B2B and wholesale
Draft order
A draft order is an order created from the admin or the API before a payment exists, with its lines, its customer and its prices already set. In B2B it is the usual way to turn a quote into an order and to enter an order taken over the phone or by email.
Also called: quote, manual order, draft
In wholesale the order does not always start on the website. It starts on a call, in a spreadsheet the sales rep sends, or in an email with fifteen SKUs in it. The draft order is where all of that lands without breaking the store’s model.
What it is actually used for
Three things, in order of frequency:
- A quote. Build the order with prices and shipping, send it to the buyer, and convert it to an order when they accept. Nothing gets retyped.
- An order taken off the website. The rep enters it through the admin with the right company and location, and the price comes from the catalog that applies.
- Exceptions. A one-off special price or a negotiated shipping cost that does not justify touching the catalog.
What to know before automating it
If drafts are created over the API from an ERP or a configurator, it is worth being clear that a draft does not reserve stock and that prices written by hand do not recalculate themselves. A draft created in January with a January price still carries that price in March.
The other point: sending the draft to the buyer sends a payment link. If the company is on deferred payment terms, that link is not the right flow — converting it to an order with its due date is.
Detail in the draft orders documentation.