Product Groups

Every product in Flow Retail belongs to exactly one product group. Product groups help you organize your catalog, track performance in reports, and target specific products in campaigns.

---

How product groups work

Product groups are organized in a hierarchy – like a tree with branches. At the top you have broad categories, with more specific sub-groups below.

Example:

|__ Brown Goods
   |__ TV
      |__ 20-29"
      |__ 30-49"
      |__ 50-69"
      |__ 70-99"
   |__ Projector
      |__ 40-99"
      |__ 99-149"

This structure lets you:

• Run reports at any level ("all Brown Goods" or just "TVs 50-69 inches")

• Target campaigns broadly or narrowly

• Keep your product catalog organized as it grows

---

How do I add a product group?

1

Create new product group

Head to Admin → Products → Product Groups and select New Product Group.

2

Name it, choose a parent, and save

Give your group a name, select a parent group (or leave empty for a top-level group), and click Save.

---

How many levels should I use?

We recommend 2–4 levels depending on your catalog size. Too few makes it hard to organize; too many becomes unnecessarily complex.

Number of products	Recommended levels
Under 100	1
100–999	2
1,000–9,999	3
10,000–999,999	4
1,000,000+	5

Not every branch needs the same depth. If you have a top-level group called "Services" with only five items, there's no need for sub-groups.

---

Do's and Don'ts

✅ Do

• Start broad, get specific – "Footwear → Sneakers → Running" works better than jumping straight to details

• Use consistent naming – if one group is "Men's", don't call another "For Women"

• Think about your reports – will you want to see "all jackets" or "all outdoor gear"? Structure accordingly

• Keep names short – "TVs" not "Television Sets and Monitors"

❌ Don't

• Don't mix categorization styles – avoid having "Nike" (brand) alongside "Running Shoes" (type) at the same level

• Don't go deeper than needed – if a group only has 5 products, sub-groups probably aren't necessary

• Don't use codes or abbreviations – "ELEC-TV-LG" is hard to read in reports; use "Large TVs"

• Don't create overlapping groups – a product should have one obvious home

---

Plan before you build Restructuring product groups later is time-consuming. Take time to sketch out your structure before creating groups in the system.