# Categories, brands and collections

Catalog

GrandNode groups products in three ways. **Categories** form a tree and are the main navigation of the storefront. **Brands** say who makes a product; each product has at most one. **Collections** are curated groupings that cut across categories, such as "Autumn essentials" or a gift guide. All three share the same editor shape, so once you know one you know the others.

### Categories

Open **Catalog → Categories**. The list shows the full path of every category (for example *Fashion \>\> Men*), whether it is on the home page, in the menu, visible, and its display order.

![The Manage Categories list with category paths such as Tech & Audio \>\> Headphones & Speakers, columns for home page, menu, visibility and display order, and Export and Add new buttons](https://grandnode.com/Plugins/Theme.GrandNodeCom/Content/kb/catalog/category-list.webp)

Catalog → Categories.

#### Add a category

1. Click **Add new**.
2. On **Category Info** enter the **Name**, a **Description** shown above the product list and optionally a **Bottom description** shown below it (useful for longer SEO text).
3. Choose the **Parent category** to place it in the tree; leave it empty for a top-level category.
4. Set the switches described below, then click **Save** or **Save and Continue Edit**.

![Editing the category Men: the Category Info tab with name, description and bottom description editors, and tabs SEO, Products, Discounts, Documents and User fields](https://grandnode.com/Plugins/Theme.GrandNodeCom/Content/kb/catalog/category-edit.webp)

The category editor. The Products tab maps many products at once.

| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Parent category | Places the category in the tree. The path appears in breadcrumbs and in the admin list. |
| Picture, Icon | An image for category tiles and an icon for menus, where the theme uses them. |
| Category layout | The template used to render the category page (grid, list, or a theme's own layouts). |
| Page size, Allow customers to select page size, Page size options | How many products a page shows and which sizes a shopper may pick, for example `6, 12, 24`. |
| Default sort, Available sort options | The initial ordering (position, name, price, newest) and which orderings shoppers can choose. |
| Show on home page | Adds the category to the home page category block. |
| Featured products on home page | Shows the category's featured products on the home page. |
| Include in menu | Shows the category in the top menu. |
| Hide on catalog | Keeps the category out of the catalog navigation while its page stays reachable, for landing pages. |
| Show on search box | Offers the category as a filter in the search box, ordered by **Search box display order**. |
| Flag, Flag style | A short label such as "New" or "Sale" shown next to the category name. |
| Published, Display order | Whether shoppers see it, and its position among its siblings. |

The other tabs: **SEO** (page name, title, meta description - as for products), **Products** (map products with a search popup and set their order and featured flag), **Discounts** (discounts of the type "assigned to categories"), **Documents** and **User fields**. Access by customer group and store limits appear when those features are in use.

### Brands

**Catalog → Brands** lists the makers of your products with the same home page, menu and visibility columns.

![The Brands list with Aurora Audio, Nordvik Home, Ember & Oak and six more brands](https://grandnode.com/Plugins/Theme.GrandNodeCom/Content/kb/catalog/brand-list.webp)

Catalog → Brands.

A brand has a name, description, picture, layout, page size and sort options, SEO fields and a Discounts tab - the same fields as a category, without the parent. A product gets its brand on the product's **General** tab. Shoppers can browse all brands at `/brand/all` and each brand has its own page.

### Collections

**Catalog → Collections** works exactly like brands, but a product can belong to any number of collections, mapped on the product's **Mappings** tab or from the collection's **Products** tab. Use collections for merchandising themes that should not change the category tree: seasonal edits, "Staff picks", or products of one designer.

### Import and export

The category, brand and collection lists have an **Export** button that downloads an Excel file and an import action that reads the same format back. An imported row with an existing **Id** updates that record; a row without one creates a new record. This is the quickest way to translate or reorganise a large tree - see [Import, export and bulk edit](https://grandnode.com/catalog-import-export-bulk-edit).

### Tips and common mistakes

- Keep the tree shallow. Two or three levels are easier to navigate on a phone than five.
- Turning off **Published** hides the category, not its products; they stay reachable through search and their own addresses.
- If a category does not appear in the menu, check **Include in menu**, **Published**, the store and customer group limits, and that its parent is visible too.

### Related

- [Pictures, SEO and category mappings](https://grandnode.com/catalog-pictures-seo-mappings)
- [Content management](https://grandnode.com/docs-content) - page and category layouts
- [Marketing and promotions](https://grandnode.com/docs-marketing) - discounts on categories and brands

- [Web page](https://grandnode.com/catalog-categories-brands-collections)