Reference Guide

Tracking low stock has several effects:

• You can set up automatic emails so that you are notified when inventory reaches your low stock level (see Catalog > Inventory Tab > Email Notification ).
• You can use the low stock level to create a kind of "reserve" for your inventory, if you want to make sure that you always have a few items on hand. For example, let's say you have quantity 5 of an item on hand, and you set the low stock level to 3. If you use the default "In Stock Message (Long)": %inv_instock% available for immediate delivery customers will see the message:

  

  Because the %inv_instock% token is calculated as: current stock - low stock level

• Low stock level:
• Default: Uses the low stock level that is set at the store level.
• Other: If you set a low stock level for a product, it supersedes the store default low stock level.

Tracking out of stock has several effects:

• You can set up automatic emails so that you are notified when inventory reaches your out of stock level (see Catalog > Inventory Tab > Email Notification ).
• You can use the out of stock level to create a kind of "reserve" for your inventory, if you want to make sure that you always have a few items on hand. For example, let's say you have quantity 5 of an item on hand, and you set the out of stock level to 3. When your inventory level reaches quantity 3 on an item, customers will see the out of stock message. If you have "Hide Out of Stock Products" enabled, the product will not be displayed in your on-line store.
• If you set "Track Out of Stock Level", "Hide Out of Stock Products", or "Out of Stock Level" to default, the store level setting will be used.