Quick answer
To forecast inventory with Cin7 Core, use its stock-on-hand, purchase-order, and cost data as the system of record, project demand by SKU, and time reorders to lead times and safety stock. Connecting Cin7 Core to a live financial model turns that operational data into a forward plan tied to cash.
What Cin7 Core brings to inventory forecasting
Cin7 Core (formerly DEAR) is the inventory and order-management system of record for many scaling brands. It holds stock on hand by location, open purchase orders, bills of materials, landed costs, and reorder points, a complete operational picture of what you own and what is inbound.
That makes Cin7 Core an ideal foundation for forecasting. The current stock and open POs tell you your true starting position; the landed costs let the forecast speak in cash, not just units. What Cin7 Core does not do on its own is project demand forward and connect it to runway, which is where a financial model takes over.
| Cin7 Core data | What it drives in the forecast |
|---|---|
| Stock on hand by location | Starting coverage and weeks of supply |
| Open purchase orders | In-transit and committed cash |
| Landed costs / BOM | Cash value of the inventory plan |
| Reorder points | Baseline replenishment triggers |
How the forecast is built
With a system of record feeding clean stock and purchase-order data, inventory forecasting becomes a matter of projecting demand by SKU, comparing it to what is on hand and on order, and timing the next purchase to lead times and a safety-stock buffer.
Formula: Weeks of supply = current on-hand units / average weekly demand. It flags stockout risk when it drops too low and trapped cash when it climbs too high. Reorder point = (average daily demand x lead time in days) + safety stock.
The discipline is to forecast at the SKU level, because you buy and stock out at the SKU level, then roll the plan up into cash. A blended forecast cannot tell you how many of each item to order.
Rule of thumb. Let Cin7 Core own the truth about what you have and what is on order, and let the forecast own what happens next. Clean current data is what makes a forward plan trustworthy.
From Cin7 Core data to a cash-aware forecast
A forecast is only as good as the data behind it and only useful if it connects to cash. Drivepoint pulls Cin7 Core data through its Cin7 Core integration into a live, Excel-native model, then turns on-hand and open-order data into forward weeks of supply, reorder timing, and the cash each purchase order will consume.
Because inventory is the largest use of cash for most consumer brands, every reorder is checked against runway, not just demand. That is the same connected approach that let Oats Overnight tie demand timing to a capacity decision worth $4M in EBITDA. For the underlying method, see our guide to inventory cash flow planning.