---
title: "Organize your products and services | Helcim Learn"
slug: "organize-products-services"
description: "Use categories, brands, and collections in Helcim to effectively organize your products and services for easier management and sales."
updated: 2026-03-19T14:53:48Z
published: 2026-03-19T14:53:48Z
canonical: "learn.helcim.com/organize-products-services"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://learn.helcim.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Organize products and services (with categories, brands, and collections)

As your list of products (goods and services) grows, keeping things organized becomes essential! A tidy catalogue isn't just nice to look at – it makes managing your items easier, helps customers (and you!) find things faster, and allows for useful filtering in reports and sales tools like the [Helcim POS app](/v1/docs/what-is-the-helcim-pos).

Helcim offers three main ways to group your products: categories, brands, and collections. Let's explore what each one does and how to set them up.

## Using categories

---

Think of **categories** as the primary way to structure your products or services for both internal management and customer-facing displays (like your Online Store or POS).

****Creating or editing a category****

**In the Categories page**

1. Navigate to **Products & Services** (via **All Tools**).
2. Click the **Categories** tab on the left-side menu.
3. Click the **Add new category** button in the top right.
4. Enter a **Category Name** (e.g., "Apparel", "Consulting Packages").
5. **Optional:** To create a sub-category, select a **Parent Category** from the dropdown.
6. **Optional:** Set **Availability** options if needed (though this can often be managed at the product level).
7. Click **Save**.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/add-new-category-flow.png)

**Other methods**

- You can create new categories while you’re adding a new product in the Products & Services tool. Learn more [here](/v1/docs/add-edit-products#adding-a-good).
- You can also quickly add new categories directly within the [Helcim POS app](/v1/docs/what-is-the-helcim-pos). Learn more [here](/v1/docs/add-products-helcim-pos).

****Assigning products to a category****

You can assign products when [adding/editing them individually](/v1/docs/add-edit-products).

1. Click the ![the edit icon](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/edit.png) icon on a product to open the editor.
2. Select the **Category** field to see a list of existing categories.
3. Type to search for a specific category.
4. Once you select one, click **Save** in the top right corner.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/add-product-to-category.png)

****Reordering Categories****

The order categories appear in the **Categories** list determines their display order in tools like the Helcim POS.

1. Go to the main **Categories** list page.
2. Click the **Reorder Categories** button in the top right.
3. Drag and drop the category names into your desired order. (Note: You can only reorder main categories, not sub-categories directly).
4. Click **Save Categories**.

## Using brands

---

**Brands** are a helpful way to organize and filter products, especially useful internally or within the POS.

****Creating or Editing a Brand****

1. Navigate to **Products & Services**.
2. Click the **Brands** tab on the left-side menu.
3. Click the **Add New Brand** button in the top right.
4. Enter the **Brand Name**.
5. **Optional:** Add a **Brand Description**.
6. **Optional:** Set **Availability** options.
7. Click **Save**.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/add-new-brand-flow.png)

****Assigning Products to a Brand****

Similar to categories, you can assign brands when editing a product.

1. Click the ![the edit icon](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/edit.png) icon on a product to open the editor.
2. Select the **Brand** field to see a list of existing brands.
3. Type to search for a specific brand.
4. Once you select one, click **Save** in the top right corner.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/add-product-to-brand.png)

## 

## Using collections

---

**Collections** are used for additional grouping and sorting of products. They can be used for specific promotions or internal management tasks.

****Creating or Editing a Collection****

1. Navigate to **Products & Services**.
2. Click the **Collections** tab on the left-side menu.
3. Click the **Add Collection** button in the top right.
4. Enter the **Collection Name**.
5. **Optional:** Add a **Collection Description**.
6. **Optional:** Set **Availability** options.
7. Click **Save**.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/add-collection-flow.png)

****Assigning Products to a Collection****

1. Go to the **Collections** tab and click on the Collection you want to add products to.
2. Select **Products under Collection** from the menu on the left.
3. Search for existing products and click on them to add them to this collection.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/4e721329-1a9d-4ef0-8d2f-497e0c1f185a/Images/Documentation/image(95).png)

## Conclusions

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Organizing your catalogue pays off!

- Use **categories** for primary structure, customer display, POS layout, and defining add-ons.
- Use **brands** for additional filtering and organization, especially helpful in the POS.
- Use **collections** for flexible grouping and management.

Taking a little time to set these up can save you a lot of hassle down the road and make your product management much smoother.

## Next steps

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- Apply add-ons or create product variations: [Create variants and add-ons for products](/v1/docs/create-variants-add-ons)
- Add more items to your organized catalogue: [Add and edit products](/v1/docs/add-edit-products) / [Add and edit a service](/v1/docs/add-edit-services)

## 

---

### FAQs

**What's the main difference between categories and collections?**

Categories are generally used for the main, often customer-visible structure (like store aisles) and are required for add-ons. Collections are more for flexible, often internal, groupings (like a "Featured Summer Items" group) that might cross multiple categories.

**Can a product belong to multiple categories, brands, or collections?**

A product belongs to one primary category and one brand, but can be assigned to multiple collections.

**How do categories affect my Online Store or POS?**

Categories influence the navigation structure in your Online Store and how items are grouped or filtered in the POS app, making it easier for customers and staff to find things.

**What do the 'Availability' toggles do when creating categories/brands/collections?**

These toggles control where the category, brand, or collection itself is visible or active:

- **Availability:** The main toggle to make the item generally available to customers across applicable Helcim tools.
- **Availability online:** Makes the item available specifically in Helcim's Online Store (Online Checkout tool).
- **Availability retail:** Makes the item available specifically in the Helcim Point-of-Sale (POS) App, including the Smart Terminal.