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Connect Distribution Alternatives to Katana

Import Distribution Alternatives orders, shipments, SKU-matched products, and warehouse stock levels into Katana.

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Written by Argo Ohvril

What the Katana–Distribution Alternatives integration does

Distribution Alternatives is a full-service third-party logistics provider that offers omnichannel fulfillment, warehousing, inventory storage, B2B and retail fulfillment, kitting, freight/LTL, and EDI services.

By connecting Katana with Distribution Alternatives, you can:

  • Import orders as sales orders: Each Distribution Alternatives order becomes a Katana sales order, and shipped packages arrive as fulfillments with carrier and tracking details.

  • Import products by SKU: Existing Katana products are matched by SKU, and SKU aliases can link SKUs that differ between the two systems.

  • See warehouse stock levels: Distribution Alternatives stock appears in Katana as read-only external inventory at each mapped location.

  • Map warehouses to locations: Each Distribution Alternatives warehouse is linked to its own Katana location.

sync diagram showing data flowing one way from Distribution Alternatives into Katana: orders and fulfillments with tracking into Katana sales orders, products into Katana items by SKU, and stock levels into read-only external inventory at mapped Katana locations

Before you start

  • An active Distribution Alternatives account.

  • The credentials the Katana connection form asks for: Host, Username, and Password. Your Distribution Alternatives account representative can provide them.

  • A Katana account with permission to manage integrations.

Connect Distribution Alternatives to Katana

  1. In Katana, open the Integrations page and find the Distribution Alternatives tile.

  2. Click Connect.

  3. Enter the Host, Username, and Password that your Distribution Alternatives account representative gave you, then confirm.

    the Katana connection form for Distribution Alternatives with three fields labeled Host, Username, and Password, and a confirm button

  4. After Distribution Alternatives approves the connection, the configuration screen opens on the Location tab. The integration status shows Connected with Sync inactive, and an Activate sync button appears in the header. Map each Distribution Alternatives warehouse to a Katana location. Use Add to Katana to create a dedicated location for a warehouse.

    the Location tab of the Distribution Alternatives configuration screen listing partner warehouses, each with its mapped Katana location or an Add to Katana button, status shown as Connected with Sync inactive, and the Activate sync button in the header

  5. Click Activate sync to start syncing data with Distribution Alternatives. Nothing syncs until you do this.

How your daily workflow looks

  1. Distribution Alternatives receives and fulfills your orders from its warehouses.

  2. Orders that reach your configured import-from status appear in Katana as sales orders and keep updating as their status changes.

  3. Each shipped package arrives in Katana as a fulfillment with carrier and tracking details.

  4. Products in those orders are matched to Katana items by SKU. Unknown SKUs are created as new products.

  5. Stock levels from Distribution Alternatives update as read-only external inventory at your mapped Katana locations.

  6. You plan purchasing and production in Katana based on the current orders and stock.

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