Troubleshooting fulfillment issues for multi-location stores using Simple Bundles

This guide is designed to troubleshoot and manage inventory across multiple Shopify locations when using the Simple Bundles app. It addresses common inventory syncing issues, setup requirements, and best practices to ensure bundles are functioning properly across all locations.

Common Issues

• Bundle shows as "out of stock" even when child items are in stock
• Bundle inventory does not reflect the correct availability
• Inventory sync delays between Shopify and Simple Bundles
• Fulfillment errors due to inventory location conflicts

Step-by-step troubleshooting

1. Confirm inventory tracking is enabled

• Navigate to Shopify Admin > Products

  Open both the parent bundle and each child product

  Under the Inventory section:

  • Ensure "Track quantity" is enabled
  • Confirm stock exists at the desired locations

2. Enable automatic inventory sync

• Go to Simple Bundles > Settings
• Enable the Automatic inventory sync toggle

3. Understand how Simple Bundles calculates inventory depending on your bundle type

Refer to: Managing bundle inventory and fulfillment for stores with multiple locations

For the Simple Bundle type, inventory for a bundle is based on:

• The lowest possible quantity of the bundle that can be built from available child SKU inventory
• This type uses the location-based inventory by default, meaning each location must have all the required items in stock for the bundle to be available and shipped from that location.

Example:

Bundle includes: "Summer Skincare Kit"

• 1x Facial Cleanser
• 1x Sunscreen SPF 50
• 1x Hydrating Mist

You have two fulfillment locations:

• Location A:
  • Facial Cleanser: 10 units
  • Sunscreen SPF 50: 4 units
  • Hydrating Mist: 6 units
• Location B:
  • Facial Cleanser: 3 units
  • Sunscreen SPF 50: 8 units
  • Hydrating Mist: 2 units

Bundle availability per location:

• Location A: You can sell 4 Summer Skincare Kits (limited by the lowest stock item – Sunscreen SPF 50 with 4 units).
• Location B: You can sell 2 Kits (limited by Hydrating Mist with 2 units).
• Total of 6  Summer Skincare Kits available across all locations

The total available bundles shown on the storefront will reflect how many complete kits can be shipped from each location independently, not pooled across locations.

For the Infinite options bundle type, inventory for a bundle is based on:

• The parent bundle’s inventory reflects the highest possible availability, regardless of which location holds the stock.
• At the cart or checkout, Shopify’s Cart Transform API checks whether each selected child item is actually in stock at that moment. This ensures that a bundle won’t be purchased unless all selected items can be fulfilled. This setup:
  • Prevents overselling
  • Supports dynamic combinations of products in your bundle
  • Uses cart-level inventory validation, not per-location inventory, for the storefront display

Example:

Bundle: “Custom Coffee” (customer selects one of each):

• 1x Coffee Base (Light Roast / Medium Roast / Dark Roast)
• 1x Flavor Syrup (Vanilla / Caramel / Hazelnut)
• 1x Topping (Cocoa Powder / Cinnamon)

Fulfillment Locations:

• Location A:
  • Medium Roast: 5 units
  • Hazelnut Syrup: 4 units
  • Cinnamon: 0 units
• Location B:
  • Light Roast: 6 units
  • Caramel Syrup: 5 units
  • Cocoa Powder: 8 units

Bundle availability on storefront:

The “Custom Coffee” will appear in stock because the bundle parent inventory is calculated using the maximum available quantity of child items across all locations combined. There is no per-location limit at the product page level.

Checkout behavior (Cart Transform validation):

• If a customer selects:

  Medium Roast (A) + Hazelnut Syrup (A) + Cocoa Powder (B)

  → ✅ Checkout allowed (all items available across locations)

• If a customer selects:

  Light Roast (B) + Caramel Syrup (B) + Cinnamon (A – out of stock)

  → ❌ Checkout blocked (Cinnamon is out of stock everywhere)

The storefront shows availability based on total inventory across all locations. Cart validation ensures that customers only check out when all selected components are in stock, regardless of which location holds them.

4. Choose your Inventory strategy

Option 1: Pooled Inventory

• Disable "Track quantity" on the parent bundle
• Simple Bundles will calculate bundle availability based on child SKUs across all locations
  • Pros: Flexible and automatic
  • Cons: Does not show a static stock quantity on product pages

Option 2: Location-based Inventory

• Enable “Track quantity” for both the parent bundle and child components
• Ensure all child SKUs are stocked at the same location as the parent
• Leverage Shopify's location prioritization to control fulfillment
  • Pros: Controlled fulfillment from a specific location
  • Cons: Requires more manual inventory setup per location

5. Manually resync inventory

Use this when you've made manual edits and CSV imports, or whenever you've made manual intervention within your inventory.

• Go to Simple Bundles > Settings
• Click "Resync all bundle quantities" or "Resync with Shopify" on individual bundles

6. Check sales channel availability

Ensure your sales channel can access the correct inventory location:

• Go to Shopify Admin > Settings > Locations
• Select your location and ensure relevant Sales channels are enabled