When you create parent-child relationships between products, you help customers find different versions of the product they are viewing. To create a parent-child relationship between products, use inventory files or the Add a Product tool.
When creating parent-child relationships:
You can view the existing child ASIN(s) for parent ASINs in the Amazon catalog on the Add a Product page in your seller account. If your product is not in the Amazon catalog, you will have to create a new ASIN. For more information, see the ASIN Creation Policy.
There are a few special things to consider when you use inventory files to update, modify, or delete your inventory.
The following table demonstrates how you might use an inventory file to set up a parent-child relationship for several t-shirts that come in 3 sizes and 2 colors.
SKU | Title | Size | Color | Parentage | Parent SKU | Relationship Type | Variation Theme | Price | Quantity |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
101 | T-Shirt | parent | SizeColor | ||||||
101MB | Royal Blue T-Shirt M | Medium | Royal Blue | child | 101 | variation | SizeColor | 15.97 | 50 |
101SB | Royal Blue T-Shirt S | Small | Royal Blue | child | 101 | variation | SizeColor | 15.97 | 50 |
101LB | Royal Blue T-Shirt L | Large | Royal Blue | child | 101 | variation | SizeColor | 17.97 | 50 |
101MR | English Red T-Shirt M | Medium | English Cherry Red | child | 101 | variation | SizeColor | 15.97 | 50 |
101SR | English Red T-Shirt S | Small | English Cherry Red | child | 101 | variation | SizeColor | 15.97 | 50 |
101LR | English Red T-Shirt L | Large | English Cherry Red | child | 101 | variation | SizeColor | 17.97 | 50 |
In the example above, SKU 101 "T-Shirt" is the parent product. Because parent products are not offered for sale, fields such as size, color, price, and quantity are irrelevant and should not be used.
However, you should still describe other aspects of the parent product, including an image that represents the generalized product. The only information to omit relates specifically to price, availability, and shipping.
You can use XML uploads instead of inventory file templates to set relationships between products.
For more information about using XML to manage your inventory, see Establish Product Relationships - Relationship Feed Schema.
For information about deleting relationships between products, see Special consideration section under Modify Your Inventory File.
For information about best practices to follow, refer to Best practices section in When to use parent-child relationship in variation.