For B2B distributors
Distributor reporting: sales and margin for every branch, one set of rules
Several branches, an acquisition, two ERPs: a weekly review that consolidates them without the Monday spreadsheet.
A distributor with ten branches and a recent acquisition runs two ERPs, three definitions of gross margin and one controller who consolidates it all in Excel every Monday. Neuravoid builds the model that loads each system as it is, applies the same rules to rebates, returns, freight and inter-company transfers, and publishes the weekly review by branch, product family and customer. On BigQuery, dbt and Looker, remote, in writing, at a fixed scope.
You will recognise this
- You acquired a company, or a fund acquired you, and consolidated sales and margin by branch are now due every month
- The acquired branch keeps its ERP and its own margin rules, and nobody can compare it with the others
- Vendor rebates, customer returns, freight and inter-branch transfers are booked differently from one location to the next
- The weekly review is a spreadsheet assembled by one person, and it breaks when that person is away
- Margin by product line or customer category takes days to answer
The question we answer
Which branches, product lines and customer categories carry the margin, under one set of rules, and does the total tie to the books?
A worked example
Synthetic figures, built to show the method. Not a client result.
| Week 37, one distributor | Branch North | Branch South (acquired) | Group |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invoiced sales | $1,240,000 | $860,000 | $2,100,000 |
| Returns and credits | −$38,000 | −$51,000 | −$89,000 |
| Cost of goods, landed | −$904,000 | −$651,000 | −$1,555,000 |
| Vendor rebates earned | +$31,000 | +$9,000 | +$40,000 |
| Freight not recharged | −$22,000 | −$27,000 | −$49,000 |
| Margin as each ERP reports it | 26.1% | 21.4% | n/a |
| Gross margin, group rules | $307,000 (24.8%) | $140,000 (16.3%) | $447,000 (21.3%) |
What the model makes visible: the acquired branch reported 21.4% because its ERP books rebates at receipt and ignores freight; under group rules it is at 16.3%. The gap is a definition problem before it is a performance problem, and it is now written down and applied automatically every week.
01
Rules, written down
One definition of sales, returns, landed cost, rebates, freight and inter-company, agreed with the controller and each branch manager before anything is built.
02
One model on BigQuery
Each ERP loaded as it is, mapped to shared product, customer and branch references in dbt, with tests on completeness and a tie-out to each entity's ledger.
03
The weekly review
Sales and margin by branch, product family, customer category and salesperson in Looker or your BI tool, drill-down to the invoice line, reconciliation page per entity.
Sources we connect
- ERPs: NetSuite, Epicor Prophet 21, Infor, SAP Business One, Sage, Microsoft Dynamics, or exports from an older system
- Vendor rebate agreements and claims
- Freight and logistics invoices
- The general ledger of each entity
- CRM or quoting tools where they exist
How it runs, and what it costs
01
Reliability diagnostic
$4,500, fixed
5 to 10 business days after access
Two sources, one period: we consolidate them under written rules, measure the gaps against the books, check that the exports or APIs are usable, and estimate the build. Nothing is promised about an ERP before seeing its exports.
02
Build
$15,000 to $25,000
3 to 5 weeks
The model for all branches and entities, shared references, tests, the weekly review in Looker or your BI tool, acceptance on agreed numbers, handover to the controller.
03
Upkeep
$3,500 to $6,500 a month
16 to 32 reserved hours a month
A new branch, a new ERP after an acquisition, a changed rebate program: a written request queue with agreed response times. Cancel any month.
Prices exclude VAT and are invoiced from France, without VAT for clients outside the EU. The diagnostic is fixed. Build and upkeep are confirmed in writing after the diagnostic, within the ranges shown.
Not the right fit if
- One ERP, one entity, and its standard reports already answer the question
- You want an ERP migration or consolidation: this is reporting on top of the systems you keep
- Your ERP has no export and no API, and nobody can be asked to add one
- You need the work done in meetings or on site
Questions before you write
We run NetSuite and the acquired branch runs Prophet 21. Can you connect both?
If each one exports or exposes its invoice lines, items, customers and costs, yes. The diagnostic checks exactly that before any build is quoted, and says no if it cannot be done.
Is this an ERP migration?
No. The systems stay. The reporting layer sits above them and applies shared rules. Migrating later becomes easier because the references and the rules already exist.
We are not on BigQuery.
Almost no distributor is. Loading ERP exports into BigQuery is part of the build, with a managed connector where one exists or scheduled exports where it does not.
Who needs to be involved?
The controller or CFO as owner, answering in writing, one contact per branch for the rules, and read access or exports from each system.
Everything in writing, really?
Yes. Brief, questions, deliverables and follow-up are written, with short video walkthroughs where a screen explains more than text. There are no calls to book, which is what keeps the scope and the price fixed.
Describe your reporting in three lines.
Your systems, the number you do not trust, the deadline. Written answer within one business day with the diagnostic scope and a fixed price.
Write to Neuravoid