Step-by-Step EDI Transaction Flow in Retail Industry

The Retail Industry heavily relies on EDI transactions to manage the exchange of purchase orders, invoices, shipments, and inventory data efficiently. 

Below is the standard EDI transaction flow in retail, 

1)      Purchase Order:

The retailer sends an order to a supplier/vendor.

X12 – 850 (Purchase Order)

EDIFACT – ORDERS (Purchase Order)

Flow – Retailer → 850 Purchase Order → Supplier

2)      Order Acknowledgment:

The supplier confirms receipt and acceptance/rejection of the order.

X12 - 855 (PO Acknowledgment)

EDIFACT - ORDRSP (Order Response)

Flow – Supplier → 855 PO Acknowledgment → Retailer

3)      Inventory Inquiry:

The retailer requests inventory details from the supplier.

X12 - 846 (Inventory Inquiry/Advice)

EDIFACT - INVRPT (Inventory Report)

Flow – Retailer → 846 Inventory Inquiry → Supplier

4)      Shipment Notice:

The supplier ships the order and notifies the retailer.

X12 - 856 (Advance Ship Notice - ASN)

EDIFACT - DESADV (Dispatch Advice)

Flow – Supplier → 856 ASN (Shipment Notification) → Logistics/Warehouse

5)      Goods Receipt:

The retailer confirms receipt of the shipment.

X12 - 861 (Receiving Advice/Acceptance Certificate)

EDIFACT - RECADV (Receiving Advice)

Flow – Warehouse → 861 Receiving Advice → Retailer

6)      Invoice Submission:

The supplier sends an invoice to the retailer for payment.

X12 - 810 (Invoice)

EDIFACT - INVOIC (Invoice)

Flow – Supplier → 810 Invoice → Retailer

7)      Payment Processing:

The retailer sends payment details to the supplier.

X12 - 820 (Payment Order/Remittance Advice)

EDIFACT - PAYORD (Payment Order)

Flow – Retailer → 820 Payment Order → Supplier

8)      Functional Acknowledgment:

Both parties exchange acknowledgment of received EDI messages.

X12 - 997 (Functional Acknowledgment)

EDIFACT - CONTRL (Control Message)