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What is a category?

Learn about categories in Katana and how they help organize products and materials for efficient inventory management.

Dayvid Lorbiecke avatar
Written by Dayvid Lorbiecke
Updated over a week ago

In Katana, categories are used to organize products and materials, enhancing inventory management efficiency. By grouping similar items, categories facilitate more straightforward navigation, filtering, and reporting across various tables and views, such as product or material lists and inventory screens.

Categories can be assigned to both products and materials.


Purpose of categories

Categories serve as organizational tools that help:

  • Group similar items: Organize products or materials that share characteristics.

  • Facilitate navigation: Quickly filter and sort items in various views, such as product or material lists.

  • Enhance reporting: Generate reports based on specific categories for better insights.

Examples of how you can categorize items:

  • Product type: e.g., Chairs, Tables

  • Geographical market: e.g., US, Australia, India

  • Responsible employee: e.g., Mary, John

  • Material function: e.g., Table Legs, Chair Legs


Managing Categories

Categories section within the Settings screen

Adding a new category

  1. Navigate to Settings > Categories.

  2. Click on + Add row.

  3. Enter the desired category name.

Assigning categories to items

  • Open the product or material card.

  • Locate the Category field.

  • Select an existing category or type a new one to create it on the fly.

Editing or deleting categories

  • To edit, go to Settings > Categories, click on the category name, and make the necessary changes.

  • To delete a category, click the trash bin icon next to it. Note that deleting a category will remove it from all associated items, leaving their category fields empty.


Best practices

  • Plan ahead: Establish a clear categorization strategy that aligns with your business needs.

  • Keep it simple: Use concise and descriptive category names for clarity.

  • Regular review: Periodically assess and update categories to reflect any changes in your inventory structure.


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