What is Product Hierarchy

A product hierarchy is the structured way of organizing products by grouping them into levels based on inherited attributes.

The top levels are usually non-sellable products (most are parent products) that contain standard information and pass it down to the last level, which is the sellable version that customers buy (variants of that parent product), and contain unique attributes like color and size. This setup helps teams manage complex catalogs by showing how products group together and how variants fit under main parents.

In platforms like Plytix, product hierarchies form the foundation for organizing parents, variants, bundles, and non-sellable products, keeping your catalog scalable, clean, and ready for multichannel distribution.

Examples

Parent and variant A smartphone (parent) with different storage sizes and colors as variants grouped beneath it.
Product bundle A gaming console sold together with a controller and headset, grouped as one bundle product.
Non-sellable product A shoe style that groups all color and size variants but isn’t sold directly itself.
Multi-level variant A jacket available in colors, and each color variant also has multiple size options as sub-variants.
Component relationships A laptop (parent) with interchangeable parts like RAM and storage, organized under a product hierarchy.

A brief history

Product hierarchies have traditionally helped businesses organize products based on relationships and variants, primarily in ERP and retail systems to manage SKUs across different locations and assortments.

With the rise of ecommerce and Product Information Management (PIM) platforms, these hierarchies have evolved beyond simple SKU grouping to support complex product relationships, multi-level variants, and both sellable and non-sellable products.

Modern product hierarchies organize data, simplify ordering, and ensure consistency across channels.

Good to know

  • Not just for ecommerce: Product hierarchies are also used in B2B catalogs, marketplaces, print catalogs, and product lifecycle tools.
  • They support automation: Many PIM platforms use hierarchies to drive inheritance, relationships, and workflows.
  • They help control visibility: By defining levels in your hierarchy, you can decide which products are displayed or hidden in different channels.
  • They don’t always stop at variants: In complex catalogs, you may have multiple layers (like parent > color > size).

Know more

Frequently Asked Questions

Is product hierarchy only important for ecommerce?
No, it’s valuable in any industry managing large or complex product lines, including manufacturing, retail, and distribution.
How do product hierarchies affect channel exports?
A well-structured hierarchy helps you control what product information gets pushed to each sales channel, and in what format. For example, you might only export sellable variants to Amazon but include parents in a B2B catalog.
Can bundles exist within a hierarchy?
Yes – bundles are often structured alongside or under product families, especially when they’re built from individual SKUs already in your system.
Can a product hierarchy have multiple levels?
Yes, hierarchies can be simple with just parents and variants, or complex with multiple layers like bundles, families, and sub-variants.
Do all platforms support multilevel hierarchies?
Not all. Some platforms are limited to one parent-child relationship, while others (like Plytix) support multilevel nesting and inheritance.