> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.aimventory.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Products that already exist vs custom, and Quick Configure > Choose a shared catalog product or create a Custom Product, then understand what Product settings, Variant settings, and inventory setup change. Start by deciding whether the exact item already exists in **Product Catalog**. If it does, use that shared catalog product and add your store's **Product settings** and **Variant settings**; if it does not, create a **Custom Product** with its own identity. This choice determines which product and size records you work with, but it does not receive inventory for you. **Quick Configure** is the fast path from purchase-order intake for setting up products that already exist in AIM. It saves settings asynchronously, can create a zero-count inventory placeholder when no eligible row exists or preserve an existing inventory row, and can queue Shopify work; it is not a product-creation flow and a queued task is not proof of inventory or a channel listing being ready. ## What this changes downstream | If you choose | Then AIM will | And you will need to | | ---------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | A matching Product Catalog row | Keep the shared product and its existing variants, while your business adds Product settings and Variant settings. | Confirm the **Product match**, save the settings, and check the product's readiness before relying on it. | | **Create Custom Product** | Create a new product identity and custom variants instead of using the shared catalog identity. The new product normally belongs to the business where you create it. | Supply the required name and variant details, check for duplicates, and confirm the new product and sizes. | | **Quick Configure** from purchase-order intake | Save Product settings and Variant settings on existing product records, create zero-count inventory placeholders only when no eligible row exists (otherwise preserve the existing row), and queue a separate Shopify task when Shopify is enabled. | Review the values for every size, wait for the task to reach a terminal result, and validate inventory and Shopify separately. | ## Before you start * **Permission:** You need **Products access** to open Product Catalog and your products. You need **Purchase Orders access** to use Quick Configure from purchase-order intake. * **Business:** Sign in to the AIM business that owns the work. Product settings, Variant settings, purchase-order locations, and channel choices are business-specific. * **Product decision:** Product Catalog search supports the available name/title, nickname, brand, and SKU fields; it does not search variant size. Treat the style code/SKU, image, and available sizes as identity checks after you review a result, and use an existing row only when the identity and variants match the item you are handling. * **Custom Product details:** In the supported Create Custom Product form, have a name and at least one variant with a size ready. AIM can also require fields selected by your business settings; a Shopify business may need a category and price, and a **Pre-owned** item needs its condition details. A direct API request with no submitted variants can instead receive a default **One Size** variant; that backend fallback does not change the form's requirement for a sized variant. * **Channel work:** If you plan marketplace or Shopify work, connect the intended marketplace or Shopify store first and decide which sales channels and locations should receive the product settings. Local product setup and Quick Configure do not require a channel connection. ## The minimum setup 1. Open **Product Catalog** and search by the item's name/title, nickname, brand, or SKU (a style code may be represented by the SKU). Product Catalog search does not include variant size, so inspect each candidate's title, brand, style code/SKU, image, and available sizes before you select a row. If the match is not exact, do not use that row just because the name is similar. 2. For a matching row, open its Product settings. Add the store-specific product details, then review **Variant settings** for each size that you plan to receive or sell. Save the settings and confirm that the product shows **Configured & ready**. In the current product settings UI, this badge means a saved Product settings row has a real database ID; it does not by itself prove that every field is complete, inventory is received, or a channel listing is live. 3. If the matching product is part of a purchase order, review its rows and use **Quick Configure**. Check the product-level choices and the per-size values before submitting, then stay on the task until it reports a terminal success or failure. 4. If Product Catalog has no exact match, choose **Create Custom Product**. In the supported form, enter the product name, at least one variant size, and the required fields; add a Custom SKU, **Custom UPC**, price, images, or channel choices when they apply. A direct API request with no variants creates a default **One Size** variant, but the form still expects at least one sized variant. Submit, then confirm the new product and its variants in your products. 5. Receive physical inventory separately through the normal purchase-order or intake workflow. Product setup alone does not create an **Inventory unit**, increase **Available**, or make a size **Ready to list**. ### A fictional example Northstar Outfitters has a fictional purchase order for a fictional **Harbor Fox Trail Runner**. The exact title, style code, and sizes are already in Product Catalog, so Northstar selects that row, reviews Product settings and Variant settings, and uses Quick Configure for the purchase order. If no eligible inventory row exists, the task can create a zero-count placeholder, but Northstar still receives the physical units before expecting Available or Ready to list to increase; an existing row's counters remain preserved. Cedar & Coil cannot find its fictional **Maple Circuit Jacket** in Product Catalog. It creates a Custom Product, supplies the name and sizes, verifies the new identity, and then receives or intakes the physical units through its normal workflow. ## Further options ### Quick Configure: what it changes Quick Configure starts from existing AIM product records in purchase-order intake. Its task can: * Save the selected Product settings for each existing product. * Save Variant settings for the product's variants. Per-size values from the purchase order can supply a size-specific price, barcode, or other supported value; templates, rules, and defaults can supply values where the row does not. * Apply the selected publications, product details, and channel choices. Review the final values before submitting because the task is asynchronous and may continue after the modal closes. * Create a new zero-count inventory placeholder for an eligible variant with the needed Variant settings only when no matching inventory row exists. If a matching row already exists, AIM preserves and reuses it, including its current quantity. With a purchase order, AIM uses the PO location; without one, it uses an explicit location when supplied and otherwise the business default location. * Queue a separate Shopify operation when Shopify is enabled. A local Quick Configure success and a Shopify success are separate results. Quick