Wholesale Software: B2B Portal, EDI and Traceability

Wholesale software brings stock, orders, delivery and invoicing together in one system. What sets it apart from till or webshop software is what business customers expect. They order through a B2B portal or through EDI, get their own prices and ask for the lot number with every delivery.

Most wholesalers sell the same stock through several channels. A sales rep takes an order, a regular customer orders in the portal and a retail chain sends an EDI message. When each channel lives in a different system, nobody knows what is really left on the shelf. This article covers what your software needs to do and what to look for when you choose.

What should wholesale software be able to do?

A webshop sells the same product to everyone at the same price. A wholesaler works with agreements per customer, pack sizes and delivery dates that have to be right. Good wholesale software handles that without manual work.

• One stock for every channel. Portal, sales reps, webshop, phone and EDI all draw from the same stock.
• Prices per customer. Every customer sees their own prices, and you set promotions on entire product ranges.
• Backorders and partial deliveries. Anything out of stock stays visible until it has been delivered.
• Real-time insight. You see today what has been sold, what is left and which orders are stuck.
• Link with your accounting. Invoices flow through to Yuki, Octopus or Exact Online.

The first point carries the most weight. What one salesperson promises, the others need to see straight away. Otherwise you sell products that are no longer there. A week later your customer calls about a delivery that never arrives.

How does a B2B ordering portal work?

A B2B ordering portal is a closed web environment where business customers log in and place orders themselves. They can do that in the evening or at the weekend too. For your sales desk, it means fewer emails and phone calls to retype.

Such a portal is different from a regular webshop. A webshop attracts new customers who are discovering products. The portal serves regular customers who reorder the same items quickly and often. When you compare solutions, check for these functions:

• the prices and promotions that apply to that specific customer
• current stock and a realistic delivery time
• reordering from a previous order
• minimum order quantities and pack sizes
• delivery notes and invoices to download

A portal is only as reliable as the stock behind it. If it syncs with another package once a night, it will show stock in the morning that was already sold yesterday.

When do you need EDI?

Large buyers rarely order through a portal. Retail chains and large builders’ merchants have their purchasing system send the order straight to yours, through EDI. You send back an order confirmation, a despatch advice and an invoice. Nobody retypes anything.

Often EDI is not a choice. A buyer announces that orders will go through EDI from next quarter, and suppliers who do not follow lose volume. Which messages exist and how such a project runs is explained in our article what is EDI.

In practice, you combine channels. This overview shows which channel suits which customer.

Order channel	Typical customer	What it delivers	Point of attention
Email and phone	Small customers, urgent orders	Personal contact	Lots of retyping and room for error
Sales rep	Customers who want advice	Upselling on site	Needs to see stock and prices live
B2B portal	Regular customers who reorder	Self-service ordering, also after hours	Customer-specific prices and current stock
EDI	Retail chains and large buyers	Fully automated order flow	Setup and test phase per buyer

GTIN, GLN number and lot number: what data does your buyer expect?

Anyone supplying retail or trading through EDI works with GS1 codes. A GTIN is the unique product number under the barcode. According to GS1 Belgium & Luxembourg, an EAN code and a GTIN are the same thing. A GLN number identifies a company or a location, such as a warehouse or delivery address. Your software needs to store these codes per item and per customer.

Buyers also increasingly ask for the lot number with every delivery. For food, the law already requires it. Article 18 of European Regulation 178/2002 obliges every food business to identify its suppliers and its customers. Wholesalers and distributors fall under it as well.

Take a food wholesaler that receives notice of a recall on one lot. If it records lots at goods receipt and at delivery, a single search shows every customer who received that lot. It blocks the remaining stock so nobody picks it. Without that record, it searches through delivery notes and spreadsheets, or contacts all its customers as a precaution.

The easiest way to record a lot number is with a barcode scanner or a smartphone app. Read more in our article on stock management with batches and serial numbers.

What does the EUDR mean for traders?

The EUDR is the EU Deforestation Regulation. It covers seven commodities and the products made from them: cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soya and wood. For a wholesaler, that can mean chocolate, coffee or timber building materials.

The rules apply from 30 December 2026 to medium-sized and large companies. Micro and small companies follow on 30 June 2027. Those dates come from the latest amendment to the regulation, as the European Commission explains.

The company that first places a product on the EU market carries the heaviest obligations. Further down the chain, the main task is to keep supplier and customer data for five years. If you already link lot numbers to purchase orders and deliveries, the foundation is in place. Which obligations apply to your business depends on your role and your products. Have that checked by your sector federation or adviser.

Checklist: choosing wholesale software

Put these questions to every supplier you compare. A vague answer usually points to manual work or an extra integration.

Question	Why it matters
Do portal, sales reps, webshop and EDI draw from the same stock?	Otherwise you sell products twice
Can you set prices per customer and promotions on product ranges?	Customers expect their agreements in every channel
Which EDI messages and standards are supported?	Your buyer sets the standard, not you
Are lot numbers recorded at goods receipt, picking and delivery?	A recall depends on every scan
Can the warehouse work with a barcode scanner or app?	Without scanning, recording stays manual
Do invoices go out through Peppol, based on what was delivered?	Mandatory in Belgium, and you avoid credit notes
Is there a link with Yuki, Octopus or Exact Online?	Your accountant keeps working in their own package
How long does implementation take and what does it cost?	An ERP project of several months rarely suits an SME

The invoice closes every order. Since 1 January 2026, structured electronic invoices have been mandatory between Belgian VAT-registered businesses, as the Belgian federal government confirms. What that involves is explained in our article on the Peppol obligation.

Conclusion

Wholesale software comes down to one question: do all your channels see the same stock? The B2B portal, EDI and lot tracking build on that. If you spread them over separate packages, the retyping simply moves to the integrations.

Deskflow brings stock, orders, warehouse and invoicing together for companies from 2 users. Orders from the portal, from sales reps, from the webshop and through EDI end up in one order flow. Customer prices and promotions on product ranges apply in every channel. You scan lot numbers with the app at goods receipt and picking. Invoices go out through Peppol to your customer and your accounting.

Frequently asked questions

What is wholesale software?

Wholesale software is a system that brings together stock, orders from every channel, warehouse work and invoicing. It supports B2B functions such as customer-specific prices, an ordering portal, EDI, lot numbers and e-invoicing through Peppol.

What is the difference between a B2B portal and EDI?

In a B2B portal, your customer logs in and places the order themselves. With EDI, your customer’s purchasing system sends the order automatically to your system. A portal suits regular customers, EDI suits retail chains and large buyers.

Is traceability with lot numbers mandatory for a wholesaler?

For food wholesalers it is, through Article 18 of Regulation 178/2002. Anyone trading products covered by the EUDR must also be able to identify suppliers and customers from late 2026 or mid 2027. In other sectors buyers often ask for it without a legal obligation.

What is a GLN number?

A GLN number (Global Location Number) is a unique GS1 number for a company or a location, such as a warehouse or delivery address. Buyers use it in EDI messages to know where an order comes from and where the delivery has to go.

Do I need an ERP for wholesale?

Not necessarily. A classic ERP for wholesale often contains far more modules than an SME uses. What you mainly need is one system where stock, orders from every channel and invoicing come together. Read more about the options in ERP for SMEs.