Comparisons
IRIS vs Excel for retail replenishment
When a spreadsheet stops working, and what replaces it
Most distributors we meet order from Excel. It works well up to a point: one planner, a few thousand references, ten stores. This page lays out, without exaggeration, where the spreadsheet breaks and what IRIS does differently.
Excel is not the problem. The problem is what a spreadsheet cannot do once the network grows: refresh from the ERP several times a day, forecast at shade level, track lots, allocate testers, and write orders back without retyping.
| Excel ordering | IRIS | |
|---|---|---|
| Forecast method | Last year's sales copied forward, adjusted by hand | One model per SKU and store, selected automatically, accuracy tracked |
| Granularity | Product or category | SKU × store, including shades and sizes |
| Seasonality | Same calendar weeks as last year | Seasonal profiles per category; Ramadan and Eid aligned on the lunar calendar |
| Data refresh | Weekly stock export | Every ERP import, several times a day |
| Supplier lead time | Contractual figure | Measured from real deliveries per supplier |
| Order entry | Retyped into the ERP | Purchase orders created in the ERP with the IRIS reference; status returned |
| Testers and gifts with purchase | Not tracked, or counted as stock | Allocated at validation, tracked separately |
| Lots and expiry | Not tracked | Per lot with alerts and transfer proposals |
| Transit stock | Often forgotten | Deducted automatically |
| Who can do it | One expert planner | Any planner, with rules and thresholds |
| Audit trail | File versions | Every proposal, validation and transmission logged |
| Cost | Free, plus stock-outs, overstock and planner hours | From 800 USD per month |
When Excel is still the right tool
Fewer than five stores and a few hundred references
One planner who knows every product and supplier
No lots, no testers, no launches with marketing calendars
An ERP that cannot export stock and sales automatically
What the switch looks like
Four weeks: connect the ERP or a CSV export, calibrate on your history, run IRIS in parallel with the spreadsheet for a week, then go live with approval thresholds. Your planner keeps the final word on every order.
FAQ
Yes. Many networks keep a manual process for very small or very irregular categories and let IRIS handle the rest. Proposals can also be exported to Excel before validation.
No. Safety stock, minimums, case packs and supplier calendars become rules in IRIS, and planners override with a reason when they know something the data does not.
The target on the product specification is a return on investment within six months, driven by fewer stock-outs on best-sellers and less overstock.
Comparisons
A question the FAQ does not answer?
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