AIMS360 Guides

Guides for consumer brands

Practical, honest guides on the systems that run consumer brands: ERP selection, inventory and production, Shopify and wholesale channels, EDI with major retailers, and the operations behind them. Written by the people who have built this software for 40+ years, including the parts where we are not the right answer.

40+

Years serving consumer brands

600+

Active brands

350+

EDI retailer connections

$45B+

Processed through AIMS360

Choosing software

Choosing an ERP

Buyer's guides that compare real systems side by side, including where each one fits and where it does not.

Featured guide

Best ERP for Shopify in 2026: 9 systems compared

AIMS360, NetSuite, Cin7, Brightpearl, Fulfil, Acumatica, Business Central, SAP Business One, and Katana, scored against the six pain points that send Shopify brands looking, with a stage-by-stage map and a five-question buying checklist.

Read the guide Buyer's guide

Apparel software guide

The tech stack a growing apparel business needs, the ERP features that matter, and how the right system streamlines operations instead of adding work.

Read the guide

Inventory and production

Running inventory, costing, and production

The operational core: knowing what you have, what it cost, and what is coming.

Guide

Inventory management

How brands eliminate stockouts and overstock across styles, sizes, and every sales channel from one stock record.

Costing

Weighted average cost (WAC)

How WAC works for consumer brands, the formula with worked examples, FIFO versus WAC, and where costing goes wrong.

Guide

Supply chain management

Visibility, risk, and resilience for brands navigating global logistics, with practical strategies rather than theory.

Orders and channels

Selling across every channel

Wholesale, DTC, marketplaces, and retail all draw from the same inventory. These cover how the orders flow.

Guide

Order management

Best practices for handling wholesale and DTC orders together, improving fulfillment speed and cutting mistakes.

Wholesale

Line sheets

How to build digital line sheets that impress buyers, simplify assortments, and shorten the wholesale sales cycle.

Guide

Returns management

RMA processes for DTC, B2B, wholesale, and dropship that reduce cost and turn returns into retention.

EDI and fulfillment

Selling to major retailers

What happens after a major retailer says yes: purchase orders, labels, ASNs, routing guides, and the chargebacks that follow when any of it slips.

Complete guide

EDI software guide for brands

Every major EDI transaction code, bulk versus dropship, compliance requirements, retailer-specific rules for 100+ retailers, chargebacks, UCC 128 labels, and VICS BOL.

Read the guide Complete guide

Third-party logistics (3PL) guide

Fulfillment strategies, EDI dropship and bulk integration, UCC 128 compliance, garment on hanger, returns, and how the pieces connect.

Read the guide

More resources

Beyond the guides

Questions a guide cannot answer

Bring your hardest channel, EDI, or inventory question to a 30-minute walkthrough with someone who knows consumer brands.

Book a demo