Shopify Purchase Orders — Practical Guide for SA Businesses

Shopify purchase orders are formal records of the commercial agreements you make with your suppliers — documenting the products, quantities, costs, and payment terms for each order you place. Since August 2026, when Shopify retired the Stocky app, purchase order management moved directly into the Shopify admin under Products > Purchase orders, giving South African store owners a native procurement workflow without a separate app. For the full context on running a Shopify store in SA, start with the Shopify South Africa guide.

Managing suppliers in South Africa comes with friction that a well-configured PO system should reduce: extended lead times from international or upcountry suppliers, ZAR-versus-foreign-currency invoicing, and SARS's strict requirements for VAT input deductions. This guide covers how Shopify's native purchase order tool handles each of those points — and the honest limits where you may need to go further.

What the Native Admin Procurement Tool Does

Shopify purchase orders are the documents that capture your store's commercial agreement with a supplier: which products you ordered, in what quantities, at what cost, and on what payment terms. Once your supplier accepts the PO, it becomes a binding commercial record and the starting point for your receiving workflow.

This is the supplier-side purchase order — you ordering stock from a vendor. It is different from the buyer-side PO number feature in Shopify's B2B wholesale settings, where your business customers can attach their own internal PO number at checkout. The two features serve opposite sides of the transaction.

What Changed in August 2026 — The Stocky Sunset

Shopify's Stocky inventory app was removed from the App Store in February 2026 and permanently shut down on 31 August 2026. Its core functions — supplier management, shopify inventory purchase orders, receiving, transfers, inventory adjustments — were absorbed directly into the Shopify admin, ending the need for a separate app.

If your store used Stocky, there are two things worth knowing:

• Historical data does not migrate automatically. Old Stocky purchase orders, completed stocktakes, and supplier records do not transfer to the native system. You need to rebuild supplier profiles in the new tool and can only export Stocky data manually during the read-only window of at least 90 days after shutdown.
• The replacement is more capable in some areas. The native system adds barcode-scan receiving (scan one barcode to mark an entire shipment received), AI-assisted reorder recommendations via Sidekick, real-time inventory sync across all sales channels, and multi-location routing from a single PO.

How to Create Shopify Purchase Orders in Your Admin

Creating a purchase order in Shopify follows a logical sequence from supplier selection through to sending — the whole process stays inside your admin, with no third-party tool required for a standard restock.

Before You Start

Confirm these three things are in place before opening the PO form:

1. A supplier record exists — go to Products > Purchase orders > Create purchase order, then use the supplier drop-down to create a new supplier if needed. Enter their contact details, payment terms, and preferred currency (ZAR or the currency you trade in).
2. Products are in your Shopify catalogue with inventory tracking enabled at the variant level. Use SKUs and barcodes consistently — they become your supplier SKU reference inside the PO.
3. A receiving location is set up in Settings > Locations with "Fulfil online orders from this location" enabled.

Creating the Purchase Order — Step by Step

1. Go to Products > Purchase orders in your Shopify admin and click Create purchase order.
2. Select your supplier from the drop-down (or create one on the spot).
3. Choose the destination location where incoming stock will be received.
4. Add products via manual search, barcode scan, or bulk CSV import. For each line item, enter the expected quantity, unit cost, supplier SKU, and applicable tax.
5. Set payment terms (e.g., 30 days net) and the supplier currency. If your supplier invoices in USD or EUR, Shopify shows a converted ZAR total in the cost summary based on your store's currency.
6. Add a reference number matching your supplier's quote or pro-forma invoice number — this makes three-way matching (PO vs. delivery note vs. invoice) straightforward at payment time.
7. Click Save as draft. Review the PO, then use More Actions > Export to PDF to send to your supplier.
8. Once your supplier confirms the order, click Mark as ordered. This registers the quantities as "incoming" in your inventory and locks the PO for editing.

From Ordered to Received — Closing the Inventory Loop

Marking a PO as Ordered is only half the workflow — the receiving step is where your stock levels actually update in Shopify, and where the two-document system (PO + transfer) shows its logic.

1. From the ordered PO, click Create transfer. This generates a linked inventory transfer record tied to the PO.
2. Set the transfer status to In transit once goods leave the supplier.
3. When the shipment arrives, open the linked transfer, enter received quantities for each line item. If a partial delivery lands, enter only what actually arrived — the transfer stays open for the balance.
4. Accept the items. Shopify updates your available inventory automatically — no manual stock adjustment needed.
5. If you received fewer items than ordered, or goods are damaged on arrival, record a rejection note inside the transfer. This keeps your discrepancy on record for supplier conversations.

The distinction between unfulfilled and fulfilled orders in Shopify maps to the same logic on the procurement side. Shopify purchase orders capture your intent — what you agreed to buy; the linked transfer captures your actuality — what actually arrived. Keeping both accurate gives you a defensible cost record and a real-time view of incoming stock.

