Seasonal Stock Build Planner

Who this is for

Make enough before the rush. Set a target for each product ahead of a season or big event, work out how many a week that means, and tick off each week's batch as the stock builds.

Makers preparing for Christmas, a wedding season or a large fair who need to spread the making over the weeks they have rather than cram it into the last few.

What this helps you track

• The season or event, the deadline and the weeks left
• A target quantity for each product and how many are made so far
• How many are still to make and how many that means each week
• Materials ordered, photographs taken and listings live for each item
• A weekly grid to tick off each product's batch

How to use it

1. Write the season or event, your deadline and the number of making weeks you have.
2. List each product you plan to stock with the target quantity you decide on.
3. Count what you already have made, subtract it from the target and divide what is left by the weeks available.
4. Tick materials, photographs and listings as each is done so nothing holds up the sale.
5. In the weekly grid, tick each product's box when that week's batch is finished.
6. Recount every few weeks and adjust the per-week figure if you fall behind.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

How do I set the target quantities?

From your own sales records for the same season last year, if you have them, plus any stockist orders already placed. The planner does not suggest quantities.

What if I cannot make everything in time?

The per-week column shows it early. Cut the target on the slowest sellers, simplify a design, or move some products to made to order rather than finding out in the last week.

Why tick photographs and listings?

Stock that is made but not photographed or listed cannot sell online. Tracking them alongside the making stops a finished batch sitting in a box during the busiest weeks.

Is there a spreadsheet version?

This one is a printable and a browser version that saves in your own browser. The sums are simple subtraction and division, done on the page as you plan.