There are several fields that can be imported into the software to best represent the products your supplier carries. A complete catalog usually contains identifying fields such as product codes and descriptions, as well as how your supplier requires the products to be ordered and for how much. Additionally, the brand, size and package unit can further define those products which can be updated to the products in your inventory. See the support topic on the EncomPos Retail Catalog Fields for details on how these fields should be formatted for importing.

The saved file from your supplier needs to be a tab or comma delimited text file for it to work. Go to the Suppliers on the tree view menu and beneath, click on the Suppliers Catalog. Before you can import a catalog, whether it is the first time or not, the supplier must be selected and all data retrieved. The Import icon in the toolbar will not be active until this is done. Use the drop down arrow in the Supplier Catalog Search criteria section to select the supplier you are importing a catalog for and then click the Show All icon in the toolbar (one of only two icons active prior to bringing up a catalog product).

Now the first icon in the toolbar, Import Catalog should be active. Click the icon to launch the File Import window. The default location for catalog files is the My Imports folder, but files can be saved in any location and browsed to from this window. (To browse, click the drop down arrow for the Look In field and use the menu to select the correct location of the file). Click the Open button and the Catalog Map window will open.

The fields on the left side of the window are the column names in the catalog file. These need to be mapped to the EncomPos Catalog fields by clicking the drop down for each column and assigning the appropriate field name. So if your column name in the file is Supp #, the drop down field is Supplier Item #. Select Not Used if you do not want to import a specific column, otherwise assign the match prior to selecting the type of catalog import.

Catalog Update Options:

Complete New/Replacement Catalog - This option is the default selection. It is used when you are going to replace the entire catalog with new, updated information. Products not on the new file will be discontinued, costs and pack information is updated and new products are added.

Catalog Product Addendum/Partial Update - Use this option if the file is a partial catalog or update file. New products will be added and existing products will be updated. Items are not discontinued using this option.

EncomPos Apparel Catalog - This is a special catalog with unique formatting for apparel items that are typically not barcoded and have several sizes and colors for each item number. New products are added and existing products are updated. Items are not discontinued using this option.

With the fields mapped and the update option selected, click the OK button. An Import Catalog Product status bar will overlay the catalog while it is being imported. For small files, this may only appear for a brief moment whereas larger files may take several minutes to import. (All products will look discontinued until the file has completed the import process).

Click the Save icon in the toolbar to commit the new catalog to the software. Your new catalog should now be ready to use for updating or adding new products to the catalog.