Smart Inventory Management: Configuring Shared Inventory for POS Products
Shared inventory is a feature within the SHOPLINE POS Smart Inventory Management app. It allows multiple SKUs to be managed under a unified inventory logic, enabling inventory sharing and synchronized stock changes across different products. This helps you manage inventory more efficiently and avoid duplicate stock tracking, wrong shipments, or overselling.
Common Use Cases
- SKUs for the same product across different platforms or stores can share inventory.
- Different codes for the same product (e.g., international codes vs. local codes) can be managed under a unified inventory.
How to Access and Configure Shared Inventory
You can access the feature by navigating to SHOPLINE Admin Panel > POS > Smart Inventory Management > Inventory > Shared Inventory from the left-hand menu. Once on the page, you can start configuring your shared inventory groups.
| Note: This is a standalone module. No separate toggle or setting is required — it's ready to use by default. |
- From the Smart Inventory Management app, go to Inventory > Shared inventory and click Create Association in the top-right corner.
- In the pop-up window, search for and select the SKUs you want to include in the shared inventory group, then click Associate to confirm and complete the setup.
- After configuring the inventory groups, you can access the Shared inventory page at any time to review and manage them.
Configuration Rules & Limitations
To ensure inventory synchronization is stable and accurate, the system applies the following restrictions when setting up shared inventory associations:
| Limitation | Description | System Prompt (Example) |
| SKUs under the same SPU cannot be grouped together | Prevents SKUs of the same product but different specs from causing inconsistent inventory changes | Grouping failed. SKUs under the same product (SPU) cannot be linked. Please check the following SKUs: T-shirt/White/S, Shorts/Red/L. |
| Max 10 SKUs per group | Limits the size of a shared group to prevent excessive inventory sync chains | You cannot add more than 10 SKUs to the same group. |
| One SKU can only belong to one group | Ensures each SKU only participates in one shared inventory logic | Grouping failed. A single SKU cannot be added to multiple groups. Please check the following SKUs: T-shirt/Black/M, Hoodie/Grey/L. |
Friendly Reminder
- Only manual SKU association is supported at this stage.
- Each SKU retains its own independent inventory quantity. When any SKU in a shared group experiences a stock change (e.g., shipment, sales, transfer, or stocktake), the same change amount will be applied to the other SKUs in the group.
- If SKUs have different initial inventory levels, the system won’t automatically equalize them. Only future inventory changes will be synced.
- Please ensure the grouped SKUs share the same inventory logic before linking them to avoid discrepancies or confusion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1: Is inventory synchronization real-time?
A1: Yes, inventory changes are synced in real-time across all linked SKUs.
Q2: What happens if one of the SKUs is delisted or deleted?
A2:
- Delisted SKUs: Stock sync will continue to function.
- Deleted SKUs: They will be automatically removed from the group.
Q3: How can I remove a SKU from a shared inventory group?
A3: Please follow the steps below to cancel the association of a SKU:
- From the Smart Inventory Management app, go to Inventory > Shared Inventory, and locate the relevant group. Click Cancel Association next to the SKU you want to remove association from.
- Select the SKUs that you want to cancel the association, then click Save to complete the process.