Skip to content

Categories, brands and units (with sub-units)

View as .mdUpdated

Categories, brands and units keep your catalog tidy: they drive the POS category buttons, product filters, reports, discounts and your online store menus. This page explains the 3-level category tree, brand logos, and units with sub-units (for packs, cartons, strips and weights).

Open Products › Categories. You see your tree with each category’s code (for example C118), level badge (L1, L2, L3), product count, and buttons to add a sub-category (+), edit, move, switch on or off, and delete.

Categories page with search, All categories filter, Expand all, Collapse all, Import prebuilt and Add category buttons, and a list of main categories such as Beverages, Café Menu, Dairy & Bakery with level badge, product count, add, edit, move, on/off switch and delete
The category tree. Counts at the top show main, sub and sub-sub categories.
  1. Click Add category for a main category, or the + on a row to add a sub-category under it.
  2. Type the name. Optionally add a code, image and website details.
  3. Save. The tree refreshes.
  4. To reorder, drag the ⋮⋮ handle. To nest, drop a category onto another one. Moving a category moves its sub-categories and its products with it.
  5. Use the switch to turn a category off. Its sub-categories are switched off too. To turn one back on, its parent must be on; you are asked whether to switch on only this one or also its sub-categories.

On the product form you choose Category, Sub category and Sub-sub-category, and a product belongs to the deepest one you pick. The products list Category filter matches any level.

Open Products › Brands. Each brand has a logo, an Active switch, a Website badge and a Web-ready score for your online store. Click Add for a new brand (name, logo, description, and website details), or Import prebuilt for well-known brands by industry.

Brands page with Import prebuilt and Add buttons, Status filter, and a table of brands with Logo, Brands, Status switch Active, Website badge On website, Web-ready percentage and Edit / Delete
Brands with status, website badge and web-ready score.

Switching a brand off hides it from the product form, the POS and the website; it stays in reports.

Open Products › Units. The list shows Name, Short name and Allow decimal.

Units page listing Bag (10), Box (12), Carton (12), Carton (24), Carton (6), Dozen, Kilogram with Allow decimal Yes, Pack (5), Pieces and Tray (24)
Base units like Pieces and Kilogram, plus pack sub-units like Box (12) = 12 Pc(s).
  1. Click Add.
  2. Type the Name (for example Kilogram) and Short name (kg).
  3. Set Allow decimal to Yes for things sold by weight or length (1.25 kg), No for pieces.
  4. Save.
  1. Make sure Enable Sub Units is ticked in Settings › Business Settings › Product.
  2. In Products › Units, click Add, type the name (for example Box) and short name.
  3. Tick Add as multiple of other unit, type how many (for example 12) times base unit and pick the base unit (Pieces).
  4. Save. On each product that comes in boxes, pick the box in Related Sub Units.

At the POS or on a purchase you can then choose the unit on the line: sell 1 Box and stock drops by 12 Pieces. The price per box is the piece price × 12.

Import prebuilt units window showing the Weight group with Gram and its sub-units Kilogram (already added), Quintal, Metric Ton and Tola with their conversion to Gram
Import prebuilt units come with their conversions, for example 1 Kilogram = 1000 Gram.
Unit Type Means
Tablet Base unit Stock is counted in tablets
Strip of 10 (Tablet) Sub-unit 1 strip = 10 tablets
Box of 20 (Tablet) Sub-unit 1 box = 20 tablets (2 strips)

A customer can buy 3 loose tablets, 1 strip or 1 box. The selling price you set is per tablet; the strip and box prices are worked out from it.

Two more lists live in the same menu:

  • Products › Variations – templates such as Size or Colour used by variable products.
  • Products › Warranties – warranty terms (name, duration) you can pick on a product and print on invoices.

Frequently asked questions

How many category levels can I have?

Three levels - category, sub-category and sub-sub-category, for example Electronics › Televisions › Smart TVs.

Can I move a category under another one?

Yes. Drag the handle and drop a category onto another one. Its sub-categories and its products move with it, as long as the tree stays within 3 levels.

What happens when I switch off a category?

Switching off a category also switches off everything under it. It disappears from the product form, the POS and your website, but stays in reports.

Why can't I delete a category?

A category can't be deleted while it has sub-categories or products at any level. Move or recategorise them first, or switch the category off.

What is a sub-unit?

A sub-unit is a bigger or smaller pack of the same item, defined as a multiple of a base unit, for example Box (12) = 12 Pieces. You can sell or buy in either and stock is kept in the base unit.

How do I sell loose tablets, strips and boxes?

Use a base unit Tablet with sub-units Strip of 10 (Tablet) and Box of 20 (Tablet), and pick them in Related Sub Units on the product. Pharmacy products from the Product Library are set up this way automatically.

Where do I turn sub-units on?

In Settings › Business Settings › Product, tick Enable Sub Units. The Product Library turns it on for you the first time it imports a product with sub-units.