Import Excel

This manual describes how Exchange Excel Import works. Excel Import is used, among other things, to quickly create large quantities of inventory lines within the Exchange module of RetailVista through an automatic import. The advantage of using Exchange is that the new lines do not immediately end up in the administration after import, but first end up in the "Exchange". Then it can be checked whether the data is correct and whether price changes are necessary before the data is actually imported.

Exchange

-> Start -> Exchange -> Exchange

On the left side of the screen you can find "Tasks". Here you can click on "Excel import".

Excel file: Click on "Choose File" to select the specific Excel file.

Profile: If you use Exchange frequently, you can set up profiles. Then you don't have to link the columns every time you want to import an Excel file for exchange. All columns must always be in the same place in the Excel file. Each supplier provides Excel files in their own way, with their own format. It can be assumed that each supplier will offer the same layout every time. By creating and saving the settings for a supplier once in a profile, that profile can be used for all future input from that supplier. Choose an Excel file and, if applicable, a profile.

Click on "Next" to continue.

Excel sheet details

Sheet to import: If there is more than 1 sheet in the Excel file, you can simply select the sheet you want to import. The name of the sheet is the same name displayed in the Excel file.

First line to read: This is the line where the data in your Excel file starts. Usually, the first line contains the headers.

Default for missing fields

If there are no data in the line or Excel file for these fields, you can fill in what should be the default. This can prevent lines from being skipped if certain data is missing.

Import purchase data: In the Excel import process, it can be indicated that purchase data should also be imported.
Supplier for purchase: If "Import purchase data" is checked, the supplier can be entered.
Purchase unit: As part of the purchase information, RetailVista requires a purchase unit. For this reason, a fixed purchase unit can be set in the import screen, which applies to the entire file being imported. If the purchase unit is not specified, it must be present on each line of the Excel sheet and must be linked to a column via "Excel import".

Click "Next" to continue.

Barcode details

If it concerns new products without a barcode, you can choose whether RetailVista should generate the barcode and write it back to Excel. If you have an Excel file with barcodes per product, you can link them later.

Schedule prices

If the Excel file contains prices that are scheduled and not immediately current, you can set the date. This allows for pre-processing of exchanges.

Custom fields

If you use custom fields and these fields are present in the Excel file, you can choose to import the custom fields and the custom table.

Click "Next" to continue.

Now the Excel file lines can be linked by selecting which column contains which information. If there are headers in the Excel file, you can set "Show this row" to the header row to make this process easier.

At least one of the following properties must be specified:

• Barcode or Article Number. We recommend using the barcode if it is in your Excel file
• Description
• Classification Level 1
• VAT code

Attention!! If you use collection products, the "collection identifier" column must also be linked, otherwise this product will be imported as a standard product and the product type will be changed from collection to standard.

If you want to create a profile, click on the "Save" icon in the top right corner. All settings that have just been entered will be saved to that specific profile.

Click on "Next" to start the import.

Now the question is whether a test import should be performed or if the data should be imported directly into Exchange. The advantage of a test import is that a processing report is generated without the data actually being imported into Exchange. This allows you to first evaluate the report and check if the Excel file is correct and if all column settings are correct. After making that choice, a progress bar will appear showing the progress of the import.

Importing Excel files is a "background process". So there is no need to wait until the import is complete. The status of the import process can be checked via the menu Tools -> Processes. The final import report can also be viewed at any time afterwards. By waiting until the import is processed, the following screen will appear showing the import report. The number of successfully processed records is important in this report. For the rejected/failed lines, the reason why they were not processed is indicated for each line.

If the test is successful, click on "Previous".

Click on "Next".

Click on "No".

Now the final import will start.

The above images show that the file has been successfully imported and all lines have been accepted. By clicking on "Finish" and then restarting Exchange, the imported data will be visible.

Therefore, it is not necessary to first choose "Fill Exchange", because the data is already in Exchange.

In Exchange, you will see the filter screen. You can choose filters to select new products or modified products or another filter. You can set the filters yourself by clicking on "Create new filter".

Click on "Next".

You will then see the articles before they are processed and added to the system. You can select everything by clicking on the first checkbox at the top of the screen.

Click on "Next" to continue.

Indicate which articles you want to transfer and click on "Transfer".

Click on "Download report" to see if the import was successful.

 Our advice is to check a few articles after the import has been performed. If applicable, also check the purchase information to ensure its correctness. Then also check your gross profit percentage (margin).

If the quantity is not correct or if there is another problem, you can see this by a very strange margin. The example below is perfect. 1 Box of 5 pieces - Sold at 50% gross profit percentage (margin).

Special characters

Sometimes it is necessary to perform special operations on certain columns of the data to be read. This can involve converting descriptions to lowercase, removing 'high' Ascii (special characters), removing spaces, etc.

Behind each Excel column, there is an icon on the far right to indicate special properties for each column.

Summary

Exchange is a highly versatile module that can be used in many ways. This guide provides some general guidelines for using Exchange. Excel import allows for importing larger amounts of data. Using import profiles requires some extra time to set up an import definition. However, this extra time is more than recovered in later input. Currently, Excel sheets up to and including Excel 2007 can be imported.

Also consult the Exchange manual.