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How to create and review a product's formats

Product formats are being rolled out gradually. If your restaurant does not yet show the Formats tab or pending-purchase assignment tools, contact haddock to request access.


From Product formats, you can create a product's presentations, link them to its Base unit, and decide independently whether each format is used in Order and Inventory.


📌 Contents




Open a product's formats


  1. Go to Products.
  2. Open the product you want to review.
  3. On its page, select the Formats tab.
  4. Expand a format to review its details and options.


From here, you can create formats, review their equivalences, check purchase lines, and edit or delete formats when possible.



Create the first format


If the product does not have any formats yet:


  1. Click Create first format.
  2. Fill in Format name, for example, 75 cl bottle.
  3. Select the Packaging, such as bottle, box, bag, can, or unit.
  4. In Contains, enter how much the format contains.
  5. Check the Base unit inherited from the product. If you need to change it, do so first in the product settings.
  6. Review the Order and Inventory options.
  7. Save the format.


The first format uses the product's Base unit as its reference. For example, a bottle containing 0.75 l equals 0.75 l of the base unit.



Configure Order and Inventory


The two checkboxes work independently:


  • Enable Order if you want to use the format when ordering the product.
  • Enable Inventory if you want to select the format when adding or counting the product in an inventory.


You can save a format with Order off and Inventory on. This is useful for products received through a transfer or formats that you need to count even though they have no supplier at the location.


You can also enable Order and disable Inventory if you buy that presentation but do not want to use it in counts.




Once at least one format exists:


  1. Click Add new format.
  2. Fill in Format name and Packaging.
  3. In Reference format, select the format it contains.
  4. In Contains, enter how many units of the reference format it includes.
  5. Configure Order and Inventory for the new presentation.
  6. Save the format.


For example, if 75 cl bottle already exists, create Box of 6 bottles, select the bottle as the Reference format, and enter 6 in Contains.


The equivalence chain is calculated through to the base unit. In this example, 1 box equals 6 bottles and 4.5 l.



Example: transferred product without a supplier


Suppose you receive boxes of wine from another location and do not buy that wine directly at the current location.


  1. Expand the Box of 6 bottles format.
  2. Click Edit.
  3. Turn off Order.
  4. Turn on Inventory.
  5. Save the changes.


The format can now be selected in inventories even if it has no supplier or its supplier belongs to another location.


When counting, enter the quantity of the format: if you have 3 boxes, record 3 boxes. haddock will apply the configured equivalence once and calculate 18 bottles or 13.5 l. Do not enter a quantity that you have already converted manually.



Review and edit a format


  1. Expand the format you want to change.
  2. Review its equivalence with the Base unit and its Reference format.
  3. Click Edit.
  4. Change Format name, Packaging, Contains, Reference format, Order, or Inventory as needed.
  5. Click Save.


Before changing Contains or the Reference format, check the resulting equivalence. This conversion will be used to interpret quantities in purchases, orders, and inventories.


Use View purchase lines to review associated purchases before changing a format that is already in use.



Delete a format


  1. Expand the format.
  2. Select Delete format.
  3. Confirm the action.


You cannot delete it if it is in use or has dependencies, such as associated purchase lines, use in orders or inventories, or formats that use it as their Reference format.


Review View purchase lines and related formats to find those dependencies.



Frequently asked questions


Does enabling Inventory also enable Order?


No. The two options are independent, and you should configure each one according to how the format is used.


Can I inventory a format without a supplier?


Yes. Enable Inventory. You do not need to create a supplier for the location or enable Order.


Should I convert boxes to bottles before recording the count?


No. Select the box format and enter the number of boxes. haddock will apply the equivalence once.


Why can't I delete a format?


It may have associated purchases, orders, inventories, or other formats. Review its purchase lines and dependencies before trying again.


Also read Product formats: what they are and how they help you order and inventory better.

Updated on: 06/08/2026

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