Export manufacturers as current CSV template

AI Commerce manufacturers are exported using the Manufacturers Export profile in the Data Exchange view. The export produces a UTF-8 encoded, comma-separated manufacturers.csv file. Always export just before bulk editing so that the headers, language columns, and current values for manufacturers match the import processor's contract.

The export includes the manufacturer code, name, usage status, homepage visibility, CMS description selection, match value, order, allowed domains for product description automation, three image filenames, creation and modification time, and the top description and actual description for each data language. The export does not include manufacturers_id or delete columns, although the import accepts them as optional headers.

Manufacturer CSV columns

AI Commerce manufacturers' CSV uses the following basic columns in this order:

manufacturers_code,manufacturers_name,status,display_frontpage,cms_description,fit_value,sort_order,openai_product_description_allowed_domains,manufacturers_image,manufacturers_brand_page_image,manufacturers_listing_image,date_added,last_modified

Language-specific columns are added for each available data language as manufacturers_description_top[fi] and manufacturers_description[fi] pairs. The import also accepts optional manufacturers_id and delete headers. country_approved_product is not a permitted column for the current manufacturer import, so country or ISO-2 values should not be added to this file.

date_added and last_modified are included in the export, but are not used by the current import processor to construct a manufacturer create or update request. Do not attempt to change timestamps with CSV.

Tags, usage mode, and other values

AI Commerce manufacturer CSV handles identifiers, usage status, and other values according to strict column rules. The manufacturer import requires at least manufacturers_code or manufacturers_id column as the header. The processor looks for an existing manufacturer first by the positive ID provided, and then by the manufacturer code. If the ID and code are in the same row, they must belong to the same manufacturer.

A new manufacturer requires both a non-empty manufacturers_code and manufacturers_name value. CSV import does not create a missing code from the name. The field included in the update replaces the current value, while a completely missing column retains the current value.

The Boolean fields status , display_frontpage , and cms_description accept a value of 1 or true for enabled and 0 , false , or an empty cell for disabled. Any other value is an error. sort_order accepts an integer. fit_value and openai_product_description_allowed_domains are treated as text.

Image filenames do not load remote images

Image filenames in AI Commerce manufacturer CSVs do not load remote images. The image columns are manufacturers_image , manufacturers_brand_page_image , and manufacturers_listing_image , and they contain filenames, not URLs. The value cannot contain slashes, backslashes, .. parts, or null characters, and the fields have their own maximum lengths.

An image column that is completely missing from the update will retain the current image. An empty image cell included will set the image filename to empty. DELETE is not a delete command reserved for images, but would be treated as a regular filename. https:// is rejected due to slashes, and manufacturer import will not upload the image to the media library. Upload and approve images in a separate media process, and only use an approved filename in the CSV.

Updating language-specific descriptions

AI Commerce manufacturer CSV language-specific description update handles the top description manufacturers_description_top[<kieli>] and the actual description manufacturers_description[<kieli>] for each data language. For example, the columns for Finnish are manufacturers_description_top[fi] and manufacturers_description[fi] .

When a language column is completely missing from the file, the existing description is retained. When the column is included but the cell is empty, the value for that language is updated to empty. Missing or empty descriptions for the new manufacturer are saved as empty. So only keep language columns that you intentionally want to edit if you are not using a fresh export as a complete base.

Create, update, or delete a manufacturer

AI Commerce Manufacturer CSV allows you to create, update, or delete a manufacturer. The import creates a new manufacturer when the given code or ID does not find an existing row and the row has the required name and code. The existing manufacturer is updated based on the ID or the exact same code. If the update row does not change any values, the preview classifies it as skipped.

A manufacturer is deleted by adding a delete column and typing exactly CONFIRM in it. The deletion requires an existing manufacturer ID or code. CSV deletion detaches products from the manufacturer and does not delete products. An empty delete indicates a create or update, and any other non-empty delete entry is an error.

manufacturers_code,manufacturers_name,status,sort_order,delete,manufacturers_description[fi]
acme,Acme,1,10,,Acme-valmistajan kuvaus
old-brand,Vanha valmistaja,0,0,CONFIRM,

Preview and execute manufacturer import

AI Commerce manufacturers are imported using the Manufacturers Import profile in the Data Exchange view. Use a .csv file in UTF-8 format and comma-separated. The order of the headers can differ from the export, but the headers must be unique, valid, and contain manufacturers_code or manufacturers_id . An unknown or duplicate header will stop the preview.

Upload the file and preview each row for classification, changes, and errors. The preview counts rows to be created, updated, skipped, and failed. Fix any errors before committing. The execution report separates rows that were created, updated, deleted, skipped, and failed.

Test with a small batch and check the result

AI Commerce Manufacturer CSV is tested on a small batch before a large import. Start bulk editing manufacturers with a sample of 1-5 rows. Keep the original export as a restore point, change only the intended fields, and keep the codes and language columns strictly in the correct format. The separator used in the spreadsheet program should be a comma, not the semicolon as in the old instructions.

After execution, check the manufacturer name, code, usage mode, order, image filenames, and language descriptions, and any impact to the storefront. After deletion, verify that the products were preserved and only the manufacturer association was deleted. Retain preview and execution reports according to an approved audit and rollback policy.