1. Mark the dates
- Thanksgiving: Thursday, November 26, 2026
- Black Friday: Friday, November 27, 2026
- Cyber Monday: Monday, November 30, 2026
Aim to have peak stock on the shelf about two weeks early, by November 13. That leaves room for a late delivery without missing the weekend.
2. Pick the products that matter
Start with your best sellers from last year's holiday weeks and from the last few months. Add anything you're featuring in a sale or a gift guide. If you sell bundles, include the products inside them. If you have a long catalog, ABC analysis helps you decide where to focus.
3. Confirm real lead times
Ask each supplier for their current lead time, and compare it with how long your recent orders actually took. Use the longer of the two. Suppliers get busier in the run-up to the holidays, so this is the step people most often skip and most often regret.
4. Set an order-by date for every product
Order-by date = the day you want stock on hand − supplier lead time
For stock on hand by November 13:
- 14-day lead time: order by October 30
- 28-day lead time: order by October 16
- 45-day lead time: the order-by date was September 29, so order now and plan for a later arrival
5. Size the order for the peak, not an average month
Your usual daily sales will understate a holiday peak. Raise the daily sales figure for the weeks around Black Friday, check it against what you sold last year, and keep a safety buffer. Our reorder point guide walks through the math with a worked example.
6. Check minimums, case packs, and cash
Round each order up to your supplier's minimum and case pack, then add up the total. If it's more cash than you want tied up at once, split it: order the fastest sellers first and the rest a week later.
7. Plan receiving
Decide who checks deliveries in, and record partial deliveries as they arrive, so your stock counts stay right during the busiest week of the year.
8. Decide what happens if something sells out
Pick your backup for your top products ahead of time: a substitute to promote, ads to pause, or a date to tell customers when it's back. Knowing your likely lost sales helps you decide which products to protect first.
If you're coming from Stocky
Export your purchase order and cost reports before Stocky's read-only access ends. It lasts at least 90 days after August 31, 2026, which puts the end in late November at the earliest. See moving from Stocky.
How Posto helps
Posto projects demand forward with Black Friday and the holiday peak built in, flags what to reorder and how much, rounds to each supplier's minimums and case packs, and emails the purchase order for you. Every number comes with a breakdown you can check.