What is a SKU and how to create one

A SKU is an internal identifier for a distinct item that you stock and sell. It helps the team distinguish products even when their names or packaging look similar. A useful code remains stable enough to connect counts, labels and sales records over time.

The letters stand for stock keeping unit. Your business chooses its own system; the code does not need to contain every fact about the product. The practical goal is reliable identification. Start with the differences that require separate stock records, then create short, consistent codes and keep descriptive details in their own fields.

SKU versus barcode identifiers

An internal code and a globally assigned product identifier serve different purposes. A barcode is a machine-readable representation of data; it is not automatically a separate product identity. Your supplier's packaged product may already carry a standardized identifier that you should record without inventing a replacement.

GS1 US explains GTINs and their role in identifying trade items. Keep that field separate from your internal code. Encoding an internal identifier in a barcode does not make it a GS1-issued number or guarantee that another retailer's system will recognize it as the same product.

How to create SKU numbers

Choose a compact convention, document it and apply it consistently. You might combine a short category prefix with a sequential number, or use a stable numeric sequence with no embedded meaning. Select an approach your team can maintain as the catalog grows.

Avoid putting changeable details such as shelf location, selling price or current supplier inside the code. Those details may change while the item remains the same. If every move or price update forces a new identifier, the scheme creates work and makes comparisons harder. Keep those values in dedicated fields instead.

Product variant code examples

Distinct sizes, colors or pack quantities usually need separate records when they are counted or sold separately. In an illustrative clothing catalog, TEE-010-BLK-S and TEE-010-BLK-M distinguish two sizes. A different business could use 10021 and 10022 with the same result, provided the descriptions are clear.

Check how the team handles packs. A single bottle and a sealed pack of six cannot share one stock record if they are tracked as different selling units. Define the unit in the product description and train staff to count it consistently. Do not expect a code alone to explain a conversion process.

Keep internal item codes readable

Short codes are easier to type, print and compare, but readability matters more than reaching an arbitrary length. Avoid a convention that depends on staff distinguishing similar characters in poor lighting or remembering a long sequence of abbreviations.

Shopify's SKU guidance describes practical considerations for internal codes. Test your proposed format on a label and in a search field before adopting it for hundreds of items. Ask a colleague to identify a product from the printed code and description without an explanation from the person who designed the system.

Prevent duplicate product identifiers

Keep one place where new codes are assigned and checked. Search the existing catalog before adding an item, including older records that are no longer routinely sold. Two records with the same internal identifier make a count or sales import ambiguous.

Do not recycle a retired code for an unrelated product simply because the number looks available. A historical label or spreadsheet may still refer to the original item. Document who can create codes and how corrections are reviewed. This is a small administrative step that prevents the team from maintaining several competing versions of the catalog.

Build a product code reference list

Record the internal identifier, full product name, variant, selling unit and supplier barcode where one exists. Add package measurements when the catalog will support shelf planning. A code identifies the item; the other columns let a person confirm that they found the right one.

Use the stock planning workbook as a starting point for organizing records. Keep leading zeros intact when opening or moving data between spreadsheets. Review a sample after any import or export, because automatic number formatting can turn a carefully chosen text identifier into a different-looking value.

Handle a change to product packaging

Decide whether the change represents the same stocked item or a distinct selling unit. A new package size, quantity or variant may need a separate stock record. A cosmetic label refresh may be handled differently depending on how you need to distinguish stock operationally.

Check the supplier's product details and existing identifiers before changing your catalog. Do not infer that two packages are interchangeable because their names are similar. If old and new versions coexist, tell staff how to count and label them. Preserve enough context to understand records created before the change.

Print codes on shelf labels

Include a readable product name and internal code so a person can identify the item even when scanning is unavailable. Keep the shelf label paired with the correct product after a move, price change or range update. A readable but misplaced label still gives the wrong instruction.

headoffis can generate barcode or QR labels from product records. When a suitable validated product barcode is unavailable, its linear label uses the internal SKU in Code 128. That does not add a point-of-sale connection. The label planning guide explains sizing, previews and checks before a larger print run.

Maintain codes as the catalog grows

Review a few recent additions regularly for missing variants, duplicate descriptions and inconsistent selling units. Fix the convention before small differences spread through future records. Keep changes deliberate when an identifier already appears on labels, counts or shared files.

The headoffis workspace is coming soon. Its product catalog uses unique internal SKUs alongside product details and optional barcodes, with product setup instructions available for planning. Use the code scheme to connect those records consistently; do not treat it as a substitute for checking the physical item. Join the waitlist for launch updates.

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