Picture a candle maker on a busy Tuesday who emails her jar supplier: "Hi! Can I get four cases of the 8 oz amber jars, same as last time?" Nine days later, four cases arrive. They are 9 oz. They are clear. The invoice has a new price per case, and nothing in her inbox says what "same as last time" meant.
Nobody lied. The supplier filled the order they thought they got. The problem is that the order lived in a friendly sentence instead of on a page.
That page is a purchase order: a numbered, written list of exactly what you are buying, how many, at what price, delivered where, and by when. To send one, you number it, fill in a handful of fields, attach it to an email as a PDF, and ask the supplier to confirm it. Then you check what arrives against it. Here is each step, plus a template you can copy.
When a small seller actually needs a PO
You do not need a purchase order for a $30 checkout on a supply website. The cart, the confirmation email and the receipt already are the record.
You do need one whenever the order is a conversation instead of a checkout:
- A new supplier. You have no shared history of "the usual."
- A quoted or negotiated price. The PO is where that price gets written down next to your order.
- Anything made to spec, such as custom-printed labels, cut-to-size boxes, or a private-label batch.
- Wholesale terms, like net-30 payment or a minimum order quantity.
- An order big enough to hurt if it arrives wrong. Pick your own threshold and stick to it.
If you buy by email or phone at all, a PO turns "I think I asked for amber" into "line 1 says amber."
Step 1: Give the purchase order a number
Every PO gets a number that is never used twice. That number is how you, the supplier, the packing slip and the invoice all refer to the same order.
Keep it simple:
- One series for the whole business. Even with two locations or two product lines, one sequence prevents two different orders both called PO-12.
- A short prefix and padded digits, like
PO-0001,PO-0002. The zeros keep files and spreadsheets sorting in order. - Keep the supplier's number separately. If they sent you a quote numbered Q-88213, write it in a "Reference" field on your PO. Do not swap your number for theirs.
This is the step a spreadsheet tends to break first, because the next number lives in someone's head. In Ardent Seller, a new purchase starts with the next number in your series already filled in (PO-0041 becomes PO-0042), and you can still change it.
Step 2: Fill in the fields
A supplier should be able to pick, pack and ship from your PO without emailing you a single question. These are the fields that make that possible.
| Field | What to write | What goes wrong without it |
|---|---|---|
| PO number and date | PO-0042, the date you send it |
Nobody can tell this order from the last one |
| Your business | Name, email, phone | The supplier cannot reach you with a question |
| Ship to | The full delivery address, plus "Attn:" a person or location if needed | The order goes to your billing address, or the wrong studio |
| Supplier | Their business name and the contact you deal with | It lands with the wrong rep or department |
| Line items | Supplier's item number or SKU, a specific description, quantity, unit, unit price, line total | 9 oz clear instead of 8 oz amber |
| Charges | Shipping, setup or plate fees, and tax if they charge it | The invoice total is a surprise |
| Needed by | The date it must arrive, and the shipping method if it matters | It arrives the day after your market |
| Terms and notes | Payment terms (prepaid, card on file, net-30), plus anything special: packing, partial shipments, substitutions | A backordered item gets swapped for something you never approved |
Two of those rows do most of the work.
The unit column. "4" means nothing until it says 4 cases of 12. Suppliers sell by the each, the case, the pallet, the pound and the roll, and the unit is one of the easiest places for an order to go wrong.
The description. Copy the supplier's own item number from their catalog or quote, then add the attributes that tell lookalike products apart: size, color, finish, closure. "Amber 8 oz straight-sided jar, 70-400 neck, lids not included" leaves nothing to guess.
Step 3: Copy the purchase order template
Paste this into a document and replace the bracketed parts and every example line, number and amount (the ones shown are made up). Keep it in a monospaced font such as Courier, or move the line items into a table, so the columns stay lined up. Then save it as a PDF.
PURCHASE ORDER
PO #: [PO-0042]
Date: [Oct 18, 2026]
Reference: [Supplier quote Q-88213]
FROM
[Your Business Name]
[Street address]
[City, State ZIP]
[you@example.com], [phone]
SHIP TO
[Your Business Name]
Attn: [Studio / person]
[Street address]
[City, State ZIP]
VENDOR
[Supplier Name]
[Contact name], [orders@supplier.example]
# ITEM NO. DESCRIPTION QTY UNIT PRICE TOTAL
1 JAR-8A Amber 8 oz jar, 70-400 neck 4 case of 12 $21.60 $86.40
2 LID-70G Gold 70-400 metal lid 4 case of 12 $7.20 $28.80
Subtotal $115.20
Shipping $18.00
TOTAL $133.20
NEEDED BY: [Nov 3, 2026], ground shipping
PAYMENT TERMS: [Card on file / Net 30]
NOTES: Please confirm this order in writing. No substitutions without
approval. Partial shipments OK if backordered lines ship within 2 weeks.
Read line 1 as: 4 cases of 12 amber jars at $21.60 a case, $86.40 for the line. Check the arithmetic before you send it. A PO with a wrong line total gives the supplier a reason to "correct" the whole thing to their own numbers.
