Inventory glossary

What is Product master data?

Product master data is the core set of information about each product that a store keeps in one place, such as SKU, cost, supplier, case pack size, lead time and barcode.

For a small Shopify store, product master data is what every forecast and reorder decision rests on. If the case pack size or supplier lead time is wrong in your records, your reorder quantities and order-by dates will be wrong too, even if your sales forecast is accurate.

Keep this data clean and in one place: one SKU, one supplier, one cost, one lead time, one case pack per variant. When you add a new variant or switch suppliers, update the master record right away so nothing downstream breaks.

Example

A candle store sells a "Vanilla 8oz" variant with SKU CND-VAN-08. Its master data record says: supplier is WaxWorks Co, lead time is 14 days, case pack is 12 units, unit cost is $4.50. When the store owner plans a reorder, they pull these facts from one record instead of checking old emails or guessing.

Common mistakes

  • Keeping cost, lead time or case pack size in spreadsheets that are not updated when suppliers change terms.
  • Letting two systems (Shopify and a supplier spreadsheet) disagree on the same SKU's details.
  • Not recording case pack size at the variant level, so reorder quantities get rounded incorrectly.

Product master data and SteadyShelf

SteadyShelf uses each SKU's lead time, case pack size and supplier to calculate order-by dates and rounded reorder quantities, so accurate product master data makes its suggestions accurate too.

SteadyShelf is launching on the Shopify App Store. Join early access to get the install link first.

Related terms

SKU · Case pack · Lead time · Supplier · Unit of measure

Full inventory glossary

FAQ

Where should product master data live for a small Shopify store?

Ideally in one system of record, such as Shopify's product and variant fields plus a connected inventory or reorder app, rather than spread across spreadsheets and emails.

What happens if product master data is wrong?

Reorder quantities, order-by dates and purchase orders built from it will also be wrong, for example ordering in the wrong case pack size or using an outdated lead time.

Let SteadyShelf do this math for every SKU

Order-by dates per supplier, seasonal forecasts and draft POs for your Shopify store. $29/month after a 30-day free trial.

Get early access