A product sells for RUB 1,500. How much remains after fees, logistics, returns, advertising and product cost?
Unit economics converts a period report into the result for one defined unit. It supports pricing, discount and advertising decisions at SKU level. The calculation should begin with actual operations and one documented denominator, rather than an assumed average tariff.
The workflow below applies to ProfitVena’s live Wildberries analytics.
Unit economics is a management model. It does not replace statutory profit, tax accounting or cash-flow analysis.
Step 1: Define the unit
Record the SKU and variant, seller account, region, fulfilment model, warehouse scope, period, currency and the event counted as a completed sale.
Do not combine variants when price, dimensions, cost or return behavior differ. An order, sale, unit and payout are different entities. Choose one denominator, such as completed sales for the period under a documented returns rule.
Step 2: Assemble revenue after returns
Start with realization operations, not the bank payout. Keep sales, discounts, adjustments, returns, reversals and compensation visible as separate lines.
In Product 360, verify that product, period and completed-sales quantity agree with the financial level. Preserve signs: a negative adjustment reduces income; it does not become a new expense category.
Step 3: Group costs by source
| Group | Include | Preferred evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Product | cost of goods, packaging, labeling | accounting source and effective date |
| Marketplace | commission, payments, logistics, storage, receiving | financial detail |
| Returns | return logistics, handling, damage | return operations and stock records |
| Promotion | advertising and selected tools | campaign report |
| Shared | team, software, rent | internal ledger and allocation rule |
Do not hard-code today’s tariff as a permanent constant. Tariffs vary by category, warehouse, model and date. Prefer the actual operation. If a rate is used, retain its effective date and reconcile it against the realized charge later.
Step 4: Calculate per-unit values
Use the same denominator throughout:
Revenue per unit = revenue after returns / completed sales.
Cost per unit = attributable costs / completed sales.
Profit per unit = revenue per unit − cost per unit.
Margin = profit per unit / revenue per unit × 100%.
Keep source precision in intermediate calculations and round only the displayed result. A small per-unit rounding error multiplies across volume.
Worked example
An SKU has 100 completed sales and RUB 150,000 in revenue after returns.
| Metric | Period | Per unit |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue after returns | RUB 150,000 | RUB 1,500 |
| Product cost | RUB 60,000 | RUB 600 |
| Fees and payments | RUB 30,000 | RUB 300 |
| Logistics and returns | RUB 12,000 | RUB 120 |
| Storage and receiving | RUB 3,000 | RUB 30 |
| Advertising | RUB 15,000 | RUB 150 |
| Allocated expenses | RUB 5,000 | RUB 50 |
| Profit | RUB 25,000 | RUB 250 |
Margin is 250 / 1,500 = 16.7%. Reverse check: RUB 250 × 100 = RUB 25,000. These are illustrative figures, not a recommended margin.
Step 5: Show two result layers
When a shared cost cannot be attributed directly, choose a clear driver: completed sales, revenue, orders, clicks, storage volume or team time. Record the rule owner and review date.
Show both product contribution before shared costs and the result after allocation. This distinguishes an uneconomic SKU from a negative result caused by an allocation method. Never assign one cost directly and allocate it a second time.
Step 6: Test price and discount scenarios
Create a baseline and change one assumption at a time: discounted price, return rate, logistics, advertising per sale, product cost or volume.
Suppose a discount reduces revenue per unit by RUB 150. With other costs unchanged, profit falls from RUB 250 to RUB 100 and margin to approximately 7.4%. Maintaining the original RUB 25,000 profit would require 250 completed sales instead of 100, assuming everything else remained constant.
This is a scenario, not a forecast. It defines the condition for a decision; it does not claim demand will grow.
Step 7: Reconcile the result
- Multiply per-unit profit by completed sales.
- Compare it with SKU profit for the period.
- Sum SKUs and compare with the account total.
- Explain unallocated costs, adjustments and adjacent-period operations.
- Preserve the rule version and review date.
Forecast Center is preparing for integration and can be discussed as a preview. This scenario does not imply automated demand, price or purchasing forecasts.
Where ProfitVena helps
ProfitVena connects live Wildberries data, Profit Engine and Product 360 so a team can move from account profit to one product’s economics and verify every material source line.
Technical part updated in ProfitVena.
ProfitVena is developed by Wicsora LLC and is part of the Wicsora ecosystem.
Methodology and CSV worksheet: SKU unit economics for marketplaces.
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