How to measure products for a planogram and add them

Help center / Planning shelves

Each product has a name, SKU, category, a package shape (pouch or bag, box, or jar or can), a color for the shelf drawing, and its width, height and depth. Two fields are optional: a shelf price and the UPC or EAN number from the package's barcode. Width decides how much shelf one facing takes. Height is checked against the clearance above the shelf. Depth decides how many units fit front to back.

Add a product

1. Open Products and choose Add product.
2. Enter the product name, SKU and category.
3. Pick a measurement unit: inches, centimeters or millimeters. headoffis stores everything in inches.
4. Measure the package as it sits on the shelf, facing the customer, and enter width, height and depth.
5. Choose the package shape and a color for the shelf drawing.
6. If you want them, enter the shelf price in US dollars, such as 3.49, and the UPC or EAN number printed under the barcode. Leave either blank to skip it.
7. Tick the box that marks the dimensions as confirmed once you have measured a real package.
8. Choose Save product.

Import products from CSV

Choose Import CSV on the Products page. The import dialog has a CSV template. Every row needs an explicit unit of in, cm or mm, so a column of numbers is never guessed. The dialog shows how many rows are ready before anything is saved, and a row with a problem, such as a SKU already in the catalog, is reported by its row number. Imported products start unconfirmed, and layout checks flag them until you confirm the measurements. The template has no price or barcode columns, so add those by editing each product after the import.

How to measure package dimensions

• Width runs left to right across the face the customer sees.
• Height runs from the bottom of the package to its highest point as it stands, including any cap or lid.
• Depth runs from the front of the package to the back.
• Measure at the widest point. A pouch that bulges when filled takes more shelf than its flat edge suggests.
• Measure a real package from the shelf, not the case it shipped in, then tick the confirmed box.

Supplier spec sheets often list product dimensions for the case or in an order that does not match how the package faces the shopper. Check a figure against a real package before you rely on it.

What order are dimensions written?

Conventions differ between suppliers and industries, so a figure like 6 x 9 x 2 can mean different things on different sheets. headoffis avoids the question with three labeled fields: width, height and depth, each measured as the package faces the customer.

How many cm in an inch?

One inch is exactly 2.54 cm, or 25.4 mm, as NIST explains. You do not need to convert anything yourself. Enter centimeters or millimeters if your ruler reads that way, and headoffis converts the numbers to inches when it saves.

Shelf price and barcode

The shelf price is printed on shelf price labels. The Labels page prints a sheet with each product's name, price and barcode, ready for label sheets or plain paper. Enter the price in dollars with up to two decimal places, up to $10,000, or leave it blank.

The barcode field takes digits only: an 8, 12, 13 or 14 digit UPC or EAN number. headoffis checks the last digit, the check digit, and asks you to look again if it does not match the rest of the number. When the field is blank, the label prints a barcode of the product's SKU instead.

Where is the UPC code on a product?

It is the row of digits printed under the barcode, usually on the back or the bottom of the package. Type every digit, including the small ones at either end of the bars.

SKU vs UPC

A SKU is your own code for a product, and every product in headoffis needs one. A UPC is the manufacturer's number, the same in every store that sells that item. One product can carry both: your SKU for your records and the maker's UPC on its barcode.

What is the difference between UPC and EAN?

Both are GS1 product numbers. GS1 US describes the 12 digit UPC-A as the barcode used mainly in North America, and the 13 digit EAN-13 as the one used mainly elsewhere. headoffis accepts either, along with the shorter EAN-8 and the 14 digit GTIN-14.

Worked example: a jar of salsa

This is an illustration. A jar measures 3.5 in wide, 5.75 in tall with its lid, and 3.5 in deep. On a shelf 14 in deep, four jars fit front to back, because a fifth would need 17.5 in. Enter those figures, tick confirmed, and add a shelf price of 4.29 and the 12 digits under its barcode. When you place it in a planogram, a shelf with less than 5.75 in of clearance flags it as too tall.

Good to know

• Each business has one catalog shared by all its locations.
• Products are arranged one unit high. Stacking is not modeled.
• A product with stock recorded against it cannot be deleted. Move the stock or count it to zero first.
• Approved layouts keep a snapshot of each product's measurements, so a later edit changes drafts, not what the store already set up.

Coming soon

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