Importing products from a file or FTP feed

Vendably can import your product catalogue from a CSV, XML, or JSON file. File import is useful when your catalogue lives in a supplier sheet, a legacy system export, or any data source that does not have a live API connection. You can upload a file manually for a one-off import, or configure an FTP or SFTP connection so Vendably pulls an updated file on a schedule.

For an overview of how product sources work in Vendably, see Connect a product source to DataHub.

Supported formats

• CSV: comma-separated or tab-separated, with or without a header row.
• XML: product feed formats and custom schemas. Vendably detects common feed structures automatically.
• JSON: flat or nested objects. Vendably parses arrays of product objects and lets you map nested fields.

Vendably detects file encoding automatically and handles UTF-8, UTF-16, and common Windows encodings (CP1252, ISO-8859-1).

Manual file upload

A manual upload imports the file once. Use this for:

• Supplier product sheets that arrive periodically.
• One-off catalogue refreshes or bulk data corrections.
• Supplementary data files that add or override specific fields on products already imported from another source.

To upload a file:

1. In the main navigation, go to DataHub then Sources.
2. Click Add source and select File import.
3. Choose Upload a file and select your file.
4. Vendably analyses the file, detects encoding and field types, and displays a preview of the first several rows. Confirm the preview looks correct before continuing.
5. Map the detected fields to Vendably's standard product fields (see Field mapping below).
6. Click Import. Vendably runs the import and reports the result.

To import an updated version of the same file later, open the source settings and upload a new file. Vendably applies the saved field mapping automatically.

FTP and SFTP scheduled pull

An FTP or SFTP connection lets Vendably pull a file from a remote server on a repeating schedule. Use this when your supplier or system publishes a regularly updated file to a known location.

What you need

• Host: the FTP or SFTP server hostname or IP address.
• Port: typically 21 for FTP or 22 for SFTP. Confirm with your server administrator if unsure.
• Path: the full path to the file on the server (for example, /feeds/products.csv).
• Username and password: the credentials for the FTP or SFTP account.
• SSH key (SFTP only, optional): if the server uses key-based authentication instead of a password, provide your private key. Vendably accepts RSA and ED25519 keys in PEM format.

Setting up the connection

1. In the main navigation, go to DataHub then Sources.
2. Click Add source and select File import.
3. Choose FTP/SFTP and enter the host, port, path, and credentials.
4. Click Test connection. Vendably connects to the server, retrieves the file, and displays a preview.
5. Map the detected fields (see Field mapping below).
6. Set the pull schedule: hourly, daily, or weekly.
7. Click Save. Vendably pulls the file on the configured schedule from this point forward.

You can trigger a manual pull at any time from the source settings page, without waiting for the next scheduled run.

Field mapping

After uploading or previewing a file, Vendably displays the fields it detected alongside Vendably's standard product fields. Drag detected fields onto the corresponding standard fields to create the mapping. Vendably requires a unique product identifier (SKU, product ID, or GTIN) to match records across imports.

Once you confirm the mapping, Vendably saves it as a template attached to the source. Subsequent imports from the same source apply the saved mapping automatically, so you do not need to remap fields each time.

If your file structure changes (new columns added, column names changed), open the source settings and update the mapping template before the next import.

Supplement sources

A file source can be set as a supplement to an existing source rather than a standalone source. A supplement source overlays additional fields or overrides specific field values on products already imported from the primary source, without replacing it.

This is useful when your primary catalogue comes from a live store (for example, Shopify or WooCommerce) but a supplier provides supplementary data such as extended descriptions, additional images, or corrected GTINs that are not in your store. Configure the file as a supplement source and map only the fields you want to overlay. Vendably merges the supplement data onto the matching products at import time.

To set a file source as a supplement, select Supplement source when configuring the source type and choose the primary source it supplements.

Troubleshooting

Preview shows garbled characters: the file encoding was not detected correctly. Open the source settings, set the encoding manually to match your file (UTF-8 is the most common), and re-upload.

FTP connection refused: confirm the host, port, and credentials. Many FTP servers restrict connections by IP address; ask your server administrator to allow connections from Vendably's IP range.

Records not matching across imports: Vendably uses the mapped identifier field (SKU, product ID, or GTIN) to match records. If the identifier field is inconsistent between file versions (changed formatting, added leading zeros), products will be treated as new rather than updated. Normalise the identifier in your file before importing.

Supplement fields not appearing on products: confirm that the identifier values in the supplement file match those in the primary source exactly. A mismatch means Vendably cannot find the product to overlay.