When you ship inventory to Amazon, there is a gap where the stock has left your warehouse but Amazon has not received it into FBA yet. That gap can last weeks or even months. In the meantime a local count comes up short, but the units are not in FBA either, so they fall through the cracks.
ConnectBooks handles this for you. We pull each shipment's status straight from Amazon and move your inventory through 3 warehouses so it shows where the stock actually is.
The 3 warehouses
Local Warehouse. Your stock on hand.
Transit Warehouse. Shipped, but not received by Amazon yet.
FBA Warehouse. Received by Amazon and ready to sell.
How it works
When a shipment is shipped, ConnectBooks moves those units from the Local Warehouse to the Transit Warehouse. The shipment needs a ship date for this to happen.
Then, as Amazon receives units, ConnectBooks moves them from the Transit Warehouse to the FBA Warehouse. This happens each time ConnectBooks syncs with Amazon, until the shipment is fully received. So your In Transit balance shows what is still outstanding.
Turn it on
Go to Stores & Files, then Inventory Files, and click your file.
Click Inventory & Warehouse, then Edit.
Turn on Warehouse Tracking and FBA Shipments. You can't turn on FBA Shipments until Warehouse Tracking is on.
Click Manage Warehouses, set the FBA Warehouse, Local Warehouse and Transit Warehouse for each store, then click Save. Manage Warehouses shows only when Warehouse Tracking is on and a store is linked.
Older shipments are set to ignored by default. To transfer an older one, click the 3 dots on the shipment line and click Transfer.
Turn on the Auto Sync switch at the top of the FBA Shipments page, and new shipments transfer on their own when they ship, except those marked as ignored. With it off, click Transfer on each shipment in the ConnectBooks Transfers column.
Check on a shipment
On the FBA Shipments page, click any number in the ConnectBooks Transfers column to see that shipment's transfers.
In Transit shows units moved from the Local Warehouse. This figure stays fixed. FBA Warehouse shows units received by Amazon. This figure climbs until the shipment closes.
See everything
All transfers: ConnectStock, then Warehouse Transfers, then Shipment Transfers.
Inventory by warehouse, including In Transit: Reports, then Inventory, then Inventory Summary Report.
Counts not lining up? See Understanding FBA Shipment Discrepancies. Any other questions, reach out to our support team.
Frequently asked questions
Why can't I turn on FBA Shipments?
Turn on Warehouse Tracking first. You can't turn on FBA Shipments until it's on.
When do units move to the Transit Warehouse?
When the shipment is shipped, not when Amazon first reports it. The shipment needs a ship date.
Do I have to transfer each shipment by hand?
Only if Auto Sync is off. With Auto Sync on, new shipments transfer on their own when they ship.