Pricing & Margins
POD store operations
Manage POD orders from checkout to production with clear approval, exception and customer-update checks.
Run a print-on-demand (POD) store by tracking each order from checkout to supplier receipt, production and customer update. At each hand-off, check the product, variant, print file, delivery address and approval state. A paid store order does not by itself show that the supplier can produce it.
Keep an order queue with a next action
Record the store order number beside the supplier order number. Use the supplier's status definitions and give each exception an owner.
| Finding | Next action |
|---|---|
| Store order with no supplier order | Check payment, connection, product mapping and the integration’s import conditions before creating another order. |
| Awaiting approval | Compare the variant, file, address and supplier charge with the store order before release. |
| On hold or failed | Read the order-specific reason and follow the supplier’s correction process. |
| In production | Check the current supplier record before giving a customer update. |
A hold label does not identify the cause. Check the supplier's stated reason and status guidance, then record the next action.
Set the production release rule
Decide which orders can proceed automatically and which need a person to check them. Verify the rule in the supplier account and on the sales channel used by the store.
Gelato documents automatic approval as its default for connected products and offers manual approval settings.
Before releasing an order, inspect the file attached to that order. A saved design or storefront image may differ from the production file. Keep unresolved orders out of bulk approval and record who released each checked order.
To change Gelato's approval setting, open Stores in the Gelato Dashboard, select the store, choose Edit store details, then change Order Approval from Automatic to Manual and save. Check the setting for the store you are operating, rather than assuming every connected store uses the same rule.
With Gelato manual approval enabled, connected-product orders appear as Pending Approval. Open Orders, select the pending order and review its details before choosing Approve.
Gelato also offers delayed automatic approval, which releases orders after a selected delay of 6, 12, 24, 48 or 72 hours. For Shopify, Etsy and WooCommerce, product tags can instead route selected products for manual approval; enable the tag option and create matching active tags in both the Gelato Dashboard and the sales channel.
Manual approval affects when an order is placed and paid in Gelato: its wallet is not charged while the order awaits approval. The order is not placed or paid until you approve it, so include pending approvals in the queue rather than treating them as supplier orders already in progress.
When reviewing a Gelato order, the file can be changed or the design edited from the menu beside the file; which option appears depends on how the original file was made. Follow the prompts to finalise the design, then continue to shipping after the order details are confirmed.
If Gelato orders remain pending despite an automatic setting, check the store's approval configuration and company details. Gelato says incomplete company information can cause orders to default to Pending Approval instead of being fulfilled automatically.
Gelato Order Approval Settings: Automatic vs Manual
- Automatic Approval
- Default setting for connected products; orders auto-processed after validation
- Manual Approval
- Requires human review before production; ideal for custom or high-risk designs
- Tag-Based Routing (Shopify/Etsy/WooCommerce)
- Use product tags to route specific items to manual approval
Resolve exceptions in the affected system
For a missing supplier order, establish whether it is still within the integration's expected import period. Check the store order and supplier dashboard before submitting a replacement, which could duplicate a late import.
For a hold, follow the stated reason and verify the resulting status. Changing a listing does not establish that an existing supplier order has changed.
After an edit or cancellation, check both the sales channel and supplier system to confirm the current order state.
Preserve the store-order link
For Gelato orders, edit the original product rather than adding a new one when making a change during manual approval. Gelato recommends this because removing the original product can disrupt fulfilment notifications and prevent order-status updates from being reflected accurately in the store.
Gelato's approval workflow applies only to products integrated with Gelato. Check that the store is connected and that the relevant products have been added to Gelato or migrated there; only connected products are sent to Gelato's API and follow its approval process.
Keep the customer informed
Use the store order as the customer-facing record, supported by the latest supplier status. Say what is confirmed and when the next update will come.
An order awaiting a corrected file should not be described as already in production. Reassess any delivery estimate affected by the delay.
Log recurring missing imports, wrong variants, file holds and approval delays. When several exceptions point to the same listing or setting, correct that cause and check the next affected order.
In this guide
- Testing order submission before a public launchTrace a controlled checkout order into the POD supplier and check import, variant, artwork and approval before launch.