Configure does **not**: * Create an AIM Product or Custom Product. It works on product records that are already present. * Receive physical units, add unit cost, or increase Available. A zero-count inventory record is a place for later receiving, not proof that stock exists. * Promise a live marketplace or Shopify listing. Check the target channel after the separate channel operation reaches its result. * Create a second listing for a row that already has a pending Shopify product. AIM holds that row for review of the existing listing and asks you to review its existing listing mapping; unmatched AIM sizes are not silently added by that path. * Undo every local change when a later Shopify operation fails. Treat the setting save, inventory preparation, and channel operation as separate checkpoints. ### Clone a Custom Product Use **Clone as Custom Product** when a new item has a similar structure to an existing shared catalog product or a Custom Product in the same business. The clone can copy descriptive structure and supported field values, but AIM generates a new identity rather than copying the source SKU, handle, or search details. Give the clone a different name and review every size before saving it; cloning does not create physical units. ### Product settings and Variant settings Use Product settings for details shared by all sizes: name, description, images, pricing choices, tags, and sales-channel selections. Use Variant settings for one size or option: size label, price, barcode, shipping details, and channel-specific values. A **Custom value** changes what your business uses without changing the shared catalog entry for other businesses. Templates, rules, publications, location choices, and Shopify options are useful when the same setup repeats. Add them only after the basic product identity and required sizes are correct; they can change many variants in one task. ## What this creates or changes | Action | Product and settings | Inventory and channel consequence | | ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Set up an existing catalog product | Keeps the shared Product and variants; saves your business's Product settings and Variant settings beside them. | Setup does not add physical units. Inventory and channel eligibility still need their own checks. | | Create a Custom Product | Creates a new product identity, custom variants, and the required Product settings and Variant settings. It does not copy a shared catalog identity. | Creation does not add physical units or Available. If Shopify is enabled, a separate sync may be queued and must be checked. | | Run Quick Configure | Updates Product settings and Variant settings for existing products and their eligible variants. | May create a new zero-count inventory placeholder when no eligible row exists, or preserve/reuse an existing row, at the PO, explicit, or business-default location; it may then queue Shopify work. Receiving is still required for physical units and quantity. | An inventory record and an Inventory unit are different. The record holds counters for a size, condition, and location; the unit is one physical item with its own cost and history. AIM's **Ready to list** number follows Available and the holds for damaged, Pending receiving, and other ineligible stock, so product setup should never be used as a stock count. ## Check it worked Use this checklist for an existing row, a Custom Product, or Quick Configure: 1. **Identity:** After searching with the available Product Catalog fields, verify the product title, brand, style code/SKU, image, and sizes on the result before selecting it. A Custom Product appears in your products with its own name and variants. 2. **Settings:** Product settings and Variant settings show the values you saved. The product settings page shows **Configured & ready** when the saved Product settings row has a real database ID; this badge is not a completeness, inventory, or live-channel result. 3. **Quick Configure task:** The task has reached a terminal success result, not merely **Queued**. If it reports failure, record the message before retrying. If the UI's five-minute loading timeout clears first, keep the task ID and check its status rather than treating the timeout as terminal. 4. **Inventory:** If Quick Configure created a new placeholder, verify that it is at the PO, explicit, or business-default location and starts with Available at zero. If it preserved an existing row, do not assume zero or overwrite its current counters; verify the row and location that were used. After receiving, verify Available, cost, and Ready to list in inventory; do not infer them from the product settings page. 5. **Shopify or marketplace:** If a channel task was queued, check its own status and then inspect the target channel. A saved publication or local success does not by itself prove that a listing is live. ## If you got it wrong * **The catalog choice was wrong:** Stop before receiving or listing. Return to Product Catalog, find the exact Product match, and use that row instead of creating another identity. If you already saved settings, edit the existing Product settings and Variant settings rather than making a duplicate. * **A value was wrong:** Edit the Product settings for product-wide details or the Variant settings for one size, save, and recheck the readiness and inventory values. A Custom value changes your business's use of the field; it does not change the shared catalog entry. * **Quick Configure is still running:** While the modal shows loading, leave **Save & Complete** alone; the UI disables that control and the worker uses a task-signature lock to skip duplicate execution. If the UI's five-minute timeout clears loading, the task may still be active: keep its task ID, check for a terminal status, and retry only after a terminal failure and review of the error and values that were saved. * **Shopify shows a pending existing product:** Stop and review the existing listing mapping. Confirm the intended listing and sizes before applying the mapping; do not take the create-new path for that row. * **You need to stop selling or remove setup:** Open the product's removal preview and follow its recommended mode. **Stop selling** or **Disconnect Shopify** can be safer than full removal when you need to preserve the AIM product and history. Full removal can be blocked by inventory or other protections, and when allowed it is not a clean rollback; read the preview before confirming. If a task fails after saving local settings, keep the task ID and error message. If the UI still shows active work, wait for its terminal status; if its five-minute loading timeout has cleared, check the task status before retrying. Correct the values and restart from the supported task or mapping surface only after the task has reached a terminal failure. Do not assume that a Shopify failure erased the Product settings or the inventory record; validate each checkpoint before trying again. ## Related * [How the inventory numbers fit together](/concepts/inventory-numbers) — understand Available, Ready to list, and what receiving changes. * [Product, inventory, listing: what each one is](/understand/product-inventory-listing) — see how products, settings, inventory records, units, and listings relate. * [Connect marketplace credentials](/setup/connect-marketplaces) — connect the channel before relying on channel-specific setup or sync.