Group-buy lifecycle

What this feature does

A group buy progresses from draft through launch and order collection to either funded production and fulfillment or a failed-MOQ refund path.

This guide describes the behavior implemented by Mallello, the people allowed to use it, and the operational checks that keep it dependable.

Detailed workflow

1. The vendor drafts the offer and sets its MOQ, dates, options, policies, and fulfillment expectations.
2. The listing becomes coming soon or live and accepts eligible participation.
3. Paid orders and approved external contributions increase displayed MOQ progress.
4. At order close, the outcome is evaluated against the MOQ.
5. A successful group buy proceeds to manufacturing, updates, shipment, and completion.
6. A failed group buy enters the refund workflow using the original payment records.

Rules and permissions

• External MOQ contributions describe orders taken elsewhere; they are not Mallello payments or revenue.
• The displayed MOQ must distinguish units from orders.
• Customers must see the refund cutoff and non-refundable fee disclosure before purchase.
• Timeline estimates are not guarantees; vendors must communicate material changes.

Failure handling and edge cases

• Late payment webhooks can change final counts after the customer leaves checkout.
• Manual MOQ entries must not create orders, payouts, or fake platform revenue.
• A failed-MOQ process must be idempotent so the same charge is not refunded twice.