Collections
Collections are optional groups of products, such as "New Arrivals" or "Diwali Range", that make sharing faster.
A category says what a product is. A collection says which group you want to share it with. For example, shirts, kurtis and sarees can all sit in one "Wedding 2025" collection.
Categories vs collections
- Required for every product
- Describes the product type, such as "Shirts"
- Sets the price type: Fixed or Formula
- Buyers can see category filter buttons
- Optional
- A selling group, such as "Diwali Range" or "Export Quality"
- Has no effect on price
- Helps you pick products quickly when you make a link
When to use a collection
"Diwali Range", "Summer 2025" or "Wedding Season" for products you push at a certain time.
"New Arrivals" or "Best Sellers" for the products you share most often.
"Hospital Supply" or "OTC Range" for a pharma distributor who sells to different buyer groups.
"Export Quality", "Budget Range" or "Bridal 2025" for a jeweller.
Create a collection
- Open Collections and click + New Collection.
- Enter a Collection Name and an optional description.
- Click Create Collection.
The name can be up to 100 characters. The Description (optional) is a note for you and your team, such as "Festive stock for retailers in Gujarat".
The Collections page lists each collection with its Description, number of Products and the date it was Created.
Add products to a collection
Open a product and choose the collection in the Collection / Catalog field. A product can be in one collection at a time. In bulk upload, use the catalog_name column.
From the product form
The Collection / Catalog dropdown is in the Product Information section. Choose No collection to take a product out of its collection. If you have no collections yet, the form shows a + Create a collection first link.
From bulk upload
Type the collection name in the catalog_name column. The match ignores capital letters, so "diwali range" finds "Diwali Range". If no collection has that name, ShowCato creates it for you. See Bulk Upload.
Moving 50 products into a new collection? Download them in a template, fill the catalog_name column and upload the file again. A matching SKU updates each product, so this works only for products that have a SKU.
Using collections
When you make a catalog link, the All Collections filter shows only that collection's products, so you can select them all at once.
- Start a new catalog link and go to Select Products to Share.
- Pick a collection in the All Collections filter.
- Click Select all products. Only the products shown are selected.
On the Products page, the All Collections filter also helps you review or edit one group at a time.
Buyers do not see your collection names. Collections are a tool for you. Buyers only see the products you put in the link.
Edit or delete a collection
Click Edit to change the name or description, then click Save Changes. Renaming does not affect the products inside it.
A collection that still has products cannot be deleted. Move its products first.
Tips and common mistakes
- One collection per product. If you need a product in "New Arrivals" and "Diwali Range", pick the one you share more often.
- Clean up after the season. Move products out of old festival collections, so your filters stay short.
- Only Active products appear in links. A collection full of Draft products will look empty when you make a link.