Step 4: Email the purchase order as a PDF
Attach the PO as a PDF rather than pasting it into the email body. A PDF keeps its layout, gets filed or forwarded to the warehouse intact, and gives both of you the same copy to point at later.
Send it to the address the supplier uses for orders. That is often an orders@ or sales@ address rather than a rep's personal inbox, and if you are not sure, ask. Keep the email short:
Subject: Purchase order PO-0042 from [Your Business Name]
Hi [Name],
Attached is PO-0042 for 4 cases of the 8 oz amber jars and 4 cases of gold lids, per your quote Q-88213. We need it by November 3.
Could you reply to confirm the order, the price and the expected ship date?
Thanks,
[Your name]
Then file a copy where you will find it when the box arrives. If no confirmation comes back within a couple of business days, forward the original and ask again before anything ships.
If keeping that copy is the part you keep forgetting, Ardent Seller can send the PO for you. From a purchase, choose Send to vendor. It emails the PDF as "your business name via Ardent Seller," with replies going to your own inbox, and the purchase keeps the exact PDF the supplier received. Every plan can do this, including Free, once your email is confirmed and your account is a few days old. The Source guide covers the details, including the monthly limit on Free.
Step 5: Get it confirmed
Until the supplier accepts it, a PO is an offer to buy. Under Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code, which governs sales of goods in most states, that acceptance does not have to be a reply. An order for prompt shipment can be accepted "by a prompt promise to ship or by the prompt or current shipment" of the goods (UCC § 2-206 (opens in new tab)). So the box showing up can itself be the yes.
That is why you ask for a written confirmation, and why you read it when it comes back. If the supplier's confirmation lists a different price, a different ship date or their own terms, UCC § 2-207 (opens in new tab) is the section that sorts out which terms end up in the deal. Between merchants, some added terms can become part of the contract unless you object within a reasonable time. "Merchant" is wider than it sounds: besides a business that deals in goods of the kind, UCC § 2-104 (opens in new tab) includes one that "by his occupation holds himself out as having knowledge or skill peculiar to the practices or goods involved," so do not assume a maker buying supplies falls outside it. If the confirmation does not match your PO, reply in writing the day it arrives, cite the PO number, and say which terms you do not accept.
Paper matters more as orders grow. The UCC's model text says a contract for the sale of goods "for the price of $500 or more" is generally not enforceable without some signed writing (UCC § 2-201 (opens in new tab)). Your PO plus the supplier's written confirmation is the simplest way to have that writing. States adopt the code with their own changes, so treat this as the general rule, not your state's exact one.
Step 6: Check the delivery against the PO
When the box arrives, put three documents side by side: your PO, the packing slip, and the invoice. Bookkeepers call this a three-way match, and for a small order it takes a few minutes:
- Item. Is it the item number and description on your PO, not a lookalike?
- Quantity. Count it, in the PO's units. Four cases of 12 is 48 jars, not "four boxes."
- Price. Does the invoice's unit price match the PO's?
- Condition. Note breakage now, with photos, before you shelve anything.
Record the purchase at what actually arrived and what you actually paid, including inbound shipping. That is the number that belongs in your product cost. What is landed cost walks through why the invoice price alone undercounts it.
When the price or the order changes
Suppliers change things. A line gets backordered, a price goes up, a substitute gets offered. Handle each change in writing, against the PO number:
- A short or backordered shipment. Reply with the PO number, the line and the count you received, and ask for the ship date of the rest or a credit. Pay only for what arrived unless your terms say otherwise.
- A price that does not match. Reply with the PO number, the line, the agreed price and the billed price, and ask for a corrected invoice. Do not pay the new number silently, because next order it will be the old number.
- A change you accept. Update the same PO and mark it as a revision ("PO-0042 rev 1"), so the paper trail still matches what you paid.
- A substitute you did not approve. Your PO's "no substitutions" line is your answer. Ask for a return label or a credit.
Make the next one the easy one
The first purchase order takes the longest. Every one after should be quicker, because your addresses, the supplier's details and the numbering are already settled. Create a free Ardent Seller account and add the supplier as a vendor. Each new purchase starts with the next PO number filled in, and Generate Purchase Order gives you the PDF to attach to your own email from day one. Once your email is confirmed and your account is a few days old, the PO can go to the supplier from the purchase itself, with the exact PDF kept for the day the box arrives.
Related reading
- What Is Landed Cost? — Once the order arrives, this is how to turn the invoice, the freight and the broken jars into one true cost per unit.
- Reorder Points & Par Levels for Makers — The math that tells you when the next PO should go out, so you're not writing one in a panic.
- Resale Certificates for Craft Supplies — If your supplier charges sales tax on materials that go into products you sell, this is the form that may stop it.
- Custom Order Form Template for Makers — The same idea pointed the other way: the written order your own customers fill in before you start making.
Free resources
If you'd like the supplier side of your paperwork in one place:
- Vendor & Supplier Contact Organizer — Keeps each supplier's order address, rep, minimums and terms in one sheet, which are the details Step 2 asks you to fill in every time.
This article is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Contract formation rules and the Uniform Commercial Code as adopted vary by state and change over time. Consult a qualified attorney before relying on a purchase order in a dispute or a high-value order.