Compare the operating models
A fictional shirt shop stocks black and white shirts in two sizes. Embroidered initials are added after purchase and are never held as finished stock. Colour and size select available goods; initials describe work on the chosen goods.
| Business requirement | Product variant | Order instruction |
|---|---|---|
| Black / small | Has its own stocked balance | Cannot identify the correct stocked choice |
| Initials AL | Creates a new catalogue entry per request | Stored on the affected order line |
| Reorder standard shirt | Buy the selected size and colour | Initials do not become pooled stock |
Work through the chosen model
The order line stores variant ID and custom text separately. The fulfilment job uses the variant to pick the shirt and the instruction to embroider it. Staff can search repeated shirt sales without treating every customer’s letters as a new product.
- Customer selects a stocked size and colour
- Enter initials on that line
- Pick shirt then perform named work
Order fields keep one-off requests manageable but need to travel to fulfilment and returns. Variants support stock selection but a variant for every free-text request makes the catalogue unmanageable.
One black/small shirt with AL reduces black/small by one and creates one AL work instruction. It creates no AL stock variant.
When the other model fits
The shop starts stocking preprinted club names as distinct ready-made shirts. Are those still only notes?
Show the worked answer
No. Distinct finished choices with their own stock can be catalogue products or variants.