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Automating Wine eCommerce Product Imports / update – seeking solutions

  • 4 February 2025
  • 1 reply
  • 1 view

Hi there,

 

I'm building one of the largest wine eCommerce stores on Shopify, featuring over 25,000 wine products.

 

I'm looking for the best way to import multiple product lists from various wine producers and resellers.

 

Dropshipping Challenges

 

This means I constantly have to manage different Excel files from various suppliers, each with its own format, layout, column structure, and row arrangement.

 

These files often contain empty columns and rows, unnecessary text, or inconsistent formatting. This is mainly because wine producers typically do not provide clean, standardized CSV files or follow our import guidelines.

 

I want to fully automate the import and update process.

 

Current Manual Work & Challenges

 

Our main problem is the extensive manual work required to manage this large volume of products.

 

Here’s a breakdown of the tasks we currently handle manually:

 

1. Adjusting supplier lists for import

 

Each time I receive a new list, I have to manually modify and format it to ensure correct product imports into Shopify.

 

 

 

2. Completing missing product details

 

After importing, we manually add missing fields in the product directly in Shopify, such as:

 

Product descriptions

 

Product images

 

Metafields for filters

 

SEO details

 

SKU

 

Barcode

 

 

Most wine lists don’t include these details; they typically only contain pricing, product variants, titles, vendors, and types. Currently, we search for this missing information online and enter it manually for each new product.

 

 

 

3. Updating existing products from new supplier lists

 

When a vendor, after x days, sends an updated (but still "messy") list, I have to modify it again in Excel before importing it into Shopify.

 

Ideally, I rely on the SKU, Handle URL, or product title to match and update existing products.

 

If the SKU or Handle has changed, Shopify creates a duplicate product instead of updating the existing one—forcing us back to step 2.

It can happens also in case of new products.

 

 

 

 

How I Envision Automating This Process

 

I imagine an integration that can:

✅ Automatically clean and format Excel files from suppliers

✅ Auto-map columns and rows to the correct fields

✅ Import new products seamlessly

✅ Enrich product data by retrieving missing details (e.g., images and descriptions) from online sources

✅ Properly update existing products without creating duplicates

 

Do you have a clear idea of how to automate this process?

 

If so, reach out—this job could be yours!

 

Thank you for your time.

Have a great day!

 

Best regards,

Dario

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1 reply

JammerS
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  • Zapier Staff
  • 2131 replies
  • February 5, 2025

Hi ​@DDR,

 

Welcome to the Community.

 

Zapier can help automate your workflow by formatting Excel data using its 'Formatter' app, auto-mapping spreadsheet columns to Shopify fields (if the structure is consistent), importing new products, and updating existing ones using unique identifiers like SKUs. However, complex tasks like handling varied supplier files or enriching product data may require custom solutions, third-party apps, or the assistance of a Zapier Expert for more tailored automation.

 

I hope this helps. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask.