The allocation strategy import lets you create new strategies in bulk by uploading a file — including store assignments and start and end dates. This is useful when migrating an existing allocation setup into Toolio or when strategies are being created outside of Assortment Plan seeding.

Important: The import creates new strategies only. It will not update or overwrite strategies that already exist in Toolio. Any changes after creation must be made in the UI.

File Format

Use this sample import file as a reference for the required columns and format.

Each row represents a choiceId and store combination. Key fields include:

choiceId — the choice being allocated (required)
locationId — the store to include in the strategy
startDate — the date on which allocation should begin
endDate — the ideal date on which allocation should stop (optional)
locationListName — the location list to associate with the strategy (optional)

How Store Inclusion Works

Stores listed for a given choiceId are included in the strategy; any store not listed is excluded. There is no need to configure store lists manually after import.

Stores must be members of the associated location list. Including a store that isn't in the location list won't be flagged as an error, but the strategy may not behave as expected.

Location Lists

You can optionally specify a locationListName to associate the strategy with an existing location list in Toolio.

If no locationListName is provided, the system automatically assigns a system-managed default list.

If a locationListName is provided but does not exist in Toolio, the strategy for that choiceId will be skipped and an error will be returned — the import does not create new location lists.

How Allocation Defaults Are Applied

Allocation defaults are merged into each strategy during import, before the strategy is created. For any field not included in the import file, Toolio checks whether a matching allocation default exists and fills in the missing value.

Imported values always take precedence. If a field is present in the import file, the default for that field is ignored — even if a matching allocation default exists.

Fields that can be filled from allocation defaults include: Safety Stock, Order Cycle, Holdback %, Push All, Prioritization Method, Sales Curve, Size Curve, Location Curve, Location List, Presentation Profile, and Return Profile.

Example: Your allocation default sets Safety Stock = 2 and Sales Curve = "Standard Fall". Your import file includes a Safety Stock value of 5 for a choiceId but does not specify a Sales Curve. The resulting strategy will have Safety Stock = 5 (from the import) and Sales Curve = "Standard Fall" (from the default).

For per-location overrides, the same logic applies to Safety Stock and Order Cycle — if a value is provided in the import for a specific store, it is used; otherwise the strategy-level default is inherited.

Errors and Skipped Rows

There are two distinct outcomes when a row or strategy cannot be processed: errors and skips. Both are reported after the import completes.

Errors — Row Rejected, Strategy Not Created

An error is reported when a row contains invalid data. The strategy for that choiceId is not created. Errors fall into two categories:

Schema or format errors are caught before the import is saved. A row is rejected immediately if:

choiceId is missing (the only required field)
A field has the wrong data type (e.g. a non-date value in startDate, a non-integer in safetyStock)
An invalid value is used for an enum field — demandType, prioritizationMethod, or rosRank must match one of the allowed values listed in the sample import file

Reference errors are caught during finalization. A strategy is skipped if any name in the file cannot be resolved to an existing record in Toolio:

Store (locationId) not found
Location list (locationListName) not found
Size curve, sales curve, location curve, launch curve, size range, presentation profile, or return profile name not found

In both cases, the row number and field name are included in the error report so you can correct and re-import.

Skipped — Strategy Already Exists

If a strategy already exists in Toolio for a given choiceId, all rows for that choiceId are skipped. The count of skipped rows is included in the import summary. The import will never overwrite an existing strategy.

FAQs

Can I update an existing strategy through the import?

No. The import is create-only. If a strategy already exists for a choiceId, it will be skipped. All changes to existing strategies must be made in the UI.