Question 1

Is KariVast an ERP system?

Accepted Answer

Yes. KariVast is a cloud ERP for businesses that buy, stock, and sell goods. Purchasing, warehouse inventory, sales, payments, and accounting share connected records, so your team can follow a transaction from order to settlement. Its current focus is trading and distribution workflows; it does not include dedicated payroll or manufacturing planning modules.

Question 2

What does KariVast help my business do?

Accepted Answer

KariVast brings the work of buying, storing, selling, and accounting for goods into one place. Your team can follow a product from a purchase order and warehouse receipt through a customer shipment, invoice, and payment. That shared trail helps you answer everyday questions such as what is available to sell and what is still owed.

Question 3

Is it a good fit for a business like mine?

Accepted Answer

It is built for businesses that hold physical stock and need their warehouse and financial records to agree. Owners can see the wider picture, while purchasing, sales, warehouse, and finance staff work on their own parts of the process. If your team buys and sells goods across one or more locations, the connected workflows are likely to be useful.

Question 4

What should we prepare before we begin?

Accepted Answer

Start with your company details, warehouse locations, product list, customers, and suppliers. Ask your bookkeeper or accountant to review the chart of accounts, tax settings, base currency, and any opening balances before the first live posting. A small trial purchase and sale will show whether the setup matches the way your team actually works.

Question 5

Can we bring in records we already have?

Accepted Answer

Yes. CSV templates are available for categories, suppliers, products, opening stock, and lots. Download the current template for each type, validate a small sample, and inspect the created records before importing everything. These imports help establish your working records; they do not bring over an entire accounting history.

Question 6

What happens after signup?

Accepted Answer

You set up the company, its accounting choices, and the warehouse before inviting the people who will use it. Then add products and contacts and walk through one purchase and one sale. Checking the resulting stock and financial records at each step is the easiest way to catch a missing setting before daily work begins.

Question 7

Can we manage stock in more than one warehouse?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You can see on hand, reserved, and available quantities by warehouse, and organize stock further with zones, shelves, and bins. Transfers record goods leaving one warehouse and arriving at another, so the destination does not treat them as available before receipt. The number of warehouses you can use depends on your plan.

Question 8

Can a product have both a lot and a serial number?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A lot identifies a batch; a serial number identifies one unit. You can configure a product to use either or both, then capture those identities when goods are received and check them again when they are shipped. This is useful when you need to trace a particular batch or unit later.

Question 9

What if a supplier delivers only part of an order?

Accepted Answer

Receive the quantity that actually arrived and was accepted today. The rest stays outstanding on the purchase order, ready for a later delivery. Your warehouse team can verify the receipt and location, while Finance can match the supplier bill to the goods that were received.

Question 10

Can we ship part of a customer order now and the rest later?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The warehouse records the units in each shipment, including their lot or serial identities when required. The order continues to show what remains outstanding, so a short shipment does not appear complete. Each confirmed shipment reduces the relevant stock and records the cost of the goods shipped.

Question 11

Does shipping an order automatically bill the customer?

Accepted Answer

Fulfillment can create a draft invoice when the eligible order has no linked invoice. A draft still needs review: Finance checks the customer, shipped quantities, prices, and tax, then posts the invoice separately. Payment is another step after that. Shipping alone does not mean the customer has been billed or paid.

Question 12

How do we handle a return or a pricing mistake?

Accepted Answer

Use a customer credit note or supplier debit note, depending on which side of the transaction needs correcting. First decide whether goods physically came back or left the warehouse, because a price-only adjustment should not change stock. Review the original document and the proposed credit before posting it or applying it to an open balance.

Question 13

Will we know when stock is running low?

Accepted Answer

You can set reorder thresholds and review low-stock information before placing a purchase order. KariVast also supports notifications to staff for stock and overdue-invoice events. Treat an alert as a prompt to check available stock, incoming deliveries, or the actual customer balance; it is not an automatic purchase order or a collection email to the customer.

Question 14

What accounting work can we do in KariVast?

Accepted Answer

You can manage a chart of accounts, journals, customer and supplier balances, accounting periods, bank reconciliation, and financial reports. Operational transactions connect to those records: receiving stock, shipping goods, posting bills and invoices, and recording payments each have their own place. Finance can review the source document and the resulting entries rather than reconstructing them from separate spreadsheets.

