Handing goods to another business to sell: how to document requested price, commission and return terms

Consignment is not an ordinary completed sale

In a normal sale, the commercial event is usually clear: the buyer purchases goods under agreed terms. In a consignment-style arrangement, goods may physically move to a shop, agent or partner while ownership, payment timing and unsold stock remain subject to a separate agreement. That makes the handover document more important, not less. It should identify exactly what was transferred and connect those goods to the commercial instructions that the recipient is expected to follow. The document does not replace a contract, tax document or local accounting procedure, but it gives daily operations a concrete record to work from.

Requested price and minimum price answer different questions

The requested price tells the reseller how you expect the item to be offered. A minimum acceptable price defines the floor below which the recipient should not sell without fresh approval. Those values should not be hidden in a WhatsApp conversation if they determine the economics of the deal. Record them per item when products have different margins. If discount authority exists, state it separately so that a reseller does not have to guess whether a temporary promotion is allowed or whether every price change requires a phone call.

• Requested price: the normal target selling price
• Minimum price: the floor that should not be crossed without approval
• Maximum discount: optional authority the reseller can apply
• Currency: always state it when parties work across markets
• Item total: useful for understanding the value of stock currently entrusted

Commission and settlement timing determine cash flow

A commission percentage sounds simple until the parties calculate it from different bases. Decide whether commission is calculated from the final selling price, a price before tax, a fixed amount per unit or another agreed base. Then state when the recipient must report sales and when money is transferred after a sale. Weekly, monthly and event-based settlement all create different cash-flow patterns. Putting those terms next to the handover record reduces the chance that the physical stock is clear while the financial expectation remains vague.

Unsold goods need an exit path

Every consignment arrangement should answer what happens if the goods do not sell. Record a return deadline or review date, the return destination, who pays transport, the expected condition of returned goods and how damaged, lost or missing units are handled. These questions feel pessimistic at the start of a relationship, but they become much harder to resolve after merchandise has been sitting in another location for three months. Clear return and responsibility terms protect the relationship because they remove the need to negotiate under pressure.

• Return or review date for unsold goods
• Who arranges and pays for return transport
• Expected condition and packaging on return
• Responsibility for loss, theft or damage
• How discrepancies are reported and documented

Track each item as an item, not as a vague total

A useful consignment document can contain many products while keeping each line independently understandable. Record SKU, description, quantity, unit, serial or batch information when relevant, requested price and any item-specific note. This matters when only part of the stock sells, one product is discounted, a serialized device is returned, or a batch must be traced. The total value is useful for management, but operational questions are usually answered at the line-item level.

Use the document to make the next reconciliation boring

The best sign of a good handover process is that reconciliation becomes routine. Start from the original document, subtract reported sales, verify returned units, compare money received with the agreed commission model and investigate only the differences. 5SOLO's consignment mode is designed around that operational reality: multiple items, requested and minimum prices, commission, settlement terms, return conditions, custom fields and an A4 record that can be preserved with the transaction. It does not decide the legal or tax structure for you; it makes the business facts explicit so that your accountant, partner and team are not reconstructing them from memory.