Distribution Management – From Warehouse to Retail Shelves

Distribution is the bridge between your warehouse and thousands of retail points. Without a proper system, route planning, van stock, secondary sales and recovery all become scattered across notebooks and WhatsApp messages. A distribution management module brings everything into one place, so you always know which route delivered what, how much cash came back and how much stock is still on the vehicle. This page explains the module in simple, practical terms.

Overview – What Distribution Module Does

The distribution module focuses on the last-mile: how your products leave the warehouse, reach different areas and finally land on retail shelves. It connects routes, vehicles, salesmen, van stock, invoices, returns and cash recovery in a single flow.

Instead of running distribution on separate notebooks per salesman, the system keeps a full route history: which outlets were visited, which items were sold, which schemes were applied and how much money or credit was created on that route.

Routes & Customers – Organising Your Market

A strong distribution setup starts with a clear route and customer structure. The module helps you organise your field in a structured way:

Route and area definition: Create routes by city, zone, area or beat. Each route can have a fixed or flexible visit plan depending on your business.
Retail outlet mapping: Assign each shop or customer to a route so the salesman knows exactly which outlets fall under his daily coverage.
Salesman and vehicle assignment: Link salesmen and vehicles to routes, so for each trip you know who went where and with which van or vehicle.
Visit frequency and priority: Mark key outlets that require more frequent visits (daily, twice weekly, weekly) and see coverage performance in reports.

Orders & Van Sales – Serving Retailers in the Market

Distribution can work in two main styles: order booking with separate delivery, or direct van sales where the vehicle carries stock and sells on the spot. The module supports both flows:

Order booking: Salesmen can record orders for the next day’s delivery. The system groups these orders by route and vehicle, so the warehouse can plan loading easily.
Van sales (spot sales): The van starts the day with opening stock and sells directly to retailers on the route. Each invoice or cash memo is recorded against the route, salesman and vehicle.
Cash and credit handling: Invoices can be marked as cash or credit. Cash is expected back the same day with the route closing; credit becomes outstanding against that retailer.
On-spot discounts and schemes: Salesmen can apply allowed schemes and discounts configured in the backend, keeping flexibility in the field but still under control.

Van Stock & Returns – Controlling the Vehicle Inventory

Route and van sales are only profitable when van stock is fully controlled. The module keeps every movement tied to a specific trip:

Van loading (opening stock): Before the vehicle leaves, a loading document is created from warehouse stock. This becomes the opening stock of the route for that day or trip.
Sales and free-of-charge items: All sales and free items issued to retailers are recorded so you can see how much quantity actually left the van as revenue and how much as promotion.
Market returns: Damaged, expired or unsold items returned from shops can be recorded separately from normal sales, which helps in claim handling and stock rotation.
Van closing stock: At the end of the day, remaining stock is counted and recorded. The system checks that:
Opening stock + Reloading − Sales − Returns − Closing stock = 0 (or known loss), so any difference is clearly visible.
Shortage and excess control: If there is a shortage, it can be logged against the route or salesman for further investigation and recovery where required.

Pricing & Schemes – Managing Trade Offers and Discounts

Distribution often runs on trade schemes: extra cartons, free pieces, slab discounts, display incentives and so on. The module helps you apply these in a controlled way:

Central price list: One central price structure is shared with all routes, ensuring that the selling rate is consistent across the market.
Route or channel specific rates: Where necessary, special pricing can be defined for certain routes, areas or customer segments (for example, wholesalers vs retailers).
Scheme configuration: Free quantity, extra discount, carton-based offers and other schemes can be configured in the system instead of being remembered manually.
Scheme tracking and cost visibility: Reports show how much value you gave away in schemes on each route, so you can measure whether the extra volume is worth the trade spend.

Reports & Route Closing – End of Day Control

The real power of a distribution system appears at route closing time: when the salesman returns and you want to see if everything balances.

Route closing summary: For each trip, the system shows opening stock, total sales, returns, closing stock, shortage and route-wise gross amount.
Cash and bank settlement: Cash collected on route can be matched against invoices and recorded as deposited in head office cash or bank account. Any difference is clearly visible.
Route-wise and salesman-wise performance: Compare sales volume, value, average drop size and coverage per route and salesman so you can reward and guide your teams effectively.
Secondary sales visibility: Reports show secondary sales (distributor to retailer) by SKU, route, area and time period, which helps you plan production and primary sales better.

Distribution Management – FAQs

No. Any business that delivers products through routes or vehicles can benefit from a distribution module — from small regional distributors to larger FMCG setups. The basic logic is the same: plan routes, load vans, sell, collect cash and close the trip.

Yes. The distribution module supports order booking for next-day delivery as well as direct van sales. You can even use both styles together in the same market, depending on customer type and route design.

Route closing compares opening stock, sales, returns, closing stock and cash in a single summary. If quantities or amounts do not match, the difference is visible immediately and can be investigated the same day instead of weeks later.

Yes. When combined with the multi-branch module, routes and vehicles can be tied to specific branches or depots. You can see performance branch-wise, route-wise and salesman-wise in the same reporting layer.