Purchase order software for fashion brands

A fashion purchase order is a grid: every style, every colour, every size, with a price that the factory quoted in its own currency. Built by hand from the line plan, it is easy to get one number wrong. This page covers what purchase order software for fashion should do and what to check.

#What a fashion purchase order needs

• Quantities by colour and size, with totals per style and for the whole order
• The unit price per style, in the supplier's currency
• Buyer and supplier details, delivery terms and payment terms
• A status, so everyone knows whether the order is a draft, sent or received
• A record of what was agreed, in one place instead of email threads
• A PDF the factory can read without logging in to anything

General purchasing tools are built for one line per item. Clothing needs the size grid, so it pays to use something made for fashion.

#Where orders go wrong

Most order mistakes come from copying. The planned units are in the line plan, the prices are in the cost sheet, and the order is typed into a third file. A size row is skipped, a colour is ordered twice, or the price is from last season's quote. Then the discussion with the factory happens in email, and the final version is hard to find.

#What to look for

• Orders created from the planned units in the line plan
• Size grids per colour, with totals that add up by themselves
• The supplier's own currency on the order
• Statuses from draft to received, with who changed what
• A discussion on each order
• Supplier access to their own orders only

#How Tr3e handles purchase orders

In Tr3e a purchase order starts from the collection's planned units. You pick the supplier and the products, and each style comes in with its colours, sizes and quantities. The order uses the supplier's currency, and the total updates as you change a size.

Each order moves from draft to sent and received, and the team can discuss it on the order itself. When it is ready, Download PDF gives the factory a clean document. Suppliers you invite see only their own styles and orders, and they are free.

Because the order comes from the same products that hold the cost, the collection's budget and the orders always agree. The details are in the purchase orders guide, and the purchase orders page shows it in the app.

#Questions

Can a supplier see the order without paying for a seat? In Tr3e, yes. Suppliers are free and see only their own styles and orders.

Can I order in dollars when my brand works in euros? Yes. The order uses the supplier's currency, while the collection's budget stays in your own.

Do I need SKUs and barcodes before ordering? Many factories want them on the order or the labels. Tr3e creates a SKU for every size from your own codes, and EAN-13 or UPC-A barcodes from your GS1 company prefix. See SKUs and barcodes.

#Next

• Purchase orders in Tr3e
• Line planning software for fashion brands
• SKUs and barcodes
• Fashion PLM software compared