How to choose the right vendor connection type in Sync?
TB Sync · vendors · Last updated September 15, 2026 · Version 1
This process works in apps: TB Sync
This article will teach you which distributor connection types Sync supports and how to pick the right one.
Sync connects to suppliers in a few different ways, and picking the right one up front saves a lot of setup time. Some distributors have a prebuilt live API — Sync asks them for stock and price in real time while you search. Everyone else connects through a file feed: the distributor publishes an inventory file over FTP, emails it on a schedule, or your team uploads a spreadsheet. Both paths end up in the same Inventory search screen; the difference is how fresh the numbers are and who maintains the connection.
Steps
- Ask your distributor rep whether they offer an inventory API or an inventory file. That single answer decides the connection type.
- Choose a live API vendor when the supplier is one Tire Base already integrates with: ATD (American Tire Distributors) Ship-To-Home and Ship-To-Store, WTD Ship-To-Home, or the Tire Base POS API.
- Choose TireBase Partner when the supplier is another Tire Base customer sharing inventory with you — they generate a partner code in their own Sync.
- Choose FTP / SFTP Vendor when the distributor can drop a stock and price file on a schedule. Tire Base generates SFTP credentials on ftp.tirebase.io — you share them with the distributor. This works for any distributor, including ones with no API.
- Choose Manual Upload Vendor when your team uploads the spreadsheet yourselves.
- Open Sync → Vendors → Vendor Connection, pick that connection type, and follow the form. For FTP, click Provision SFTP. For live APIs, enter only the account details the supplier issued.
- Save, then run a size search in Inventory Catalog and confirm results appear under the new vendor tab.
Conclusion & best practices
Live API vendors only return inventory after Tire Base provisions them and sets the vendor status to Active — having credentials on the record is not enough. File feeds refresh on whatever schedule the distributor publishes, so treat their quantities as recent rather than live. One vendor record per supplier connection keeps ordering, analytics, and inventory shares clean.