The language of inventory & fulfillment.
Clear, no-jargon definitions of the terms that run a modern operation — and how each one works in Skuwell.
Inventory fundamentals
A unique identifier you assign to each distinct, sellable product variant so it can be tracked, counted, and reordered.
Read definition → PIM (Product Information Management)A single system of record for all product data -- titles, attributes, images, and per-channel listing details.
Read definition → WMS (Warehouse Management System)Software that directs the physical work of a warehouse -- receiving, putaway, picking, packing, and counting.
Read definition → Lot trackingRecording which production batch (lot) each unit of stock belongs to, for traceability and expiry management.
Read definition → FIFO & FEFOStock-rotation rules: First-In-First-Out ships the oldest stock first; First-Expired-First-Out ships the soonest-to-expire first.
Read definition → Kitting & bundlesSelling multiple component SKUs together as a single sellable unit, with inventory tracked at the component level.
Read definition → OversellingSelling more units than you actually have, usually because channel stock counts lagged behind real availability.
Read definition →Purchasing & forecasting
A formal document you send a supplier specifying the items, quantities, prices, and terms you're committing to buy.
Read definition → Lead timeThe elapsed time between placing a purchase order and having the stock available to sell.
Read definition → Demand forecastingPredicting future sales for each SKU so you can buy the right quantity at the right time.
Read definition → Intermittent demandIrregular, sporadic demand with many zero-sales periods -- common for wholesale, spare parts, and slow movers.
Read definition → Reorder pointThe stock level at which you should place a replenishment order so you don't run out before it arrives.
Read definition → Safety stockBuffer inventory held to absorb variability in demand and supply so normal swings don't cause a stockout.
Read definition → Economic order quantity (EOQ)The order quantity that minimizes total inventory cost by balancing ordering cost against holding cost.
Read definition → MOQ (Minimum order quantity)The smallest quantity a supplier will accept on an order, often forcing you to buy more than pure demand suggests.
Read definition → Open-to-buy (OTB)A budgeting method that controls how much new inventory you can purchase in a period, given planned sales and stock targets.
Read definition → ReceivingThe process of checking in stock against a purchase order when it arrives and updating inventory.
Read definition →Warehouse operations
Moving received stock to its storage location, ideally directed by the system to the optimal slot.
Read definition → Wave & batch pickingGrouping multiple orders into a single pick trip to cut walking time, then sorting items to orders afterward.
Read definition → Cycle countingCounting a small subset of inventory on a rolling schedule to keep accuracy high without a full physical count.
Read definition → Scan-to-ship verificationScanning each item as it's packed to confirm the right products and quantities go into every order before it ships.
Read definition → Inventory ledgerAn immutable, append-only record of every inventory movement, so any stock level can be explained and audited.
Read definition → 3PL (Third-party logistics)An outside provider that stores your inventory and fulfills your orders on your behalf.
Read definition →Shipping & fulfillment
Comparing live rates across carriers and services at pack time to pick the cheapest option that still meets the delivery promise.
Read definition → Shipping zonesGeographic bands carriers use to price ground shipments -- the farther the zone, the higher the cost and transit time.
Read definition → Order consolidationCombining multiple orders from the same customer (or to the same destination) into one shipment to save cost and packaging.
Read definition → Returns & RMAThe process of authorizing, receiving, and restocking (or disposing of) returned goods via a Return Merchandise Authorization.
Read definition → Unified order queueA single work list of every order from every channel, ready to be picked, packed, and shipped.
Read definition → BackorderAn order for an item that's currently out of stock, accepted now and fulfilled when stock arrives.
Read definition → FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon)Amazon stores your inventory and fulfills your Amazon (and optionally other) orders, in exchange for fees.
Read definition → FBM (Fulfillment by Merchant)You fulfill your own Amazon orders from your warehouse or 3PL, rather than using FBA.
Read definition →Selling & channels
Multichannel sells across many separate channels; omnichannel unifies them into one connected customer and inventory experience.
Read definition → B2B price tiersDifferent prices for different customer groups or volumes, typical of wholesale and trade selling.
Read definition → Price bookA named set of prices you can apply to a channel, customer group, or region -- separate from your base catalog price.
Read definition → Dead stockInventory that isn't selling and is unlikely to, tying up cash and warehouse space.
Read definition → StockoutRunning out of a sellable item, causing lost sales and -- on marketplaces -- ranking and account damage.
Read definition → Par levelA target on-hand quantity for an item -- the level you top back up to during replenishment.
Read definition →Pricing & metrics
Classifying inventory into A, B, and C tiers by value or velocity so you focus control where it matters most.
Read definition → Inventory turnoverHow many times you sell through and replace average inventory in a period -- a core efficiency metric.
Read definition → Sell-through rateThe percentage of received stock you sold in a period -- units sold / units received (or available).
Read definition → Days of inventory (DSI)The average number of days your current stock will last at the current sales rate.
Read definition → GMROI (Gross Margin Return on Inventory Investment)How much gross profit you earn for every dollar invested in inventory -- gross margin / average inventory cost.
Read definition → Landed costThe true total cost of a product once it reaches your warehouse -- unit price plus freight, duties, and handling.
Read definition → Markup vs marginTwo ways to express profit on a sale: markup is profit over cost; margin is profit over selling price.
Read definition →See the words in action.
A 30-minute walkthrough on a live system — reorder points, the floor map, the order queue, all of it running on your operation.
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