> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.usebuddy.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Warehouse Management

> Setting up stock locations and fulfillment routing

If you fulfill orders from multiple locations, warehouse management helps you track which customers and products are served by which location.

## Why Use Warehouses?

Warehouses (stock locations) help you:

* **Route orders correctly**: Ensure orders ship from the right facility
* **Assign customer territories**: Default customers to their nearest warehouse
* **Manage product availability**: Track which products are stocked where
* **Optimize fulfillment**: Reduce shipping costs and times

## Setting Up Warehouses

<Steps>
  <Step title="Go to Warehouse Settings">
    Navigate to **Settings → Warehouses**
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add Warehouse">
    Click **Add Warehouse**
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enter Details">
    Fill in warehouse name and address
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **Save** to create the warehouse
  </Step>
</Steps>

### Warehouse Fields

| Field       | Description                          |
| ----------- | ------------------------------------ |
| **Name**    | Display name (e.g., "East Coast DC") |
| **Address** | Physical warehouse address           |
| **Contact** | Warehouse manager or contact         |
| **Phone**   | Contact phone number                 |
| **Notes**   | Internal notes                       |
| **Default** | Set as default for new customers     |

## Assigning Customers to Warehouses

Each customer can have a default warehouse:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Customer Profile">
    Navigate to the customer's profile
  </Step>

  <Step title="Find Warehouse Setting">
    Locate the **Default Warehouse** field
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select Warehouse">
    Choose which warehouse typically fulfills this customer
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **Save** to apply
  </Step>
</Steps>

When creating orders for this customer, the selected warehouse is used by default.

## Product Warehouse Requirements

Some products may need to ship from specific locations:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Product Details">
    Navigate to the product's details
  </Step>

  <Step title="Find Required Warehouse">
    Locate the **Required Warehouse** field
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select Warehouse">
    Choose the warehouse that stocks this product
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Click **Save** to apply
  </Step>
</Steps>

Orders containing this product will route to the specified warehouse.

## How Buddy Assigns Stock Locations

When you create an order or process a PO, Buddy automatically selects the right warehouse for you:

### What Buddy Checks (In Order)

1. **Product requirement first**: If any product on the order requires a specific warehouse, that warehouse is used
2. **Customer default second**: Otherwise, the customer's assigned warehouse is selected
3. **Organization default third**: If neither is set, your default warehouse is used
4. **You can always override**: Select a different warehouse manually if needed

### What You'll See

* **Warehouse auto-selected**: The fulfillment location appears automatically on new orders
* **Warehouse badge**: Orders show which location they'll ship from
* **Conflict warning**: If products require different warehouses, you'll be notified

<Tip>
  Set up customer defaults when you first create customer accounts. This saves time on every future order.
</Tip>

<Note>
  If products in an order require different warehouses, you may need to split the order or handle it manually.
</Note>

## Multi-Warehouse Orders

For orders that span multiple warehouses:

* **Split orders**: Create separate orders for each warehouse
* **Manual override**: Select a primary warehouse and add notes
* **Partial fulfillment**: Ship what's available and backorder the rest

## Best Practices

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Name Clearly" icon="tag">
    Use descriptive names like "East Coast DC" not "Warehouse 1"
  </Card>

  <Card title="Set Defaults" icon="check-double">
    Configure customer defaults to reduce manual selection
  </Card>

  <Card title="Document Requirements" icon="file-lines">
    Add notes explaining why products require specific warehouses
  </Card>

  <Card title="Review Routing" icon="route">
    Periodically check that orders are routing correctly
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What if a customer is near multiple warehouses?">
    Set their default to the most commonly used warehouse. You can override on individual orders when needed.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I track inventory by warehouse?">
    If connected to an inventory system (Cin7, Shopify with locations), stock levels sync per location. Otherwise, warehouse management in Buddy focuses on order routing rather than inventory tracking.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I handle drop shipping?">
    Create a "warehouse" for each drop ship vendor. Assign products to their respective vendor locations.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What if I only have one location?">
    You don't need to set up warehouse management. It's optional for businesses with multiple fulfillment locations.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>