Stocky purchasing and receiving

Shopify Apps
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Topic summary

A merchant expresses strong dissatisfaction with Stocky’s purchase order and receiving functionality, finding it slower and less efficient than manual paper processes or Lightspeed’s system.

Main criticisms:

  • Stocky feels clunky and outdated, originally designed for smaller operations
  • Interface hasn’t evolved significantly since Shopify’s acquisition

Suggested workarounds within Stocky:

  • Use CSV imports for large purchase orders
  • Enable automatic PO suggestions based on low inventory
  • Sync receiving through POS Pro to reduce duplicate data entry
  • Disable unused supplier fields to simplify forms

Recommended alternatives for volume-based workflows:

  • Inventory Planner – better forecasting and PO workflow, most Shopify-friendly
  • Katana – handles purchasing, manufacturing, and receiving
  • Cin7 Core (DEAR) – closest experience to Lightspeed for advanced vendor management

The merchant acknowledged the suggestions positively. The discussion remains open as they explore alternatives.

Summarized with AI on October 23. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
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At wits end. Stocky was definitely designed by a person that was totally inexperience in creating purchase orders and receiving merchandise. We can do a better and quicker more thorough job manually on paper. A gigantic amount of improvement is necessary. Lightspeed is much better concerning purchasing and receiving.

1 Like
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Hey @Philip_Gangi :waving_hand:

Totally understand your frustration — you’re not alone. Stocky can feel clunky, especially for merchants used to faster workflows like Lightspeed’s PO and receiving process. It was built originally for smaller operations, and the interface hasn’t evolved much since Shopify acquired it.

A few ways to make it a bit smoother (or alternatives to consider):

:light_bulb: Quick Improvements in Stocky

  1. Use CSV imports for large POs — faster than manual entry.

  2. Enable automatic PO suggestions based on low inventory (can save time once set).

  3. Sync receiving directly through POS Pro — helps reduce double data entry.

  4. Disable unused supplier fields under Settings → Supplier Defaults to simplify the form.

:rocket: Better Alternatives (especially for scaling stores)

If your workflow is more volume-based:

  • Inventory Planner – far better forecasting and PO workflow; integrates directly with Shopify.

  • Katana – works great for purchase, manufacturing, and receiving management.

  • Cin7 Core (DEAR) – closest feel to Lightspeed for advanced purchasing and vendor management.

If you’re looking for a middle ground, I’d suggest Inventory Planner first — it’s the most Shopify-friendly option while keeping similar PO logic to Lightspeed.

:hammer_and_wrench: You can check out our Shopify Partner profile — we’ve built and shared several free Shopify app solutions to help store owners. Feel free to explore our profile and see how our apps can make your Shopify experience better!

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Thank you
Stay in touch
Cheers
Philip