# Trade Percentage and KPI Reports Trade percentage is one of the most important metrics for buy-sell retail stores. It measures how much you spend on buying inventory relative to your sales revenue, and keeping it in a healthy range is essential for maintaining profitability. **Category:** Analytics & Reports **Audience:** Store Owners, Managers **Last Updated:** 2026-02-11 --- ## What Is Trade Percentage? Trade percentage (Trade %) represents the ratio of your total buy costs to your total sales revenue, expressed as a percentage. It answers the question: "For every dollar we sell, how many cents are we spending to acquire new inventory?" ### The Formula ``` Trade % = (Total Buys Cost / Total Sales Revenue) x 100 ``` For example, if your store sold $10,000 worth of merchandise today and spent $1,200 buying new inventory from sellers, your trade percentage would be: ``` ($1,200 / $10,000) x 100 = 12.0% ``` --- ## Why Trade Percentage Matters Trade percentage is a balancing act. You need to buy enough inventory to keep your shelves stocked, but spending too much on buys cuts into your profit margin. | Scenario | Impact | |----------|--------| | Trade % too low | You may not be buying enough inventory to sustain future sales. Shelves could become sparse. | | Trade % too high | You are spending too much acquiring inventory relative to what you are selling. Margins suffer. | | Trade % balanced | You are reinvesting a healthy portion of revenue back into inventory while maintaining profitability. | Trade percentage also serves as an early warning system. A sudden spike might indicate overpaying for buys or a slowdown in sales. A sudden drop might mean your buyers are being too conservative or that fewer sellers are coming in. --- ## KPI Goals and Thresholds BuyerKiosk uses a three-tier status system for trade percentage: | Status | Trade % Range | Color | Meaning | |--------|--------------|-------|---------| | **Good** | 12% or below | Green | Healthy -- buying costs are well-controlled relative to sales | | **Warning** | 12.1% - 15.0% | Yellow | Caution -- trade percentage is approaching the upper limit | | **Danger** | Above 15.0% | Red | Action needed -- buying costs are too high relative to sales | The default goal for trade percentage is **15%**. This means spending no more than $0.15 on inventory acquisition for every $1.00 in sales. Stores performing at 12% or below are considered to be in excellent shape. > **Tip:** These thresholds are general guidelines. Your ideal trade percentage may vary depending on your store type, product mix, and market conditions. Discuss appropriate targets with your regional manager. --- ## Where to Find Trade Percentage Trade percentage appears in several places throughout BuyerKiosk: ### 1. The KPI Bar (Workbook) The KPI Bar at the bottom of the Workbook screen shows today's trade percentage as one of the configurable KPI tiles. It updates automatically throughout the day as sales and buys are processed. The trade percentage KPI tile shows: - The current trade percentage value (e.g., "12.50%") - A color-coded status indicator (green, yellow, or red) - Year-over-year comparison data when available For more details about the KPI Bar, see [KPI Bar -- Performance Metrics](/support/articles/02-kpi-bar). ### 2. Detailed KPI View The expanded KPI view (available through the API) provides a richer breakdown of trade percentage including: - **Current Value** -- Today's trade percentage - **Goal** -- The 15% default target - **Year-Over-Year Comp** -- Last year's trade percentage for the same date - **Status** -- Color-coded performance indicator ### 3. P&L Dashboard The P&L (Financial) Analytics dashboard at **Admin > Analytics > Financial** includes the Buys-to-Sales Ratio Trend chart. While this chart shows the ratio of buy transactions to sales transactions (rather than dollar amounts), it provides a complementary view of buying patterns over time. The P&L dashboard also displays: - Total buy count for the period - Average B/S ratio - Daily trend of buys vs sales with the ratio plotted as a line ### 4. Year-Over-Year Comparison The P&L Dashboard's YoY comparison table includes metrics that directly relate to trade percentage analysis. Compare your current gross margin, net sales, and transaction volumes against the prior year to see whether your buying and selling efficiency is improving. --- ## How Trade Percentage Is Calculated in BuyerKiosk The system pulls data from two primary sources: 1. **Sales data** comes from the `LiveFinancials` table, which tracks today's cumulative sales total 2. **Buys data** comes from the `LiveFinancials` table's buy cost field and from completed transactions in the buy queue The calculation runs in real time as part of the KPI aggregation. The formula used is: ``` tradePercent = (buys / sales) x 100 ``` Where: - `buys` is the current day's total buy cost from LiveFinancials - `sales` is the current day's total sales from LiveFinancials If sales are zero (for example, at the very start of the day before any transactions), the trade percentage displays as 0% rather than showing an error. --- ## Analyzing Trade Percentage Trends ### Daily Monitoring Check the KPI Bar throughout the day. Trade percentage naturally fluctuates -- it might spike after a large buy