The retailer pricing file is used to export your costs & prices in an encrypted file, meaning retailers can use the software to price accurately without having access to any underlying costs.
This has been updated recently in Virtual Shopfloor to allow you to also export glazing & texture libraries, and set the retailer’s glass supplier options.
To build the retailer pricing file, go to File > Preferences > [Example Company/Product] > Cost control > [Example Company/Product] cost > Cost breakdown.
Click the button ‘Build the retailer pricing file’. Note that any mark ups or wastage factors which are set in the cost breakdown area will also be included within the file.
A dialog box will then appear as in the image below:
The first two options in this box allow you to include a glazing and a texture library in the pricing file, meaning the retailer will receive the libraries along with any associated attributes or information that you have set in the library.
The last option, ‘Glazing mode’ allows you to specify how the retailer can source their glass. You have the option to set the roof as ‘Always glazed’, meaning the retailer must purchase their glass from you, or ‘Always unglazed’ whereby you never supply the retailer with glass.
If you choose ‘Always glazed’, the retailer pricing file will also include all of the ‘Glass shapes’ information which you’ve input, and the retailer will not have access to this information.
The glass shapes tab is just below Cost breakdown in the preferences area, and allows you to set data such as cost per unit area, minimum area and all shape specific information (see below).
If you choose ‘Always unglazed’ the retailer will have an option in their preferences to set the glass shapes information so they can input any relevant data for their external supplier.
The last option is to set the glazing mode as ‘Optional’, so that a retailer can choose whether to purchase your glass or from a third party. In this mode, you must supply a glazing library as part of the retailer pricing file so that the retailer has access to your glazing library when ordering your glass. The retailer will also have access to a ‘Customer glass shapes’ option so that they can also specify any glazing information should they choose to purchase glass from an external supplier. However if they choose to use your glass, they must take the encrypted information from the glazing library you have supplied.
The retailer pricing file will be created inside your PSTLtd > vs_[company] directory, inside a folder called ‘retail_data’. For the retailer to use this file correctly, they must have the same file within a folder called ‘retail_data’ in the same corresponding location on their PC.