Key Terms

This glossary covers the Amazon, inventory management, and Profit Hawk terms you will encounter while using the platform. Definitions are written for sellers, not developers.

Amazon terms

ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number) A unique 10-character code Amazon assigns to every product in its catalog. Each product variation (size, color) has its own ASIN.

SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) Your internal identifier for a product listing. You create SKUs when listing products on Amazon. One ASIN can have multiple SKUs if you list the same product under different conditions or bundles.

FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) A service where you send inventory to Amazon's warehouses and Amazon handles storage, packing, and shipping to customers.

MCF (Multi-Channel Fulfillment) A service where Amazon fulfills orders from non-Amazon sales channels (your own website, other marketplaces) using your FBA inventory. Profit Hawk tracks MCF units separately from standard Amazon orders.

FBA Available Inventory at Amazon's fulfillment centers that is ready to be picked, packed, and shipped to customers.

FBA Reserved Inventory at Amazon that is temporarily set aside. This includes units allocated to customer orders, units being transferred between fulfillment centers, and units being processed.

FBA Inbound Inventory that has been shipped to Amazon but has not yet been received and made available for sale. This includes units in transit and units being checked in at the fulfillment center.

Profit Hawk terms

Inventory product A single physical item your company sells, independent of where it is listed. For example, if you sell a coffee mug on Amazon US, Amazon CA, and Amazon UK, that is one inventory product with three channel listings. Products are the core unit in Profit Hawk for forecasting, replenishment, and cost tracking.

Channel listing An individual product listing on a specific Amazon marketplace. Each channel listing has its own SKU and ASIN. Channel listings are linked to inventory products so that sales data rolls up into a single view.

Sales channel A connected data source in Profit Hawk, such as an Amazon Seller Central account or Amazon Ads account. You manage sales channels from the Sales Channels page in Settings.

Inventory pool A group of one or more marketplaces that share inventory. Pools let Profit Hawk calculate demand and replenishment across marketplaces that draw from the same stock. For example, if your US and CA marketplaces are fulfilled from the same FBA inventory, they belong to the same pool.

Inventory overview The main table in Profit Hawk that displays all your inventory products with their stock levels, sales data, health metrics, and replenishment recommendations. You can filter, sort, and customize the columns to fit your workflow.

Inventory health terms

Velocity Your sales rate for a product, measured in units per day. Profit Hawk calculates velocity from your historical sales data and uses it to forecast demand and determine when you need to reorder.

Days of supply How many days your current inventory will last at your current sales velocity. If you have 300 units and sell 10 per day, you have 30 days of supply.

Stockout When a product runs out of inventory and is no longer available for sale. Stockouts hurt your sales rank and can take time to recover from.

Stockout date The projected date when a product's inventory will run out, based on current velocity and stock levels.

Urgency A status Profit Hawk assigns to each product based on how soon you need to take action. Levels include: critical, soon, planned, ok, and not needed.

Safety stock Extra inventory you keep on hand as a buffer against unexpected demand spikes or supply delays. Profit Hawk helps you calculate how much safety stock to hold for each product.

Supply chain terms

Lead time The number of days between placing a purchase order with your supplier and receiving the inventory at its destination (Amazon fulfillment center or your warehouse). This includes manufacturing time, shipping time, and receiving time.

Replenishment The process of reordering inventory from your supplier to keep products in stock. Profit Hawk generates replenishment recommendations based on your forecasted demand, lead times, and safety stock targets.

MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity) The smallest number of units a supplier will accept for a single order. If your supplier's MOQ is 500 units, you cannot order fewer than 500.

Case quantity The number of units packed together in one shipping carton. Amazon often requires shipments in full case packs. If a case quantity is 24 units, your order quantity needs to be a multiple of 24.

Pallet quantity The number of units that fit on a single pallet. Used for planning shipments and calculating shipping costs.

Purchase order (PO) A formal order you send to your supplier specifying the products, quantities, and terms for a new inventory shipment. In Profit Hawk, you build purchase orders based on replenishment recommendations.

Transfer order An order to move inventory from one location to another, such as from your own warehouse to an Amazon fulfillment center, or from one Amazon warehouse to another. Transfer orders differ from purchase orders because you are moving existing inventory rather than ordering new stock from a supplier.

Inbound shipment A shipment of inventory being sent to an Amazon fulfillment center. Profit Hawk tracks inbound shipments so you know what inventory is on its way and when it is expected to arrive.

Restock plan A plan in Profit Hawk that groups replenishment recommendations for multiple products. You can build purchase orders and transfer orders from a restock plan.

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