Onboard a new supplier range in days, not months

Onboarding a new supplier range is where launch dates slip. SKULaunch runs the whole job in one place: the data request, the supplier's submission or file, mapping, enrichment and approval, so a newly signed supplier's range reaches your website complete and on time.

The problem

The commercial team signs a supplier with 800 SKUs and a launch date six weeks out. The data arrives in pieces: a price file, a PDF catalogue, an image link and promises of more. The catalogue team rebuilds it into your format, chases the gaps, writes the content and loads it. Each step waits on the one before, so the range either launches late or launches thin.

Before and after

An illustrative example from a new garden furniture supplier.

Before: week one of a new supplier

800 SKUs on a price file. Dimensions in a PDF catalogue. Images on a shared drive. No materials, care or assembly information. Launch in six weeks.

After: the same range in SKULaunch

• Data request sent from the platform on day one, with category templates
• Supplier file imported and mapped where they would not use the portal
• Dimensions, materials and assembly details extracted from the PDF catalogue
• Titles and descriptions written from the verified attributes
• Whole range reviewed and approved ahead of the launch date

How it works in SKULaunch

1. Request on day one. Send the supplier a data request built from your category requirements, so they know exactly what to provide.
2. Take the data in whatever form arrives. Portal submissions come in mapped. Files are imported and mapped once, with the mapping saved for next time.
3. Enrich the gaps. AI Tools fill missing attributes from datasheets, catalogues and manufacturer pages, then content generation writes the copy.
4. Approve against the deadline. Track the range by status and approve it in batches, so you can see days ahead whether the launch is on track.

What slows supplier onboarding down

It is rarely one big task. It is the handovers. Data waits for someone to reformat it, enrichment waits for the reformatting, content waits for enrichment, and nobody can see the whole queue. Onboarding speeds up when every step happens on the same record, in the same place, with status visible to the buyer and the catalogue team at once. That is also what lets you start enriching on day two instead of week four.

What changes

A 5x improvement in time to live. New ranges stop waiting on spreadsheets, and buyers can see exactly where each supplier is without asking.

Common questions

What if the supplier sends data in several files?

Import each one. Records are matched on the identifier you choose, so later files update the same products rather than duplicating them.

Can we start before the supplier has sent everything?

Yes. Enrich and approve what has arrived while the rest is outstanding, and track the gap by status.

Does the supplier need to learn new software?

No. They use a single link to the portal, or keep sending files.

See the full supplier onboarding guide, the supplier portal use case, and how new product introduction works.