Configure a product

Configuring a product exposes a lot of options and they each do meaningful work behind the scenes. This article walks through every field on a quantity-tracked product so you can pick values that match how your team operates and so the cost numbers on reports come out right.

Two ways to set a product up

When you add a product, Rinvy offers two paths to the same result:

• Guided setup — a step-by-step wizard that asks one plain-language question at a time. Your early answers (how you track the product, where it comes from) decide which later steps appear, so you only ever see fields that apply. It ends with a Review screen before saving.
• Quick form — the dense, single-screen form this article walks through, with every field at once. Fastest when you already know what you need.

The first time you add a product on a device, Rinvy asks which you'd prefer; after that it reopens whichever you used last. You can switch between the two at any time — each view has a switch link — and nothing you've already entered is lost. Editing an existing product always opens the quick form; switch to the wizard from there if you like.

Both paths collect the same fields and save the same product, so the field-by-field reference below applies whichever you use.

Name and category

Name is shown everywhere the product appears — counts, receipts, recipes, reports. Use the name your team would write on a count sheet.

Category is the storage location (Walk-in, Freezer, Dry Storage, Bar, etc.) — required for everything except non-inventoried products. Categories determine how products are grouped during inventory counts.

Default counting unit

The unit your team uses when counting the product. This is the unit shown everywhere stock is displayed and the unit recipes will most commonly reference.

• Burger patties: each
• Chicken breast: lb
• Olive oil: each (if you count by the bottle) or gallon (if you count by the container)

Pick whatever your team actually says out loud during a count. Don't pick oz just because the supplier sells in ounces — pick the unit you'd hand-write on a count sheet.

Case size

The number of default-unit items in one supplier case. Optional.

• Burger patties, case size 25 — one case = 25 each.
• Chicken breast (4 lb avg per breast in a case), case size 4.
• Olive oil sold bottle by bottle: leave case size blank.

When case size is set, the count screen shows two inputs ("cases" + "loose items") and adds them up. Receiving lets you select either the case unit or the default unit.

Case cost

The cost of one full supplier case. Required if case size is set.

Supplier (optional)

Linking a product to a supplier is what makes the order list group orders correctly and computes delivery timing from the supplier's order day and lead time. It's optional during initial setup — you can attach a supplier later.

A product can only have one supplier. If you buy the same item from two suppliers, pick the primary one (or create two products if you need to track them separately).

Unit cost (calculated)

The product modal shows a unit cost field but it's read-only — Rinvy computes it as case cost ÷ case size. You can't enter a unit cost directly. If you want the unit cost to change, change the case cost or case size.

Minimum stock

The threshold below which a low-stock alert fires and the order list flags the product.

• Burger patties: 60 (covers a busy weekend)
• Chicken breast: 10 lb
• Olive oil: 2 (always have a backup bottle)

Minimum stock is in the default unit. Pick a value that covers your typical delivery cycle for that supplier. For fast-moving items, lean higher; for shelf-stable backups, lean lower.

Unit conversions (optional)

Unit conversions tell Rinvy that the same product can be measured more than one way, so recipes (and receiving) aren't locked to the unit your team counts in.

You don't need a conversion just to move between units of the same kind — pounds and ounces, or cups and tablespoons, already convert on their own. Conversions are for crossing between weight, volume, and count.

What you see depends on your counting unit.

Counting in a container or count unit (each, bag, case, package…)

You get three independent rows — 1 [unit] = … — for count, weight, and volume. Fill in whichever your recipes use; leave the rest blank. Each stands on its own, so the same number is never entered twice.

• Count — 1 package = 20 each, so a recipe asking for 2 each deducts a tenth of a package.
• Weight — 1 bag = 5 lb, so weight-based recipes work.
• Volume — 1 bag = 0.6 gallon, for volume-based recipes.

Counting in a weight or volume unit (lb, oz, cup, gallon…)

The counting unit already anchors one side, so you give the product its weight-to-volume equivalent in a single row:

• A weight (lb, oz, g, kg) — 1 [unit] = [amount] [volume unit]. For sugar counted in lb: 1 lb = 2.27 cup, so a recipe calling for 1 cup of sugar deducts 0.44 lb. Density presets for sugar, flour, oil, and other staples fill this in for you.
• A volume (cup, fl oz, gallon, ml, …) — the mirror, 1 [unit] = [amount] [weight unit]. For milk counted in gallon: 1 gallon = 8.6 lb.

A count conversion (1 lb = 20 each) is also available under Advanced, for the rarer case where recipes call for this product by the piece.

Active toggle

Existing products show an Active toggle. Inactive products are hidden from counts, the order list, and low-stock alerts, but their history (receipts, recipes, reports) is preserved. Inactivating is the safer alternative to deleting a product that's been used in any workflow.

Example

Related

• Product setup overview
• Choose the right product type
• How cost is computed
• Import products from CSV