Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 2 Define Merchandise Category Hierarchy Levels ...................................................................................... 2 Define Merchandise Category Hierarchy Assignments ........................................................................... 5 Define Characteristics .............................................................................................................................. 7 Define characteristic values ............................................................................................................... 10 Define Characteristics Profile ................................................................................................................ 11 Define Merchandise Category ............................................................................................................... 13 Sample Test Data ....................................................................................................................................... 15 New article creation using merchandise category and sales order process .......................................... 15 Behavior in sales order creation ........................................................................................................ 18 How to add extra sizes to the generic article (Create extra variants) ....................................................... 19 Technical Details .................................................................................................................................... 25
Introduction “Merchandise Category” is a mandatory field that you need to key in when creating a new article (material) in FMS (SAP Fashion Management Solution) via transaction MM41. This is same in the IS-‐ Retail as well. This drives number of variant articles that you’re going to create based on color, size variations. However you will not see this field in the standard R/3 material master creation transaction (MM01).
Merchandise Category enables the user to categorize their merchandise in a structural way within the organization. This will allow the management to change their focus from individual article level to merchandise groups. Below steps will explain you all steps required to define a new merchandise category in FMS. I will take below example to explain the concept. Let’s say I have below items to be sold in my store and therefore required to define new merchandise category for those.
Define Merchandise Category Hierarchy Levels First you need to identify different hierarchy levels, which require defining your merchandise category. In my example shown above, I have 3 levels. We need to define those as merchandise category hierarchy levels. Transaction: CLWM Easy Access Menu Path:
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Double click on the node or call the above transaction Enter name for the top hierarchy level and press enter key (eg: I will define “AW” as the top level, i.e: Apparel)
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Enter description and save
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Now start defining next hierarchy levels required for your business. Please make sure to keep a standardized number sequence for the levels.
Eg: 2nd Level:
3rd Level:
Once all levels are defined, you will be seen it as below.
Define Merchandise Category Hierarchy Assignments Transaction: CLW1 Easy Access Menu Path:
Once hierarchy levels are defined, you need to assign those to define the hierarchy. • • •
Call the above transaction or easy access menu path Starting from the top hierarchy node, start assigning levels Enter top hierarchy level and press enter key
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Maintain lower levels in the hierarchy
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Save Now take one of those levels and assign lower level to it
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Carry out same steps until you finish assigning all levels and build the complete merchandise hierarchy
Define Characteristics Once defined, these merchandise categories will carry the color, size variations in the article master. When the article master is created, based on the merchandise categories you have selected, you will be able to select the relevant sizes of that generic article as well (Those will be known as variant articles). This functionality is handled via characteristics in SAP. (Similar setup was used in IS-‐AFS to define size grid of the material as well) Transaction: CT04 Easy Access Menu Path:
In order to define characteristics required, you need to analyze your article, color, and size variants. I will define one characteristic for S, M, L, XL sizes (Shirts, T Shirts, Jackets, etc.). •
Call the transaction or double click on the above easy access menu
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Enter characteristic name and click the “Create” button
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Complete the characteristic Basic Data tab
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Under values tab, you have options to maintain relevant values for that characteristic. You can use the button to select one out of below options. o You can maintain values directly in the characteristic values tab itself
o
Use “Check” table option and maintain the table required to check
o
Use “Function Module” -‐ WRF_CHECK_CHAR_VAL
o
Check against catalog characteristics
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I will use the “Function Module” option for my characteristic
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Save
Define characteristic values If you use the option “Function Module” under characteristic to store values, then you need to follow these steps to define those values Transaction: WRFCHVAL Easy access menu path:
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Double click on the above easy access menu or call the transaction Enter your characteristic values as follows
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Save
Define Characteristics Profile Once characteristics are defined, you need to create a characteristic profile to group them. For example if you have one article, which require 2 characteristics (Color, size), then you need to define a characteristic profile to keep them together. Later on, you will have to assign the characteristic profile to the merchandise category. Transaction: CLWE Easy Access Menu Path:
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Call above transaction or double click on the easy access menu Enter a name for the characteristic profile and press enter key
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Complete basic data
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Under “Char” tab maintain the relevant characteristics.
Please note; Relevancy “2” needs to be assigned to create variant articles •
Save
Define Merchandise Category Transaction: WG21 Easy Access Menu Path:
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Call above transaction or double click on the easy access menu Give a name to merchandise category and select highest merchandise category hierarchy level and the characteristic profile and press “Create New” button in each level.
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Maintain a reference article and save
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Do same for all hierarchy levels Once you have defined, you will be able to see all your merchandise categories as below
Sample Test Data New article creation using merchandise category and sales order process Transaction: MM41 •
Select the relevant merchandise category and the article category as “01 – Generic Article”
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Highlight relevant tabs and press enter key
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Based on the characteristic profile attached to the merchandise category below popup will be given
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Select the characteristic profile and press enter key In the next screen you will see relevant characteristics based on the characteristic profile you have selected
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Select size required for variant article creation and press enter key. Please note, those sizes you select are not the sizes that will get created as variants. You get another window to select relevant sizes for variant creation. But if you select those sizes in this screen (Even though you’re not going to create variant articles at this point of time, you leave the provision to create them later on)
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Those will be shown as below
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Press the back button Now select the size required for your generic article (variants). In the below example I am creating 3 sizes only. (3 variants)
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Complete the article master creation and save
Behavior in sales order creation • When you create a new sales order with generic article, the popup will give your sizes as below.
Size Extra Small and Extra Large is appear in the screen (But no editable), because I have selected those from the merchandise category popup at the article master creation. •
Based on the above size selection, the respective variant articles will be determined in the sales order line item as shown below
Please note, line item 10 is the generic article where as, line item 20 to 30 represent sizes (Known as variant articles in FMS). This used to be grid values (At schedule line level in AFS)
How to add extra sizes to the generic article (Create extra variants) You have 2 scenarios to discuss here. Scenario 1: If you keep provision at the generic article creation by selecting all characteristics from the merchandise category characteristic popup, but not select them at variant selection point; then you can add those sizes and create new variant article later on. • •
Call transaction MM42 Select the generic article and go to “Basic Data” tab
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Click on
button
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Select new characteristic values from the “variant selection” tab
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Go back to basic data tab using button Save New variant article will be created for those 2 new characteristics
Scenario 2: Add a new characteristic value to the characteristic and create a new variant based on that. •
Add the new characteristic value to the characteristic value table shown in the below easy access menu path
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Select your characteristic and add the new value
Eg:
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Save Now go to your generic article in change mode (Transaction: MM42) Select the “Basic Data” tab
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Click on
button
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Click on “Insert row” button and select the new characteristic value
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When you press enter key, it will added as a new characteristic
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Click on button and go to the “Basic Data” tab Save the article and go back to “Basic Data” tab again
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Now click on
button
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Select the new value from the “Value Selection” tab
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Click on button and save Now if you go back to “Variant Number” tab, you will see the new variant number
Technical Details •
Merchandise Category is stored in the material master table MARA-‐ MATKL
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All merchandise categories are stored in the table T023
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Function module “MERCHANDISE_GROUP_HIER_ART_SEL” will give you the relevant merchandise hierarchy levels for a given “Merchandise category”
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