Selling in NOK from a supplier priced in SEK or EUR.
Nordic shops often buy from a Swedish supplier in SEK or a European one in EUR. Converting once is easy. Keeping thousands of prices right while the rate moves is where shops lose money.
Updated · Monine AS
Short answer
To price from a foreign supplier, convert the supplier cost (ex VAT) to your currency with a published daily reference rate such as the ECB rate, add a small safety buffer for rate movement and card fees, then apply your markup, rounding and VAT in that order. Refresh the rate daily and refuse to reprice on a rate that jumped implausibly or is more than a few days old.
The order of operations
- Supplier cost without VAT, in their currency.
- Convert at today's reference rate.
- Add a buffer, for example 2–3%, for the rate moving before you pay the invoice.
- Apply your markup.
- Round to your price points.
- Add your VAT, if your shop shows prices including VAT.
Worked example: 1 000 SEK ex VAT; at an example rate of 1 SEK = 0.97 NOK that is 970 NOK; +2% buffer = 989.40; ×1.8 markup = 1 780.92; rounded up to a price ending in 90 = 1 790 NOK ex VAT; +25% VAT = 2 237.50 NOK. (The rate in the example is illustrative; use the day's published rate.)
Which rate
The European Central Bank publishes reference rates for about thirty currencies every working day, free and with a stable format. It is a sensible neutral source for automated pricing. Your bank's rate will differ slightly, which is what the buffer is for.
Two traps
- A stale rate. If the rate stops updating, your prices drift without anyone noticing. Refuse to reprice on a rate older than about a week.
- A broken rate. A feed error can produce a rate that is off by a factor of ten. Refuse a daily move larger than, say, 10%.
OhoSync does both: rates come from the ECB daily, a move over 10% in a day is not used, and an update stops rather than price with a rate older than a week.
Questions
Should I convert before or after the markup?
Before. Convert the cost into your currency, then apply the markup, so the markup is calculated on what the product really costs you.
Try it on your own products.
Free for up to 30 products, no credit card. Founding shops get 50% off any paid plan for the first 6 months with code FOUNDING50 (first 100 shops, until 31 March 2027).