early in the day before sales have caught up. By end of day, it should settle into a more representative range. ### Weekly Patterns Use the P&L Dashboard with the "Last 7 Days" filter to spot weekly patterns. Some stores see higher buy activity on certain days of the week. Understanding your pattern helps you plan staffing and buying budgets. ### Monthly and Quarterly Analysis Select "Last 30 Days" or "Last 90 Days" on the P&L Dashboard to evaluate longer-term trends. Key questions to ask: - Is trade percentage trending up, down, or steady over time? - How does this month compare to the same month last year (use the YoY comparison)? - Are there seasonal patterns affecting buying costs? ### Year-Over-Year Comparison The YoY comparison is particularly valuable for trade percentage analysis. If your trade percentage this year is significantly higher than last year for the same period, investigate whether: - Average buy prices have increased - Sales volume has decreased - Product mix has shifted toward higher-cost categories --- ## Using Reports to Improve Store Performance ### When Trade Percentage Is Too High If your trade percentage consistently exceeds 15%, consider these actions: 1. **Review buy pricing** -- Are your buyers paying too much per item? Check average purchase amounts in the P&L Dashboard. 2. **Audit large buys** -- Look at your completed buys for unusually large transactions that may be skewing the ratio. 3. **Focus on sales** -- Sometimes the issue is not overspending on buys but rather underperformance on the sales side. Check if sales are meeting their goals. 4. **Check inventory velocity** -- Use the Inventory Analytics dashboard to see if purchased inventory is actually selling. A high trade percentage combined with slow velocity means you are buying more than the store can sell. ### When Trade Percentage Is Too Low A trade percentage well below 10% is not necessarily ideal either: 1. **Assess inventory levels** -- Are shelves looking sparse? Low trade percentage might mean you are not buying enough to replenish what is being sold. 2. **Review buyer activity** -- Check daily buy counts in the KPI Bar. If the number of buy transactions is declining, investigate whether fewer sellers are visiting or if buyers are turning people away. 3. **Consider seasonal factors** -- During peak sales seasons (holidays), trade percentage naturally drops as sales outpace buying. This may be expected. ### Connecting Trade Percentage to Other KPIs Trade percentage does not exist in isolation. Cross-reference it with: | Related Metric | Where to Find It | Why It Matters | |---------------|-------------------|----------------| | Gross Margin | P&L Dashboard | Higher trade % can lower margins if buy costs are not offset by sales prices | | Inventory Velocity | Inventory Analytics | Fast-moving inventory justifies higher trade % since items sell quickly | | Seller Retention | Seller Retention Dashboard | A healthy trade % depends on a steady flow of sellers bringing in merchandise | | Wait Time | Wait Time Dashboard | Long wait times may discourage sellers, reducing buy opportunities | --- ## Configuring Trade Percentage KPIs Store managers can customize how trade percentage appears in the KPI Bar through the KPI configuration system. The available settings include: | Setting | Description | Default | |---------|-------------|---------| | `isVisible` | Whether Trade % appears in the KPI Bar | Yes (visible) | | `sortOrder` | Position in the KPI Bar (1 = leftmost) | 3 | | `showGoal` | Display the 15% goal alongside the current value | No | | `showComps` | Show year-over-year comparison | No | | `displayName` | The label shown in the KPI Bar | "Trade %" | To adjust these settings, contact your store administrator. Changes take effect immediately for all users at the store. --- ## Troubleshooting ### Trade percentage shows 0% all day - Verify that sales are being recorded. If `Sales` in the KPI Bar also shows $0, the issue is likely with the POS integration or LiveFinancials data feed. - If sales are showing correctly but buys are $0, confirm that buy transactions are being completed and processed in the buy queue. ### Trade percentage seems abnormally high - Check if there was a large bulk buy that inflated the daily total. One large transaction can significantly impact daily trade percentage. - Verify that sales data is reporting correctly. An undercount in sales will make trade percentage appear inflated. ### Year-over-year comparison is missing for trade percentage - YoY comparison for trade percentage requires both sales and buys data from the same date last year. - The system calculates comparison trade percentage as `(prior year buys / prior year sales) x 100`. If either value is missing from the historical close-of-day report, the comparison will not display. ### KPI Bar does not show Trade % - Trade percentage may have been hidden in the KPI configuration. Ask your store administrator to check that the `tradePercent` KPI is set to visible in the store's `workbook_kpi_config` settings. --- ## Related Articles - [KPI Bar -- Performance Metrics](/support/articles/02-kpi-bar) - [Analytics Dashboards -- Reports and Insights](/support/articles/reports-dashboard) - [Workbook Overview](/support/articles/01-workbook-overview)