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Shortages and substitutions · PlentyOrder

Shorts and subs, decided at order time, not on the dock.

The salmon didn’t come in, and scallops are 4 lb short. Built to check every line against what’s on hand when the order arrives, propose the customer’s own fallback or your catalog’s substitute, and hold the order until a person decides.

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Sample order · email · fictional restaurant · Shortages and substitutions
SampleThu 4:12 PM

Friday order

Ruth Adeyemi <ruth@copperpot.example>The Copper Pot · to Orders desk
4:12 PM

Hi team,

For Friday please:
– 15 lb salmon
– 10 lb U10 scallops
– 2 cs romaine
– 1 cs butter

If the salmon isn’t looking great, arctic char is fine.

Thanks,
Ruth

What the desk decides on this order
  • ShortAtlantic salmon is out of stock.
  • Short6 lb of U/10 on hand — 4 lb short.
  • ShortRomaine hearts are out of stock.
  • Matched1 of 4 lines matched cleanly to the catalog.
SO-31201Fri, Oct 23 · PM route

The Copper Pot

Needs review
Ruth AdeyemiC-2331
  1. 15lb
    Atlantic salmon fillet, skin-on
    SAL-ATL · per lb
    “15 lb salmon”
    Short Atlantic salmon is out of stock.
    Suggested: Arctic char fillet, skin-on ARC-FIL — Customer pre-approved: “arctic char is fine.”
    $168.75$11.25/lb
  2. 10lb
    Sea scallops U/10, dry
    SCL-U10 · per lb
    “10 lb U10 scallops”
    Short 4 lb 6 lb of U/10 on hand — 4 lb short.
    Suggested: Sea scallops 10/20, dry SCL-1020 — Fill the remaining 4 lb with 10/20 scallops, or ship 6 lb.
    $245.00$24.50/lb
  3. 2cs
    Romaine hearts, 24 ct
    ROM-24 · case
    “2 cs romaine”
    Short Romaine hearts are out of stock.
    Suggested: Green leaf lettuce, 24 ct LET-GRN — Catalog substitute: green leaf lettuce, 24 count.
    $72.00$36.00/cs
  4. 1cs
    Butter, unsalted
    BUT-UNS · 36 × 1 lb
    “1 cs butter”
    $128.00$128.00/cs
4 lines · Est. total$613.75
3 flags to resolve
Sample order: the message on the left, the ticket a person approves on the right. Try the buttons.
The problem

Why shorts cost more when they’re found late

01

Found on the floor

When a short is found by the picker, the fix is a phone call, a scramble and often a credit. Checking stock when the order arrives moves that decision to the desk, hours earlier.

02

Customers already told you

“If the salmon isn’t great, char is fine.” That instruction lives in the message, so it’s pulled out and proposed first, ahead of your catalog sub.

03

Partial fills need a decision

6 lb on hand for a 10 lb order: fill the rest with a sub, ship what you have, or remove the line. All three are one click, and the choice is logged.

How it works

One email, three shorts

  1. 014:12 PM

    The email arrives

    Four lines and one instruction: char is fine.

  2. 024:12 PM

    Stock is checked

    Salmon and romaine are out and the scallops are partial. Each gets a proposed sub.

  3. 034:20 PM

    The desk decides

    Char, as the customer said; fill the scallops with 10/20; green leaf for the romaine.

  4. 044:21 PM

    Approved with the subs

    The exported order carries each sub, marked as a sub for the original item.

Reference

Three ways to resolve a short

Every short line offers the same choices. The decision and who made it are kept in the order’s activity log.

ChoiceWhat shipsOn the export
Use the substituteThe sub item, or the on-hand amount plus the sub for the restSub line noted as “Sub for <item code>”
Ship what’s on handOnly the quantity you haveLine noted “Short <qty>”
Remove the lineNothing for that itemLine left off the order
FAQ

Questions about shortages and substitutions.

Where does the stock number come from?

From the on-hand quantities in your price list or inventory export. Update it as often as you export it today.

Which substitute is proposed first?

The customer’s own instruction, if the message has one. Otherwise, the substitute set for that item in your catalog.

Does it tell the customer about the sub?

The ticket records the decision. A confirmation with the sub can be sent as a reply, and your team decides when.

Related

All solutions

Available by request

See it on your own orders.

Fifteen minutes is enough to run a few of your real messages through it, against your own price list.

Request access Book a 15-min demo

The restaurant, people and order on this page are fictional sample data.