Questions we can investigate
- Revenue and gross margin by product, customer and period
- Slow-moving stock and inventory concentration
- Customer dependence and declining accounts
Industry solution
Wholesale & distribution analytics
Which products and customers drive profitable growth?
Business areas for this industry
Explore the relevant analytics areas
These are applicable areas to consider. Your agreed question and available data determine which ones are included in a project.
Need a different combination? Custom Analytics can be scoped around your requirements.
Sales, margin and stock
Revenue is only part of the picture
An ERP export may show growing sales while product costs, discounts and inventory exposure tell a different story. We connect the agreed measures so you can compare performance by product, customer and period without rebuilding a spreadsheet every month.
A focused first project can answer one question: where does gross profit come from, which customers are changing, or which stock needs review? Wider scope can bring these views together after source compatibility is checked.
- Separate sales growth from changes in product mix.
- Compare customer contribution using agreed grouping rules.
- Trace each KPI back to a source field and definition.
Useful starting data
- Order or invoice lines: date, product ID, customer ID, quantity and net revenue
- Cost of goods sold for margin calculations
- Stock snapshots or movement history for inventory questions
Start with column names. Remove personal identifiers and confidential values from any example.
What you receive
A scoped dashboard, agreed KPI definitions, data-quality notes, written observations and a documented handover. The Fit Check identifies which questions your available data can support.
View a labelled sampleInventory decisions
Stock value, availability and reorder priorities
Inventory needs its own evidence. Sales lines alone cannot establish stock cover, stock ageing or a reliable reorder point. Opening balances, movements and month-end snapshots are checked for completeness before those measures are built.
The example shows €184,200 of stock across four categories, 18 items below their illustrative reorder points and 962 of 1,000 requested units available. These describe three different questions: capital tied up in stock, replenishment priorities and immediate fulfilment capacity.
A review list helps you see the items behind an aggregate KPI. Thresholds are confirmed with you; the report does not automatically issue purchase orders.
A useful first scope
Margin snapshot
One selected export, an agreed revenue measure and product cost data. Compare gross profit by product or customer, with exclusions and missing-cost records documented.
Inventory review
Stock balances and movement history. Review valuation, stock cover and low-stock exceptions where the data supports the calculation.
Monthly operating view
Combine accepted sources for recurring sales, margin and stock reporting. Refresh frequency and ongoing services are priced separately in the written scope.
Before you begin
Can we start with Excel rather than a direct ERP connection?
Yes. An agreed export is often a practical first source. We check identifiers, dates, currency, negative lines and cost coverage before confirming the analysis.
What if product cost is incomplete?
We can report revenue and highlight missing cost coverage, but we cannot present an accurate gross-margin result for records without an agreed cost basis.
Will customer names be needed for the Fit Check?
Usually not. Column names and synthetic examples are sufficient to start. Production identifiers and access are discussed only after scope and handling arrangements are agreed.
Example project scope
From a margin question to an operating review
A useful initial brief is: “Which product categories explain the change in gross profit?” We first confirm invoice dates, credit notes and product costs. The first report compares accepted periods and identifies missing cost coverage before any conclusion is drawn.
Supplier delivery reporting can be a separate extension when receipt and promised-date records are available. This purchasing preview is a general synthetic example, not a claim that late receipts caused the margin movement.
The final scope specifies the question, accepted sources, excluded calculations and the output to be delivered. Any additional view is an agreed extension rather than an implied inclusion in every package.
Start with one business question
Start with your question and a description of your data.