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Catalog structure

Define a product type once Every SKU inherits its fields

A family is the field list for a product type: the attributes, the defaults and the required fields every product of that type carries.

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  • Attributes inherited parent to child
  • Defaults pre-filled on new products
  • Family set in bulk or on import

Key features

  • Build families in a hierarchy

    A child family inherits every attribute of its parent and adds its own: Shoes takes Size and Colour from Clothing and adds Sole Type.

  • Pre-fill what never changes

    Give an attribute a default in the family and a new product starts with that value instead of an empty field.

  • Make the required fields required

    Mark attributes required per family, so the editor and the quality checks agree on what a product of this type is still missing.

How it works

Three steps to a working family

The first step is the modelling work; the other two are a click each.

  1. 01

    Create the family

    Name the product type, add the attributes it needs, mark the required ones, set the defaults you always use, and give it a parent family if one fits.

    A field list you can point every product of that type at.

  2. 02

    Assign products to it

    Set the family on a single product, on a filtered selection with the Set Family bulk action, or on the incoming rows during an import.

  3. 03

    Let the structure do the asking

    The product editor shows that family's fields, the defaults are already filled in, and the required ones that are still empty show up in Quality Guard.

    Missing specs arrive as a list in WISEPIM, not as a rejected export.

Create a family

What changes once a family exists

The specification set moves off the products and onto the type they belong to.

  • One field list instead of fifty

    Adding a spec to a product type means editing one family, not opening fifty products that should have carried it all along.

  • New products start half filled

    Family defaults are written into a new product on creation, so the list of empty fields is short before anyone starts typing.

  • Removing a family keeps the data

    Unassign a family and the products keep the attribute values they already carry. You can point them at another family whenever you want.

The create dialog: the parent family at the top decides which attributes are inherited before you add any of your own.

In practice

Three product types, three field lists

What a family carries depends entirely on what the product type has to say for itself.

  • Fashion and apparel

    Fabric composition, care instructions, fit and origin are required on every garment; the Apparel family asks for them on each one.

    Result: no garment reaches a channel without its care information.

  • Electronics

    Laptops need processor, RAM, storage and screen size; monitors need panel type and refresh rate. Separate families, each with its own required set.

    Result: the spec table is complete per product type, not per editor's memory.

  • Food and drink

    Ingredients, allergens and nutrition are required on every food product, and a default unit of measure saves setting it per SKU.

    Result: the compliance fields are part of the form instead of an afterthought.

FAQs

Family questions, answered

How families, inheritance and defaults behave once your catalog grows.

Still have questions?

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Categories organize products for navigation and browsing, like Electronics > Laptops. Product families define the data structure: which attributes a product type needs, such as a Laptop family requiring Screen Size, RAM, and Processor. A product belongs to one family but can appear in multiple categories.

Parent families pass their attributes down to child families. A child family inherits all attributes from its parent and can add its own. For example, a Clothing family might define Size and Color, while a child Shoes family inherits those and adds Sole Type. Changes to the parent apply to all children.

Deleting a product family removes the family definition, but does not delete the products assigned to it. Those products become unassigned and keep their existing attribute values. You can reassign them to another family at any time.

Yes. When setting up attributes within a family, you can add default values that pre-fill when new products are created in that family. This keeps things consistent, for example setting the default unit of measure to centimeters for a Furniture family.

Select the products you want to assign, open Bulk Edit, and choose the Set Family action. All selected products are assigned to the chosen family and gain its attribute structure. You can also set the family during a product import.

Next step

Model one familyEvery SKU in it follows

Model your first family on your own catalog for free, or bring one product type to a call and we build it with you.

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The full product families guide

How to create families, set up inheritance and defaults, and assign products to a family.

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