By default, ShipHero manages product levels to prevent overselling. However, when utilizing drop shipping, you can choose whether or not to have the system track inventory for specific products based on your vendor's capabilities and your supply chain needs.
Tracking Drop Ship Inventory
If you have a limited supply of drop-ship items and wish to prevent overselling, you should track inventory within ShipHero.
- Go to the Inventory > Products page.
- Navigate to the Product Details page for the specific SKU.
- Input the current On-Hand Quantity.
- When processing the drop shipment, ensure you select Remove Quantities From Inventory. This ensures the system appropriately deducts the stock once the order is sent to the vendor.
Once an order is marked for Drop Ship, you must configure the vendor’s email to ensure the invoice and fulfillment request are sent correctly. After the vendor ships the item, you must manually click Complete to input the tracking number and carrier information.
Disabling Inventory Tracking
If you have unlimited stock—such as with made-to-order products—you can disable tracking to allow continuous sales. This requires a two-step synchronization between ShipHero and your sales channel:
- Go to Inventory > Products page.
- Select the SKU and set the Total On Hand to 0.
- In your Sales Channel (e.g., Shopify), disable inventory tracking for that same product to allow orders to flow through regardless of stock levels.
Important Considerations for Drop Shipping
| Category | Rule / Requirement |
| Fulfillment Status | Drop-ship orders filled by suppliers are not automatically marked as fulfilled in ShipHero; they must be updated manually. |
| Billing & Invoices | Specific custom charges for invoices or packing slips require authorization from VP level management. |
| Order Modifications | To move an order from "Drop Ship" back to "Pending," use the Re-ship command. Cancellations must be performed individually; bulk cancellation is not supported. |
| Automation | Automation rules cannot be used to hide or "not list" drop-ship SKUs. |
| Vendor Costing | Ensure the Vendor Cost is accurately recorded. If left at zero, the Unit Price on documents will display as $0.00. |
| Warehouse Visibility | Drop-ship items do not appear in picker queues because they are not physically located in the warehouse. |