Overview of Layaways

What is a Layaway?

Layaways are used to allow a customer to place a “deposit” on an item/order, which will essentially reserve the item for them. The customer can make multiple payments to pay down for this item overtime. Once the entire amount has been paid off, the customer can take the item with them. Our new layaway feature helps to track these layaway sales and the outstanding balances associated with them on the Web app and the iPad app.

Enabling Layaways

Before you can make layaway sales, you must first turn on layaways for each location through the Web app. Navigate to the Locations tab on the Web app and then click on the "Edit Location" button for the location you want to enable layaways for.

When you reach the edit page, scroll down to the third section, Settings for this Location. Here, you will turn on layaways by enabling "Accept Partial Payments (Layaways)". When it is enabled, an optional field will appear below called "Minimum Amount Deposit for Partial Payments". You can set a minimum deposit based on percent of total sale or a fixed dollar amount. When ready, click the "Save Location" button.

How to Start a Layaway

1. Add the items to the cart.
2. Assign a customer.
3. Proceed to the payment page.
4. Add a deposit using a payment method other than "Pay Later (Layby)".
5. Once you have placed a deposit, assign the remaining amount to layaway by clicking the "Pay Later (Layby)" option.
6. A pop-up will appear and you may enter any notes, if necessary, and then click "Complete the Layaway".
7. Click "Complete Order".

Note: You MUST assign a customer to the layaway. If you don't assign it at the cart page, then you will be prompted to add a customer in the payment method page.

How to Make Payments to an Existing Layaway Order

1. In the search bar at the top of the Sales page, enter the layaway order number (starts with an 'L') OR scan the barcode on the receipt containing the layaway.
2. Once you have the order detail page pulled up, click the "Add Deposit" button at the bottom. You should be directed to the payment method page.
3. Add the desired amount, choose the payment method for the deposit, and then click "Pay Later (Layby)" for the remaining amount.
   If you want to complete the layaway (fully pay off the remaining amount), do not choose "Pay Later (Layby)".
4. Click "Complete Order".

How to Return a Layaway

You are able to return layaway orders as you normally would. For partially-paid layaways, the amount that will be refunded to the customer is the amount that they have paid down/deposited. It would act as a regular return and you would be returning “Layaway Credit”. For fully-paid layaways, it would act as a regular return and you would be returning items from the order instead of credit.

Layaway Order Types & Statuses

There are two order types related to layaways:

Layaway Deposit: This signifies a payment on a layaway order. Once a layaway is fully paid down, all deposits will add up to the order total. Layaway Deposits initially have a status of “Partially Paid” and a fulfillment status of “Reserved”. Meaning that the order is not fully paid for, and the item(s) has been deducted from inventory but not released to the customer.

When a layaway is completed, all of the Layaway Deposits will change their status to “Completed” and fulfillment status to “Fulfilled”.

If an incomplete layaway is refunded, the existing layaway deposits will be marked with status “Refunded” and fulfillment status “Unfulfilled”.

Layaway Sale: This signifies a completed layaway order. They are created when a layaway is fully paid down and allows the merchant to recognize the sales tax on the order at the time the layaway is completed. When a Layaway Sale is completed, it will have the “Completed” status and “Fulfilled” fulfillment status, signifying that the items have been released to the customer.

Customers

You can see how much a customer owes you in the customer's detailed page. The amount is shown as "Outstanding Balance". It increases when a layaway order is created, and then decreases as the layaway is paid down with deposits. It is also decreased if an incomplete layaway is refunded. If the value is $0, then it means that the customer has fully paid down all of its orders and does not owe the boutique anything. The customer's order count is incremented when the layaway order is created. The customer's total spent value is increased with each new deposit on a layaway order.

Reporting

Retail Dashboard:

• Revenue chart: are increased with each new deposit on a layaway order, by the value of the deposit. Except for the final deposit on an order, which is when the order’s sales tax is paid. The value of the sales tax will not be included in the revenue increase because sales tax is a liability, not revenue. When an incomplete layaway is refunded, revenue will decrease by the total amount of all deposits paid thus far on the order.
• Orders chart: the orders count is incremented when the layaway order is completed.

Revenue by Location Report:

• Revenue: Refer to the description for revenue chart in retail dashboard above.
• Orders count: incremented when the layaway order is completed.
• Items sold: increased when the layaway order is completed.
• Tax: increased when the layaway order is completed by the total tax on the order
• Amount owed: increases when a layaway order is created, and is decreased as deposits are made on the order. It is also decreased if an incomplete layaway is refunded.
• AOV: AOV updated when the layaway order is completed

Sales Tax Report:

• Non-taxable sales number: increases with each new deposit on a layaway order. Once the layaway is completed, all deposits that were added to non-taxable sales are removed from non-taxable sales and “converted” into taxable sales. If an incomplete layaway is refunded, non-taxable sales will decrease by the total value of all deposits on the order thus far. If a completed layaway is refunded, non-taxable sales will decrease by the amount of the refund less the effective sales tax of the item(s) returned/refunded.
• Taxable sales number: is increased when the layaway order is completed by the order total minus the total tax on the order. Taxes are not included in sales numbers. At this same time, non-taxable sales are reduced by the same amount that taxable sales is increased by. If a completed layaway is refunded, taxable sales will decrease by the amount of the refund less the effective sales tax of the item(s) returned/refunded.
• Total tax: is increased when the layaway order is completed by the total amount of tax on the order. If a completed layaway is refunded, total tax will decrease by the effective sales tax on the item(s) returned/refunded.

Exporting Layaway Orders

You are able to export layaway orders as a CSV file through the Web app. First, navigate to the Sales tab. To get an accurate view of tender received for a time period, filter the sales list by the following types: "Sale", "Return", and "Layaway Deposit". Exclude "Layaway Sale", otherwise they will be double counted with the "Layaway Deposit".

To get an accurate view of sales tax for a time period, filter the sales list by the following types: "Sale", "Return", and "Layaway Sale". Layaway sales recognize the sales tax paid on the order.

When you have filtered the list to your liking, scroll down to the bottom of the page. Export the list by clicking the "Export All Filtered" button. A CSV file will be downloaded to your computer.

 

Assigning Employees to Layaway Orders

Please note that when you have multiple employees assigned to a single layaway order, the revenue is correctly attributed to the employees once the layaway is complete. Assume the following scenario:

• Employee A starts the layaway sale and is assigned at the order-level.
• Employee B is assigned to the layaway sale at the item-level. 

What happens is that all revenue from layaway deposits will be attributed to Employee A. Once the layaway sale is completed, the revenue from the sale will be re-distributed correctly among Employee A and Employee B. This will cause Employee A's revenue to drop and Employee B's revenue to increase when the layaway sale is completed.