Variants and Serial Numbers: One Product, Many Identities
A customer asks for a case in red. The system says twelve cases in stock. You open the drawer, and red ran out a fortnight ago.
That figure of twelve is not wrong — it simply does not answer the question being asked. Those twelve cases are nine black, three blue, zero red. And while the system holds only one combined number, you will keep ordering the colour that is already piling up while running out of the one that sells.
Variants split one product into several stocks that stand on their own. Colour, size, capacity, length or voltage — the dimensions are already provided, ready to choose. Each variant carries its own stock figure and its own movement history.
The consequence is not merely tidiness. You can finally see which colour genuinely sells and which has been sitting for a year — and that changes how you buy.
Then there is a second need that often gets confused with this. A variant answers “which one”. A serial number answers “this exact one”.
When a customer returns three months later saying the battery is faulty, the question is not what colour — it is whether the battery fitted was the one you sold, and when. Without a serial, the answer rests on memory. With one, you point at a specific unit and the date it was used.
Both can be switched on for the same product. But both carry a price: every marker you enable adds work at the till. This tutorial names when that price is worth paying — and when it is not.
Before you start
- The parent product is already registered.
- Decide first what is a variant and what is a separate product — changing it after transactions exist is awkward.
Steps
-
Decide first: is this a variant, or a different product?
One question settles it: does the customer call them by the same name? A red case and a black case are both "a case" — that is a variant. Engine oil and brake fluid have different names — those are two products. Getting this wrong makes your product list either far too long or far too vague.
-
Switch on "Ada varian" in the product Pengaturan section
Open the product and you will find a row of Ya/Tidak switches at the top: Punya Stok, Dapat dijual, Dapat dibeli, Sbg sparepart, Bergaransi, Ada Serial/IMEI, Ada varian, Catat dimensi, Rakitan, Multi Satuan. The one you want is Ada varian. While it stays on Tidak, the product is treated as a single item.
Variants switch on from the product settings section. -
Pick the dimension from the Nama Varian list already provided
The list is maintained under Pengaturan → Persediaan → Nama Varian and already holds the common dimensions: Warna, Ukuran, Kapasitas, Panjang and Tegangan (colour, size, capacity, length, voltage). Choose what is relevant — do not invent a new dimension when an existing one will do, because consistent dimensions make searching far quicker for a cashier.
Variant dimensions come from a list that already exists. -
Understand the biggest consequence: separate stock per variant
This is the real reason to use variants. Red cases running out does not mean black cases have. Each variant carries its own stock figure and its own movement history — so you can see which colour genuinely sells and which has been sitting for a year.
The big consequence: stock is separate per variant. -
Do not create variants for things you never count separately
The temptation is to varianticise everything. If you have never counted red and black separately, a variant only adds work at the till. The practical rule: create a variant only when you have run out of one while the other piled up.
-
Now switch to serial numbers — a different need entirely
A variant answers "which one". A serial number answers "this exact one". Both can be on for the same product, and they solve unrelated problems.
-
Switch on "Ada Serial/IMEI" only for high-value goods
The switch sits in the same row, labelled Ada Serial/IMEI. Worth enabling for batteries, screens, engines or warranted modules — and it usually pairs with the Bergaransi switch beside it. Not worth it for screws and cables: recording serials on screws will make a cashier stop recording anything within a week.
Switch it on only for high-value goods. -
Record the serial on arrival, not on the way out
This habit is decisive. A serial is recorded once when goods are received, then simply selected when used. Shops that delay recording until the item sells are always rushing in front of a customer — and that is exactly when a serial gets mistyped.
Record serials on intake, not on the way out. -
Use serials to end warranty arguments
Each serial stores when that unit was used. When a customer returns with a warranty claim, you are not debating memory — you point at a specific unit, its fitting date, and the repair that used it. This is also what makes a claim against your supplier undeniable.
The serial number ends the warranty argument. -
Occasionally review serials that were never used
A serial recorded in but never recorded out means the item is still there — or gone without a trace. Checking occasionally is far quicker than a full stock count, and usually enough for high-value goods.
What you end up with
Products with many colours or sizes carry separate stock per variant so your buying decisions are right, and high-value goods can be traced to a specific unit when warranty is disputed.
If something goes wrong
Variant stock does not show separately
Check the variant marker on the parent product. While it is off, all stock counts as one combined figure even though the variant names exist.
The product list became enormous after using variants
Usually because variants were created for things nobody counts separately. Archive variants that have not moved in six months — a short list gets used, a long list gets skipped.
Cashiers pick the wrong variant when selling
Give each variant its own item code and use barcodes. While a cashier has to tell them apart by eye from a text list, mistakes will keep happening — and that is not the cashier fault.
A serial was recorded but does not appear when selecting
Serials already used are not offered again. If an unused serial is also missing, check it was registered against the correct product and variant.
Recording serials one at a time is too much work
That is a sign serials were enabled on goods that do not need them. Turn it off for low-value items and keep it only for warranted ones. Serial numbers across ten products run smoothly; across two hundred they get abandoned.