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Build a clean catalog

Your catalog is the spine of everything SKU does — orders, inventory, purchasing, and forecasting all reference it. This phase is about getting it clean and complete, in the right order. The sequence matters more than any single screen.

Seed from your strongest channel​

Import your products from the channel that holds the best product data — usually the sales channel where your listings are most complete. SKU creates your products from that source, and you enrich them from there. Seeding from your strongest source once beats stitching together thin data from several.

If your cleanest catalog lives in an internal system rather than a channel, you can start from that instead — the goal is the same: one strong source to build on.

Use the Product Data Health report to see where products are missing costs, dimensions, or other fields, so you know what to fix before you rely on them.

Set up kits and bundles before importing orders​

This is a golden rule for a reason: configure your kits and bundles before you import any sales orders.

A bundle only expands into its component products if SKU knows it's a bundle at the moment the order arrives. Import orders first, and those orders come in as the bundle SKU rather than its parts — so your component inventory doesn't deplete, and you are left correcting orders by hand. Set up your kits and bundles first, and every imported order expands correctly from the start.

Enrich and cost every item​

With products in and bundles defined, fill in the details that downstream work depends on:

  • Physical attributes — dimensions, weights, HS codes, and images. These feed shipping, customs, and your storefront presentation.
  • Supplier costs, MOQs, and lead times. These drive purchase orders and demand planning — without them, your reorder suggestions and forecasts can't be trusted.

Cost data is easy to defer and expensive to skip. Treat it as part of building the catalog, not a later chore.

Next steps​

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