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The Data Import wizard lets an administrator load your master data in bulk from spreadsheet (CSV) files, so a new workspace is ready in hours instead of being entered by hand. It validates every row before saving, never overwrites data you’ve already entered, and tells you exactly which rows to fix when something’s wrong. You’ll find it under Settings → Data Import. It’s available to administrators.

What you can import

The wizard handles six kinds of master data:
EntityWhat it covers
CustomersThe buyers you sell to, with their default terms.
VendorsFactories and suppliers, each typed as a garment factory, fabric mill, or accessory supplier.
Fabric mastersYour catalog of fabrics (main materials).
Accessory mastersYour catalog of trims and accessories.
ColorsThe shared color list used to build colorways.
UnitsUnits of measure (such as yards or pieces).

Import in dependency order

Some records refer to others, so import them in this order:
  1. Units and colors first. These are referenced by other records and stand on their own.
  2. Vendors second. A fabric or accessory master can name its vendor, and that vendor must already exist.
  3. Fabric and accessory masters last. They reference vendors, categories, and units.
Categories and units named on a master row are an exception — see minted on reference below.

Preparing your data

For each entity, download the template from the wizard. The template is a CSV with the correct column headers and a couple of sample rows. Fill in your data under those headers — keep the header row exactly as provided.

The match key

Every entity has a match key — the column the wizard uses to tell whether a row is a new record or one that already exists:
EntityMatch key
Customersname
Vendorsname
Fabric mastersarticle_no
Accessory mastersitem_code
Colorsname_en
Unitscode
For fabric and accessory masters the match is normalized: hyphens, spacing, and letter case are ignored, so RI-026A and RI026A are treated as the same item. Everyone else matches on the plain name or code, ignoring case and surrounding spaces.

Columns by entity

The tables below list each column and whether it’s required. Anything not marked required is optional. Customers — match key name:
ColumnRequiredNotes
codeYesUnique customer code
nameYesCustomer or brand name
country, address, notesNoContact and free-text detail
payment_terms_daysNoNet payment days (e.g. 30)
default_trade_termNoDefault trade term (e.g. FOB)
default_destinationNoDefault ship-to destination
Vendors — match key name:
ColumnRequiredNotes
nameYesVendor or factory name
vendor_typeYesGarment factory, fabric mill, or accessory supplier
code, country, addressNoIdentification and location
contact_name, contact_email, contact_phoneNoPrimary contact
currency, payment_termsNoCommercial defaults
Fabric masters — match key article_no:
ColumnRequiredNotes
article_noYesArticle number (match key)
description, content, finish, weave, weightNoFabric specification
width_inches, gsmNoWidth and weight per area
lead_time_days, moq, mcqNoSourcing terms
standard_cost, currencyNoCost and its currency
min_stock_qtyNoReorder level
vendorNoFabric mill (must already exist)
category, unitNoCreated automatically if new
Accessory masters — match key item_code:
ColumnRequiredNotes
item_codeYesItem code (match key)
item_nameYesItem name
colour, size_specNoDescription
moq, lead_time_daysNoSourcing terms
vendor_quote_price, customer_quote_price, budget_priceNoPricing (with matching currency columns)
min_stock_qtyNoReorder level
vendorNoAccessory supplier (must already exist)
category, unitNoCreated automatically if new
Colors — match key name_en:
ColumnRequiredNotes
codeYesColor code
name_enYesEnglish color name (match key)
name_zhNoChinese color name
Units — match key code:
ColumnRequiredNotes
codeYesUnit code (e.g. YDS)
descriptionNoDescription

A note on file encoding

Save your file as CSV. UTF-8 is recommended, but files saved from a Chinese-locale copy of Excel (Big5 or GBK) are also accepted — the wizard detects the encoding for you, so Chinese names import correctly either way.

Two import modes

The wizard offers two modes. Choose the one that matches what you’re doing:
  • Create only — every row must be a new record. If a row matches an existing record, it’s reported as an error. Use this for initial onboarding, when the workspace is empty and every row should be new.
  • Fill blanks — for rows that match an existing record, only the empty fields are filled in; a field that already has a value is never overwritten. Use this to enrich existing records — for example, adding lead times or vendors to masters you imported earlier.
There’s no mode that overwrites populated data, by design.

Running the import

  1. Open Settings → Data Import.
  2. Pick the entity you’re importing.
  3. Download the template and fill it in with your data.
  4. Choose the mode — “Create only” or “Fill blanks”.
  5. Upload your completed file.
  6. Review the preview — the wizard parses and validates every row without saving anything yet (see below).
  7. Fix any errors and re-upload until the preview is clean.
  8. Commit. The wizard writes the data and shows a summary of how many records were created, enriched, and added by reference.

Reading the preview

The preview validates your whole file before anything is saved. It shows each row and flags any problems in a per-row table, telling you the row, the column, and what’s wrong — a missing required field, a vendor that doesn’t exist, a duplicate in “Create only” mode. The import is all-or-nothing: if even one row has an error, nothing is saved. Fix the flagged rows in your file and upload it again. This means you never end up with a half-imported file to untangle.

Minted on reference

On a master row, the vendor, category, and unit columns refer to other records by name or code:
  • A vendor must already exist — that’s why you import vendors before masters. A master naming an unknown vendor is reported as an error.
  • A category or unit is created automatically if it doesn’t exist yet — this is “minting on reference”. A unit created this way is identical to one you’d import through the units template, so you don’t have to pre-create every category and unit by hand.

After the import

  • Verify the counts. The result summary tells you how many records were created and enriched — check it against what you expected from your file.
  • Spot-check a few records in the relevant module to confirm the data landed where you expected.
  • Continue in order. If you’re onboarding from scratch, run units and colors, then vendors, then the fabric and accessory masters — so each step’s references are already in place.