Overview

The iVendNext Node for n8n is the official connector that links your iVendNext retail platform to n8n — a visual workflow automation tool used by hundreds of thousands of teams worldwide. It lets you build automations that move data between iVendNext and the other applications in your business without writing code. Orders flow in, stock levels flow out, customers sync, tracking numbers return — all automatically, on a schedule or in real time, depending on what each automation needs.

This article explains what the connector is, how it is structured, what it enables, and how it fits into iVendNext.

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What n8n Is

n8n is a workflow automation platform. You build automations by placing boxes — called nodes — onto a canvas and joining them with arrows. Each node does one job: read from a system, send an email, call an external service, transform data, or write to a database. When the workflow runs, data flows from node to node according to the path you drew.

n8n can connect to over 400 applications out of the box. It handles the scheduling, triggering, retrying, and logging of every automation run. The iVendNext Node is the box that represents your iVendNext tenant in that ecosystem. Once it is on the canvas, any data inside iVendNext — items, customers, prices, stock levels, orders, invoices — can flow into and out of any automation you build.

How the Connector Is Structured

The iVendNext Node installs as two complementary nodes that serve different purposes:

The Action Node is the workhorse. It executes operations on iVendNext documents on demand: create a new record, retrieve one by name, fetch a filtered list, update fields on an existing document, or delete a draft. A workflow uses the Action Node whenever it needs to read or write something in iVendNext.

The Trigger Node is the listener. It registers a notification inside your iVendNext tenant and fires a workflow the instant a chosen event occurs — a new order is submitted, a stock figure changes, a customer record is updated. Where the Action Node waits to be told what to do, the Trigger Node starts the chain without being asked.

Most real automations use both. A Trigger Node detects the event; one or more Action Nodes then retrieve additional data, transform it, and write results back to iVendNext or pass them on to another system.

What You Can Build with It

The connector covers the integration scenarios that matter most to retailers:

E-commerce synchronisation. Keep items, prices, and stock identical between iVendNext and an online store. Pull web orders into iVendNext as Sales Orders automatically. iVendNext is the system of record; the webstore is the sales channel that stays in sync.

Shipping automation. When an order is submitted in iVendNext, push the shipment details to a carrier platform, receive the tracking number back, and write it onto the order — without any manual copying.

Customer experience. Trigger post-sale communications based on iVendNext events: order confirmations, loyalty notifications, review requests, or renewal reminders — at exactly the right moment.

Operational alerts. Notify a manager via Slack or email when stock falls below a threshold, when a high-value order arrives, or when a document sits without action past a deadline.

AI assistants. Attach the iVendNext Node to an n8n AI Agent and connect a language model of your choice. The agent can then answer plain-language questions — "what sold best yesterday?", "is this item in stock?" — by reading live iVendNext data.

How It Connects to iVendNext

The connector authenticates to your iVendNext tenant using an API Key and API Secret generated from a user profile in iVendNext. These are stored as a credential in n8n and reused across every workflow. The credential also stores your tenant address — the URL you use to log in.

Best practice is to create a dedicated integration user in iVendNext specifically for n8n automations. This user is granted only the roles the automations require, keeping the access scope narrow and making it easy to audit or revoke the connection if needed.

Dynamic Field Loading

One of the most practical aspects of the connector is that it loads your DocType field lists live from your tenant at design time. When you select a Document Type in the Action Node, the node fetches that type's complete field list from your iVendNext instance. Required fields appear first; the list includes any custom DocTypes or custom fields you have defined.

This means the connector always reflects your actual data structure. You are not mapping to a generic template — you are mapping to your business's exact document model. A connector used on a fashion retailer's tenant will show the fields that retailer uses; a connector on a food distributor's tenant will show theirs.

What Everything Runs On

The connector is published as an n8n community node under the package name @ivendnext/n8n-nodes-ivendnext. It installs in under a minute from inside n8n's Settings, with no server access or technical configuration required beyond the install and the credential setup. Once installed, both the Action Node and the Trigger Node appear in the n8n node panel and are available for use in any workflow.

iVendNext is delivered as a fully managed SaaS platform. There are no servers or infrastructure to configure on the iVendNext side.

How Execution Is Logged

Every workflow run in n8n is logged step by step. The log records the exact data at each node — what went in, what came out, and whether the step succeeded. If something goes wrong in a workflow that involves iVendNext, the execution log shows precisely where the failure occurred and what data was involved, without guesswork.

This transparency matters in a retail context, where automations are handling operational data — orders, stock levels, prices, customer records — and a silent failure could have a real business consequence.