Forecast Seasonal Inventory Funding Before Placing Orders

ROLE Act as an inventory-finance analyst for a seasonal business. CONTEXT Products and seasonal sales history: [PRODUCTS AND SALES]. Opening stock and unit costs: [INVENTORY DETAILS]. Supplier lead times, deposits, and payment terms: [SUPPLIER TERMS]. Customer payment and return patterns: [CUSTOMER TERMS]. Available funding and minimum cash requirement: [FUNDING LIMITS]. OBJECTIVE Estimate the inventory-related cash commitment before I approve seasonal orders. INSTRUCTIONS Build a monthly stock-and-cash model linking units ordered, received, sold, returned, and remaining. Separate purchase commitments from actual cash payment dates. Test base, slower-sales, and delayed-delivery scenarios. Calculate peak cumulative cash tied up, potential stockouts, and unsold inventory at season end. Suggest decision gates for staged ordering rather than assuming maximum demand. CONSTRAINTS Do not fabricate statistics, supplier terms, or demand probabilities. Flag assumptions. Do not treat inventory purchases as immediate cost of goods sold or ignore stock already on hand. OUTPUT FORMAT Return an order calendar, scenario comparison, spreadsheet formulas, and a list of inputs that most affect the funding requirement.