you set | Needs approval | A large order against existing exposure is where a receivable goes bad |
| Purchase order above a value you set | Needs approval | Commits working capital to one supplier |
| Manual journal above a value you set | Needs approval; a second person reads it | A journal posted by hand can break the digital link between the invoice and the VAT return |
| VAT return before it goes | Needs sign-off | A return that has been sent is put right by telling HMRC, not by editing it, so a person signs first |
| Large VAT invoice | Read before it is raised | A credit note puts it right, not a re-issue |
| Write-off above a value you set | Needs review | VAT bad-debt relief has its own deadline, and relief is repayable if the customer later pays |
| Campaign budget above a value you set; trade campaign with no audience | Warning | Brand spend sits outside the trading margin, and a campaign with no audience reaches nobody |
The ready-made routines include Order to collection, Replenishing the warehouse, Campaign to first order, Dispatch to delivery, Customer return to credit, Invoice correction by credit note and Stock transfer between warehouses.
Ask us to run your last month's overdue list through the Collections agent.
Agents for wholesale & distribution
Collections
Drafts overdue reminders and steps them up according to how many days a payment is actually late. A person approves each reminder before it goes out.
Credit-risk assessment
Looks at a customer's payment history, how much they owe over time and how often they order, before an order is approved, and recommends approve, approve with conditions or block for the approver.
Reorder Planner
Recommends how much to reorder and when. It skips an item that already has a draft reorder open, and it never raises a PO by itself.
StockFEFO/FIFO selector
A rule built into the pick list: it uses the lot that expires first (FEFO) or the one that came in first (FIFO), as you choose when the list is made, and checks again when the pick is confirmed.
StockSlow-mover Detector
Finds stock that has not moved for a set number of days and ranks it by the money tied up in it, so you can review it.
ReachReactivation / Winback
Finds buyers who have gone quiet, using your ledger, and drafts a message to win them back for a person to send.
Expiry Watchdog
Goes through stock lots every night and marks those past expiry, so they stop being offered for sale.
Dead Stock Recovery
For each dead-stock item, works out the value at risk and suggests a move to a faster warehouse, a discount sale or a write-off. A person decides.
Each agent is validated with each client before it works on their books, and every output waits for a person.
VAT and compliance calendar for a wholesaler (UK)
Kinnow prepares; a person confirms and files. Your adviser confirms every date. The UK has no rule requiring invoices to be cleared by the tax authority first, so Kinnow does not build one.
| Obligation | What Kinnow prepares | Who confirms |
|---|---|---|
| VAT return (nine boxes) | Groundwork to build the return and a file from your sales and purchase records, completed before launch. Boxes 2, 8 and 9 apply to Northern Ireland only. A person files through recognised software or HMRC. Your adviser confirms each box before first use | Finance manager, adviser |
| VAT filing calendar | Due dates follow your HMRC stagger group (the quarter pattern HMRC gave you), which you set; Kinnow will not guess it. Monthly filers are supported. The return falls due one calendar month and seven days after the period ends | Finance manager |
| VAT invoices | Checks the supplier VAT number, date, running number, customer name, VAT in sterling and tax point before an invoice is raised. Simplified invoices are allowed up to £250 including VAT. VAT numbers are checked for format and check digit | Accounts executive |
| Rates and cross-border sales | Standard 20%, reduced 5% and zero rate. Sales to a business customer outside Great Britain are handled as reverse charge. Item rates come from a starter list, so your adviser confirms any line outside it | Accounts executive, adviser |
| Company dates | Tracks the confirmation statement, annual accounts, corporation tax return and ICO fee as reminders. Kinnow does not prepare them; your adviser confirms each date | Finance manager |
| Payroll for reps and drivers | PAYE income tax (tax taken from pay each month), employee and employer National Insurance, pension contribution and student loan, computed in the pay run. Worked out on an annual basis, so a mid-year joiner can differ from HMRC; rates are verified before use | HR lead, adviser |
What the owner can ask
Typed into Ask Kinnow, each answer names its source report and what it will cost before it runs.
- Which customers are over their credit limit? (Customer balances by age)
- What did we sell by brand last month? (Sales register)
- Which SKUs are dead stock? What is my depot stock worth right now? (Dead stock, Stock valuation)
- What VAT did I charge this quarter, by rate? (VAT sales register, rate summary)
- When is my next VAT return due? (VAT filing calendar)
- Which supplier invoices are missing a VAT registration number? (VAT purchase register)
Illustration · sample data
| Customer | Outstanding (£) | Limit (£) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northgate Convenience, Leeds | 42,000.00 | 35,000.00 | On hold |
| Clyde Street Grocers, Glasgow | 29,000.00 | 30,000.00 | 97% of limit |
| Avon Fine Foods, Bristol | 11,000.00 | 20,000.00 | Within limit |
Numbers that matter
| Number | Report | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Receivables by age band | Customer balances by age | How much is past 60, 90 and 120 days, and with whom |
| Pending orders by branch | Pending sales orders | What is booked and not yet shipped |
| Dead and slow stock value | Dead stock, stock valuation | Capital that is not turning |
| Sales by brand and item group | Sales register, item-group yearly sales | Which suppliers and lines carry the year |
| Output and input VAT by rate | VAT sales and purchase registers, rate summary | What the next return will say before you build it |
| Sales pipeline by stage and source | Lead pipeline, lead source performance | Which trade accounts you are winning and from where |
See customer balances by age and the VAT registers on a copy of your own books.
Applications switched on
| Generic term | In your Kinnow |
|---|---|
| customer | trade customer / account |
| sales visit | call on the round |
| delivery note | delivery order |
| transport document | trip, delivery confirmation |
Questions
Can Kinnow stop orders to customers over their credit limit?
Yes. A sales order goes through a credit-hold check before dispatch. A customer with an active credit hold cannot be shipped to until someone with the right to clear it does, and the reason is recorded. Being overdue beyond the stoppage limit (90 days by default, which you can change) puts a customer on stoppage.
Who approves an order, and for how much?
By default there are four tiers: small orders are approved automatically, then a sub-manager, a manager and finally the managing director sign their own bands. The Wholesale & distribution setup also asks for approval on any order or credit limit above a value you set. Every band is set with you.
Does Kinnow file my VAT return?
No. The groundwork to prepare the nine-box VAT return and a file from your own sales and purchase records is completed before launch. A person then files it through recognised software or HMRC itself. Kinnow does not send anything to HMRC. Your adviser confirms how each box is filled before first use.
Can we move our customers, price lists and opening stock from our current software?
Yes. Your lists (Masters) and opening balances come across in the first week, and we run alongside your current software until the month-end numbers agree.
How does the Collections agent behave when the customer is a key account?
It drafts the reminder with a tone that gets firmer the later the payment is. Below an amount you set it can send on its own; above that amount a person decides, which is where key accounts normally sit.
What if an agent is wrong?
Every agent output waits for a person, shows what it used, and is validated with each client before it works on their books. Reject it and the reason is kept.
How long to set up, and when does the UK edition start?
The UK edition starts from early 2027 and is completed with early-access customers. For one company, about two weeks to first results; several warehouses or companies start one at a time.
Show me Kinnow for wholesale & distribution.
Answer three questions. Get the applications, the agents and a two-week plan for your business.