Wholesale ERP Consultant, UK

Trade accounts: from application to first order

In a UK merchant or trade wholesaler, the trade account is the customer relationship. The applicant completes a credit application, the business checks references or a credit report, someone decides the limit and payment terms, and the account is set up with a discount profile. Some businesses also ask for a personal guarantee from directors of smaller limited companies, and some insure their receivables, in which case the insurer's view on each account matters.

When I map this process I usually find the steps are sound but the records are scattered: the application in email, the credit check in a separate portal, the limit typed into the accounting system and the discount profile copied from a similar customer. Nobody can say why a particular account received its terms.

The requirement I write keeps those decisions together on the customer record, with an approval trail and review dates. Credit limits are checked when an order is placed at the counter or online, not only when the invoice is raised. A clean account opening flow is also the foundation for a trade web shop, because online customers can only see their own prices if the account was set up correctly in the first place. This work sits within ERP process mapping.

Discount matrices, net prices and job quotes

The usual UK merchant pricing model starts with a list price per item, groups products into discount groups, and gives each account a percentage off each group. On top of that sit net prices for specific items, special prices agreed for a job, and promotional prices from suppliers. It works, but only when the order of precedence is clear and the exceptions are controlled.

In workshops I lay the matrix out as a grid: account or account class down the side, discount groups across the top, with a note on which items carry net prices. Then I ask sales and finance to agree the rules:

• which price wins when a net price, a job quote and a group discount all apply
• how long a job quote stays valid and whether it covers only named sites
• who may override a price at the counter, by how much, and with what reason code
• how often account discounts are reviewed and who signs off changes

That table becomes part of the BRD. In demos I ask each vendor to price the same five tricky orders, including a contractor with a job quote buying an item outside it. The results tell you more than a feature list.

Counter, phone and web prices with VAT handled consistently

Trade customers normally see prices excluding VAT, while cash customers at a counter may expect prices including it. Product lines can carry different VAT treatments, and some trades have their own rules for particular goods or for supplies to certain customers. I do not decide the treatment; I record how each product group and customer type is handled today and pass that list to your accountant for confirmation before configuration.

The design job is consistency. The counter terminal, the phone desk and the trade web shop should calculate the same net price and the same VAT for the same account, because a customer who is quoted differently in two channels will call to complain and usually ask for the lower price. VAT records also need to flow into returns through software that supports Making Tax Digital, so I check how the ERP or the accounting system behind it produces the return.

Credit notes deserve attention too. Price corrections, returns, short deliveries and rebate settlements all produce credits, and each needs a reason code and a link to the original invoice. When that is designed in, statements become readable and disputes shrink. I include each credit type in UAT scripts.

Customer rebates, statements and moving off the old system

Larger trade accounts often negotiate a retrospective rebate: a percentage back on qualifying spend over a year or quarter, sometimes with growth tiers. If the rebate is tracked in a spreadsheet, the cost lands in one month as a surprise and the account manager cannot tell the customer where they stand. I define each agreement with its qualifying products, spend bands, period and settlement method, so the ERP accrues as invoices post and produces a statement the customer can check.

Monthly statements and credit control close the loop. Many UK trade accounts pay on monthly terms, so the statement run, reminder sequence and stop list need to work without manual editing.

Typical starting points are Sage with a bolt-on order system, an older merchant package that is no longer developed, or a mix of tools added over the years. Migration focuses on active accounts with their limits and discount profiles, live job quotes, open rebate agreements with spend to date, and item data with discount groups and units. I work remotely in UK hours, which makes daily stand-ups easy. See also Zoho Inventory for UK businesses, the UK ERP consultant page, the UK hub and the general wholesale ERP guide.