Question 15

How do stock movements affect the accounts?

Accepted Answer

A purchase receipt brings accepted goods into inventory and records an amount awaiting the supplier bill. Shipping goods removes their cost from inventory and records cost of goods sold. Bills and invoices are posted separately to create supplier or customer balances. The accounts used depend on your company settings, so Finance should review them before the first live transaction.

Question 16

How can I see what customers owe and what we owe suppliers?

Accepted Answer

Posted customer invoices and supplier bills establish the amounts due. Record payments when money has actually moved, then apply each payment or credit to the documents it settles. The receivables and payables views help you find overdue items and unapplied amounts, which is more useful than looking at an invoice total alone.

Question 17

Does recording a customer payment charge their bank account?

Accepted Answer

No. A customer payment records money your business has already received; KariVast does not collect it from the customer. After recording it, apply the amount to the correct posted invoice and check whether any balance remains. Your team can reconcile the bank statement separately.

Question 18

How does bank reconciliation work without a live bank feed?

Accepted Answer

Import a statement for the bank account and period you are reviewing. KariVast presents statement lines alongside recorded transactions so Finance can check the amount, direction, date, and reference before matching them. Unmatched items stay visible for investigation; a suggestion should still be reviewed against the bank record.

Question 19

Which financial reports are available?

Accepted Answer

You can review profit and loss, the balance sheet, cash flow, trial balance, and general ledger from posted records. Use the same cutoff and currency when comparing reports, then open unusual account lines to trace their source. Draft documents and physical stock counts answer different questions and should be reviewed alongside the financial reports when relevant.

Question 20

Can I share report data with my accountant?

Accepted Answer

Supported reports offer a CSV export after you select the dates and filters you need. Check the on-screen total and keep the reporting cutoff with the downloaded file so your accountant knows what it represents. Access follows your role, and an export of one report is not a complete backup of the company accounts.

Question 21

Can we bring in opening balances and close a period?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Finance can prepare opening balances from an approved starting trial balance, then review periods and the close checklist as work progresses. Before locking or closing a period, resolve draft documents and reconciliation differences that belong to it. These actions affect when transactions can be posted, so they should follow your normal approval process.

Question 22

Can we tailor and send invoices, quotes, and purchase orders?

Accepted Answer

Your team can manage numbering and templates for supported documents, preview their PDF output, and email supported quotes, invoices, and purchase orders. Preview the recipient details, line items, totals, and layout before sending. The source transaction controls the amounts; changing the template does not correct an incorrect invoice or order.

Question 23

Do the plans include the same accounting and inventory tools?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Every plan includes the accounting and inventory tools; plans differ in capacity for users, warehouses, and product variants (SKUs). Check the current limits on the pricing page against the team and catalog you expect to have, rather than choosing from a feature list alone.

Question 24

Is a free trial available?

Accepted Answer

Trial availability and length are shown for eligible plans on the pricing page and at checkout. Review the terms shown for the plan you choose before starting, since the offer may differ by plan or change over time.

Question 25

Can we change plans as the team grows?

Accepted Answer

A team member with billing management access can use the available billing controls to change plans. Before switching, compare the new limits with the users, warehouses, and product codes you already have. The checkout provider may apply prorated charges or credits; review the amount displayed during the change.

Question 26

What happens if we cancel?

Accepted Answer

Cancel through Billing or the customer portal to stop renewal. You can continue working until the subscription end date shown in the account. After it expires, creating or changing business records is restricted, while viewing existing records and supported exports may remain available according to your access and account status. Cancellation does not automatically refund earlier payments.

Question 27

Can I limit what each team member can do?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Assign roles for the work people actually perform, such as receiving deliveries, approving purchases, posting invoices, or managing billing. A feature being included in a plan does not give every person permission to use it. After a teammate accepts an invitation, check that they can reach the tasks assigned to them.

Question 28

What can Ask Kari help us with?

Accepted Answer

Ask Kari helps signed-in team members understand KariVast workflows from the published guides and, when live-data assistance is enabled, explore the inventory, orders, and financial reports their role permits them to view. It is strictly read-only and never posts transactions or moves stock or money for you. Always check the linked source record or report before acting.

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