South African Supplier Considerations

Shopify's purchase order tool was built for a global merchant base; a few features work differently in the SA context, and one SARS requirement sits entirely outside the platform. Configuring shopify supplier purchase orders correctly from the start — right supplier currency, accurate unit costs, matched reference numbers — avoids reconciliation pain at month-end.

ZAR Currency and Supplier Invoicing

If you buy from a local supplier in ZAR, set the supplier currency to ZAR and your cost entries reflect your actual Rand spend. If you import from China, Europe, or the US — common for fashion, electronics, and homeware merchants — set the supplier currency to USD, EUR, or CNY. Shopify converts the PO total to ZAR in the cost summary using your store's currency setting, giving you a reference figure.

Note that this is not a live exchange rate. Check your bank's actual landed cost once the invoice arrives and update any cost adjustments in the receiving transfer accordingly.

Since Shopify Payments is not available in South Africa, your supplier payments go through your bank or an international payment platform. The PO captures the agreed amount; the actual payment happens outside Shopify.

SARS Tax Invoice Requirements

A Shopify purchase order is your procurement record, not a tax invoice — your supplier must issue a compliant SARS tax invoice separately for you to claim VAT input deductions. What SARS requires on that invoice matters for your bookkeeping:

Your supplier must issue the invoice within 21 days of the date of supply. Without a compliant tax invoice, you cannot claim the input VAT deduction — which matters significantly if your store is registered as a VAT vendor. Store the reference number from your Shopify PO against the tax invoice in your accounting software so the audit trail is complete.

Supplier Lead Times and South African Logistics

SA merchants often deal with extended lead times — local couriers, cross-border imports through Durban or OR Tambo, and the compounding effect of supplier consolidation delays. Use Shopify's arrival date field on the transfer (not just the PO) to track expected delivery against actual arrival. If stock is critical and overdue, the transfer status gives you a clear record when escalating with a supplier or adjusting your fulfilment planning.

Native Admin vs Third-Party Inventory Apps — When to Upgrade

Shopify's built-in PO system handles straightforward purchasing well; the decision to add a third-party app depends on your operational complexity, not your store's revenue.

For most Shopify-only SA merchants with a stable supplier list and a straightforward catalogue, the native tool is the right starting point. Adding an app before you have outgrown the native system adds complexity and subscription cost without proportional benefit.

Why South African Businesses Choose Growth Pulse Media for Shopify

Growth Pulse Media is a registered Shopify Partner operating from Johannesburg, with direct experience building and scaling South African ecommerce stores. Dirk van Greuning, who founded the agency after growing a large local ecommerce business, works hands-on with every client — there are no junior team members managing your account.

SA Shopify stores face configuration decisions that generic offshore agencies miss: PayFast and Peach Payments gateway setup, ZAR currency configuration, SARS VAT settings, and inventory workflows built around local supplier and courier lead times. Our Shopify marketing service covers both the technical build and the ongoing growth strategy under one senior practitioner — a limited client load means your store gets real attention, not templated advice.

Who This Is NOT For

Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I find purchase orders in Shopify?

Go to your Shopify admin and navigate to Products > Purchase orders. From there you can create new POs, view existing ones, and filter by status, supplier, arrival date, or location. If the option is not visible, check that you have at least one supplier record set up, a location with receiving enabled, and inventory tracking activated on your product variants.

Do Shopify purchase orders automatically update inventory?

Not immediately — inventory updates when you receive goods against the linked transfer, not when you mark the PO as Ordered. Marking as Ordered registers the stock as "incoming," which Shopify shows separately from your available quantity. Your on-hand count updates once you accept items in the transfer.

Can I create a Shopify purchase order in ZAR if my supplier invoices in USD?

Yes. Set the supplier currency to USD (or whichever currency your supplier uses) when building the PO. Shopify's cost summary converts the total to your store currency — ZAR for SA stores — so you can see the approximate Rand value. Adjust unit costs in the receiving transfer if the actual exchange rate differs from your store's conversion assumption.

What happened to Stocky — is it still available for purchase orders?

No. Shopify permanently shut down the Stocky app on 31 August 2026. The purchase order, supplier management, transfer, and receiving features Stocky provided now live natively inside Shopify admin. Existing Stocky users had at least 90 days of read-only access post-shutdown to export historical data, but new purchase orders must be created in the native admin tool.

Does a Shopify purchase order count as a SARS tax invoice?

No. A Shopify purchase order is your internal procurement record — it does not qualify as a tax invoice under the VAT Act. Your supplier must issue a separate SARS-compliant tax invoice within 21 days of supply, including their full details, VAT number, a unique serial number, the goods description, and the VAT amount. Without a compliant invoice, you cannot claim the input tax deduction.

Dirk van Greuning Founder, Growth Pulse Media

Founder of Growth Pulse Media and a specialist in South African search dominance. Dirk translates his experience in scaling South African businesses into high-velocity digital strategies for B2B and retail leaders. He writes about SEO, lead generation, and paid media from an operator's perspective — prioritising pipeline value over impressions.

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