Inventory Management Improvements — Doudlah Farms
Overview
During the [1], Mark and Gilbert identified two significant gaps in the Doudlah Farms inventory management workflow and agreed on concrete fixes: (1) the inventory spreadsheet was undercounting total stock by excluding in-transit shipments, and (2) warehouse manager Carly was being asked to do manual unit-to-box/pallet math that should be automated. Both issues were resolved in principle during the call, with Gilbert assigned to implement the changes.
Problem 1: Incomplete Total Inventory Calculation
The Gap
The "Total Inventory" column in the Google Sheet summed only four sources:
- Units at FBA
- Inbound to FBA (Amazon-reported)
- Units at AWD
- Inbound to AWD (Amazon-reported)
It excluded a fifth category: units already shipped from the warehouse that Amazon has not yet registered as inbound. This gap exists because Amazon's inventory reporting is not real-time — there is a lag between when a shipment leaves the warehouse and when it appears in Amazon's system.
The result was a systematic undercount that could trigger unnecessary reorders, since the spreadsheet would flag a product as low-stock even when a replenishment shipment was already en route.
The Fix
Add the shipped/receiving column — sourced from the Manage Shipments "shipping queue" tab — to the Total Inventory formula.
Complete five-bucket inventory model:
| Bucket | Source |
|---|---|
| At FBA | Amazon Manage Inventory |
| Inbound to FBA | Amazon Manage Inventory |
| At AWD | Amazon AWD |
| Inbound to AWD | Amazon AWD |
| Shipped / Receiving | Manual shipment queue (downloaded daily) |
The sum of all five buckets represents true total inventory at any point in time.
"We've got stuff that's there. We've got stuff that they know is on the way. And then we've got stuff that's on the way that they don't know about. That's the total inventory." — Mark Hope
Problem 2: Reorder Threshold Logic
Previous Approach
The reorder threshold was calculated as last 60 days units ordered × 2, flagging items in red when current total inventory fell below that number.
Updated Strategy: 2–4 Month Inventory Target
The new target is to maintain between 2 and 4 months of supply at all times:
- Reorder trigger: When total inventory approaches 2 months of supply
- Order quantity: Enough to bring total inventory back up to 4 months of supply
- Hard limits: Never below 2 months; never above 4 months
This bracket approach balances stock availability against carrying costs. It is most relevant for the four highest-velocity SKUs: black beans, popcorn, yellow cornmeal, and Old World.
The reorder threshold formula in the spreadsheet will need to be recomputed to reflect this 2–4 month logic rather than the previous 2× multiplier.
Problem 3: Warehouse Order Preparation for Carly
The Gap
When Gilbert determines that a shipment needs to go out, he communicates in units. Warehouse manager Carly needs to work in boxes, pallets, and weight to actually fulfill the order. She was performing the unit-to-box-to-pallet conversions manually, introducing error risk.
The Fix
Build a dedicated sheet that automates these conversions using product data already available (units per box, boxes per pallet, box weight):
Inputs (from inventory sheet):
- Quantity to ship (units)
Outputs (auto-calculated for Carly):
- Number of boxes
- Number of pallets (full + partial)
- Total weight
Notes on pallet types:
- Single-SKU pallets: One label on the pallet; Amazon processes automatically
- Mixed-SKU pallets: Amazon scans each box individually; acceptable when quantities don't fill a full pallet
Gilbert will call Carly to confirm exactly what information she needs when placing a warehouse order, then build the sheet to deliver that data without requiring her to do any math.
Long-Term Vision
Mark noted an intent to build an internal app with direct Amazon API access that would:
- Pull inventory data automatically across all channels
- Consider Amazon FBA/AWD, physical warehouse stock, retail orders, and bulk orders in a unified view
- Eventually submit warehouse orders via API, eliminating manual order write-ups
The spreadsheet improvements above are the interim solution while that app is developed.
Action Items
- [ ] Update inventory sheet: add
shipped/receivingto Total Inventory formula; recompute reorder thresholds to reflect 2–4 month target (@Gilbert) - [ ] Call Carly to confirm her shipping order requirements (units/box, boxes/pallet, weights); build box/pallet calculator sheet (@Gilbert)
Related
- [2]
- [1]
- [3]