Industries
ShowCato works for any business that shares product photos and prices with buyers. These industries use it most.
A jeweller, a pharma distributor and a spare parts dealer all have the same problem. They send photos and price lists to buyers, then retype the orders that come back. ShowCato solves it the same way for each of them.
This page shows what your industry setting changes, and how sellers in different trades set up their catalogs and links.
Supported industries
Choose your industry in the setup wizard or in Settings. It sets helpful defaults, such as the product fields used in bulk upload.
Each card opens that industry's full guide. Want to see a finished catalog? Open the Demo Catalogs.
The Industry list also has Real Estate and Other. Both use the general set of fields made for any wholesale business.
What your industry setting changes
Your industry does not lock or hide any feature. Every seller gets the same tools. It only changes a few helpful defaults.
Example text in your forms
Empty boxes show examples from your trade, so you know what to type. A jeweller sees "e.g. Gold Kundan Bangle Set" as the product name example and "e.g. GLD-BNG-001" as the SKU example. A fashion seller sees "e.g. Sarees, Kurtis, Shirts" as category examples.
Extra columns in bulk upload
The bulk upload template adds columns for details your trade cares about. Fill them in Excel and they are saved with each product.
| Industry | Some of the extra columns |
|---|---|
| Jewellery | Metal type, purity, gross weight, net weight, stone details, hallmark details |
| Fashion & Apparel | Fabric type, colours available, sizes available, fit type, sleeve type |
| Textiles & Fabric | Material composition, GSM, width, print or pattern, roll length |
| Pharmaceuticals | Composition or salt, strength, dosage form, pack size, expiry date |
| Auto Parts | Vehicle brand and model compatibility, part category, OEM number, warranty |
| Food & Beverage | Brand name, weight or volume, shelf life, veg or non-veg, FSSAI number |
| Electronics | Brand, voltage, connectivity, compatibility, warranty, certifications |
| Solar & EV | Capacity or wattage, voltage, battery type, efficiency rating, warranty |
Home Décor, Cosmetics and Agriculture have their own columns too, such as room type, shade and crop type. See Bulk Upload.
Pick the industry closest to what you sell. If none fits, choose Other. You can change it later in Settings.
Same tools, set up for your trade
Every industry uses the same products, catalog links and quotations. What changes is how you set them up: the options you add (size, purity, pack size), the collections you create and how long your links last.
| Setting | How trades use it differently |
|---|---|
| Options and variants | Sizes for shirts, purity for gold, pack size for tablets, wattage for panels |
| Collections | "Bridal 2025" for jewellers, "Summer Range" for apparel, "Kharif Season" for agri inputs |
| Link expiry | A few hours for new designs, a week for price lists, longer for steady stock |
| Price visibility | Show prices to trusted dealers, hide them on links you share widely |
| View mode | Interactive for ordering, Showcase for browse-only lookbooks |
Setups that work
Protect new designs and price from metal rates.
- Formula Price categories linked to gold and silver rates
- Short-expiry links for new designs
- Verification on links to trusted buyers
Share season ranges with retailers and garment makers.
- Sizes and colours as variants
- One collection per season or buyer type
- Quantity box switched on for bulk orders
Send current price lists to chemists and retailers.
- Pack sizes as options
- Weekly expiry so old prices stop circulating
- Slab discounts for bigger orders
Share exact specs so orders are right the first time.
- SKU and OEM numbers on every product
- A project-specific link for each big enquiry
- Weekly links for fast-moving stock
Tips from the industry guides
| Industry | Tip |
|---|---|
| Jewellery | Set new-design links to expire in 12 hours. Give your top buyers a link to a new collection 48 hours before everyone else. |
| Fashion & Apparel | Start small: upload 20 to 40 designs and send the link to your top five buyers. |
| Pharmaceuticals | Set price-list links to expire weekly, so old prices never circulate. Before a retailer visit, create the link on a computer; your field representative can then send it on WhatsApp during the visit. |
| Textiles & Fabric | Share new prints on 24 or 48-hour links. Make collections such as "Cotton Range" and send each manufacturer only what suits their production. |
| Auto Parts | Set your standard price-list link to expire weekly. Dealers know they are seeing current prices and ask for a fresh link when it ends. |
| Home Décor | Make separate links for interior designers and retailers. Each sees only the products and prices meant for them. |
| Cosmetics & Beauty | List each shade as its own product with its shade code and photo. The quotation then shows every shade code with its quantity. |
| Agriculture | Make one link for dealers with trade prices, and another for farmers with prices hidden or shown as you choose. |
| Solar & EV | For a big project, such as a 50 kW rooftop, create a link with just the panels, inverters and mounting that suit it. |
| Electronics | Share fast-moving stock on a weekly link. Send specialised items only to the shops that deal in them. |
Common mistakes
- Picking "Other" when your trade is listed. You lose the trade-specific bulk upload columns and examples.
- One link for every buyer type. Dealers, retailers and end customers need different products and prices. Make a link for each.
- Long links for changing prices. If your rates move weekly or daily, keep link expiry short.
- Missing codes. In parts, pharma and electronics, add SKU or model numbers so buyers order the exact item.