Wholesale terms are the shorthand that brands, sales reps and retail buyers use on line sheets, order forms, purchase orders and invoices. MOQ is the minimum order quantity a brand accepts. Net 30 means payment is due 30 days after the date the terms name, usually the invoice date. Keystone means retail is about double wholesale, and sell-through is the share of received units a store sells in a period.

Key takeaways

• The cancel date is the retailer's ship-by deadline. It does not give the buyer a right to cancel.
• "Net 30" and "net 30 EOM" start the payment clock on different dates, so read the exact wording on the PO or invoice.

Which wholesale terms get confused most?

Which terms set the price?

• Wholesale price (W/S, WHSLE): the price per unit a retailer pays the brand. You'll see it on line sheets, price lists and order forms.
• MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price): the price the brand recommends retailers charge shoppers. Retailers may sell above or below it.
• MAP (minimum advertised price): a limit on the price a retailer advertises, not the price it sells at. The MAP vs MSRP guide explains how the two work together.
• Keystone: a retail price about double the wholesale price, which puts wholesale at about half of MSRP.
• Markup vs margin: markup is profit as a percentage of cost. Margin is profit as a percentage of the selling price.
• Landed cost: the full cost of getting a product into your warehouse, including the product itself, freight, duties and insurance.

Which terms set order quantity?

• MOQ (minimum order quantity): the smallest order a seller accepts, in units or dollars; see what MOQ means in wholesale.
• Order minimum: usually a dollar amount the whole order must reach, however the units are spread across styles.
• EOQ (economic order quantity): a buyer-side formula for the lowest-cost order size, not a seller minimum like MOQ.
• Case pack: a fixed number of units packed in one carton.
• Prepack: a preset mix of sizes or colors sold as one unit.

Which terms control timing and delivery?

• Prebook (future): an order placed ahead for later delivery, often for an upcoming season.
• At-once (immediates): an order that ships from stock now. Retailers are buying closer to need, which means more at-once ordering.
• ATS (available to sell): inventory on hand that is free to ship as at-once orders. See how to show available stock without overselling.
• Ship date: the first date an order can ship.
• Cancel date: the retailer's ship-by deadline (the last date the order can ship). After that date, some retailers may cancel the order or charge the brand back. It is not a deadline for the buyer to decide, and it does not give the buyer a right to cancel.
• Ship window: the time between the ship date and the cancel date.
• FOB origin vs FOB destination: with FOB origin, ownership and freight risk pass to the buyer when goods leave the seller. With FOB destination, they stay with the seller until delivery.

Which terms cover payment and order documents?

• Purchase order (PO): the retailer's order document, with styles, quantities, prices, dates and terms.
• Order confirmation: the brand's written confirmation of what it will ship and when.
• Invoice: the bill for shipped goods, which usually starts the payment clock. The wholesale order documents guide shows how the PO, confirmation and invoice fit together.
• Net 30: payment is due 30 calendar days after the start date the terms name, usually the invoice date. Net 30 EOM starts the clock at the end of the month. See how net 30 payment terms work.
• 2/10 net 30: the buyer gets a 2% discount for paying within 10 days. Otherwise the full amount is due in 30 days.
• Deposit: a partial payment collected up front, with the rest due later. Prepayment means the full amount is paid before the order ships.

Which terms come from retailer compliance rules?

• Vendor compliance manual: a retailer's rulebook for labeling, packing, shipping and data exchange.
• Routing guide: a retailer's instructions for how and when to ship, and which carriers to use.
• Chargeback: money a retailer deducts from its payment when a vendor breaks its rules. Common triggers include shipments that arrive before the ship date or leave after the cancel date. For more, see selling to department stores.
• Markdown money: a payment or credit a brand gives a retailer to cover price cuts on slow sellers.
• EDI (electronic data interchange): a standard format retailers use to send and receive POs, invoices and other documents. The EDI 852 carries product activity data, such as sales and inventory by store.

Which terms measure performance and planning?

• Sell-in: the units a brand ships to stores.
• Sell-through: units sold divided by units received in a period, though sources use different denominators. The sell-through rate guide shows how to calculate it.
• Open-to-buy (OTB): the budget a buyer has left to spend on new merchandise for a period. See how open-to-buy works.
• Weeks of supply: how many weeks current inventory will last at the current sales rate.
• Inventory turnover: how many times inventory sells and is replaced in a period, often a year.

Which terms does the brand set, and which does the buyer set?

Brands set the wholesale price, MSRP, MOQs, order minimums and payment terms. Retailers set cancel dates and compliance rules in their POs and routing guides. They also plan spending with open-to-buy and judge brands on sell-through. New to all this? Start with how to start selling wholesale.

In Brandboom, line sheets and PDFs can show the wholesale price, the retail price (MSRP) or both, plus ship dates and product minimums. The order minimum is a dollar amount set per showroom. It can be enforced or display-only. Future and At-Once inventory types match prebook and at-once selling. Products carry ship and cancel dates, and when a buyer places an order with products on different ship dates, it's split into separate orders by ship date. The order form lists your payment options, such as credit card, COD or Net 30. Deposits can be collected through Stripe or PayPal, with no Brandboom payment fees (processor fees apply).

FAQ

What happens if you ship after the cancel date?

Some retailers treat an order that isn't shipped in full by the cancel date as canceled. Citi Trends' vendor guide says so. Other retailers charge back late shipments. Belk notes that shipping on the cancel date itself can be allowed, but if the carrier misses it, a chargeback can still follow unless the cancel date is updated.

What does ATS mean in wholesale?

ATS stands for available to sell. It means inventory that is on hand and not already promised to other orders, so it can ship now. Brands sell ATS stock as at-once orders, while prebook orders are placed ahead for later delivery.

What does wholesale price mean?

Wholesale price is the per-unit price a retailer pays the brand. Line sheets, price lists and order forms often abbreviate it as W/S or WHSLE. Wholesale price is not the same as MSRP, which is the price the brand recommends retailers charge shoppers. Landed cost is also different, since it is the buyer's all-in cost including freight, duties and insurance. Under keystone pricing, wholesale is about half of MSRP, though not every brand follows that convention.