Illustrative situation
A growing brand has SKUs like HOOD1 and HOODIE-BLK2 created by different people. Stock counts do not match, and the warehouse cannot tell colours apart on cartons, so the brand wants a structure that scales.
Main answer
A SKU should identify the style, colour and size in a stable, readable pattern, kept separate from the barcode number, with fixed lengths and no ambiguous characters, and a master sheet that the factory and warehouse share. Plan the structure before the first order, because changing it later means relabelling stock.
What a SKU is
A SKU, or stock keeping unit, is your own internal code for a product variant, used in inventory, orders and cartons. It differs from a GTIN, which is a global trade number carried by a barcode. You choose SKUs yourself, so you can design them for clarity. The two should be linked in a master sheet.
A simple pattern
A common pattern is style code, colour code and size code, separated by hyphens or in fixed positions, such as HD01-BLK-M. Use short codes for colours that people can remember, and use S, M, L and so on or numeric sizes for sizes. Keep the structure the same across all products, so that it can be parsed.
Avoid problems
Avoid characters that look alike, such as zero and the letter O, and avoid spaces and special characters that break systems. Do not put changeable information in the SKU, such as season or price. Do not reuse a SKU for a different product. Leave room for growth in the number of styles and colours.
Updating the structure
If you must change your SKU structure, map old codes to new ones in the master sheet and change labels only on new production. Avoid renaming live SKUs in your systems while stock is in transit, as this causes mismatches in receiving.
Master sheet and sharing
Keep a master sheet with SKU, GTIN, description, colour, size, cost and factory code, and share it with the factory so that labels and cartons use the same codes. Check that carton labels and packing lists match the master. See GS1 barcodes and carton labels.
Fact, recommendation, uncertainty
- Established fact
- A SKU is an internal code you define, while a GTIN is a global number carried by a barcode, so the two serve different purposes.
- Recommendation
- Use a fixed style-colour-size pattern, avoid ambiguous characters and share a master sheet.
- Uncertainty
- No standard dictates SKU format, so choose one that your systems and team can use.
Sources and further reading
No single official source defines this, so this answer is a recommendation based on how production and buying are commonly organised. Confirm every figure and term in your own quotation.
More perspectives from the team
Three further views on the same question, each by function. They add conditions and limits to the main answer; they are editorial notes, not customer reviews.
Sino Finetex Editorial Team Sourcing
Ask the factory to use your SKU on cartons and packing lists, not its own codes. Limit: some factories need their own code too, so map them. Share the SKU master sheet with the factory in a locked version that you control.
Sino Finetex Editorial Team Product selection
Keep colour names and codes consistent across the website, tags and orders. Limit: a colour renamed for marketing can break the link. Reserve code ranges for future styles so that numbering stays tidy.
Sino Finetex Editorial Team Quality & care
Check that carton labels carry the correct SKU and size at inspection. Limit: a wrong colour code is hard to spot without the master sheet. Reconcile counts by SKU at receiving against the packing list on the first shipment.
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