SKU-Level Exceptions

What is this?

SKU-level exceptions let you override the pricing strategy for individual products. While the strategy handles pricing in bulk by department, class, or vendor, exceptions let you set specific pricing rules for individual SKUs -- a plugged retail price, a fixed margin, or a cost deviation.

Walk through it in the app: guide 2007 — SKU level exceptions. Margin Master can walk you through these steps live: turn on Training / Guide Mode from the Help menu, then type 2007 into the Lessons & Guides box — or ask Margin Master support to run it with you.

Creating an exception

New exceptions are created from the Sku Detail window, one SKU at a time:

1. On the main grid, double-click the item — or right-click it and choose Show Sku Detail.
2. Open the Sku Level Exceptions tab. The tab header shows a count of the exceptions this SKU already has.
3. Click the + button (tooltip: Add new Sku Level Exception).
4. Fill in the Future Price settings and save.

The Manage Sku Level Exceptions window described below has no New button — it is where you review, edit, bulk-manage and delete exceptions that already exist.

Opening the Exception Manager

1. Menu (hamburger) · 2. Status filter · 3. Exception type filter · 4. Exception grid · 5. Exception detail (right panel)

• Keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+E
• Menu: Strategy > Manage Sku Exceptions
• From the Pricing Strategy Manager: click "Manage Sku Level Exceptions" in the green section

The window has two panels:

• Left -- Exception list grid with filters
• Right -- Detail editor for the selected exception

Opened from the Strategy menu it is 1280x600; opened from the Pricing Strategy Manager it is 960x600. Both are resizable.

A strategy selector sits at the top of the window. Exceptions belong to one strategy, and this selector is how you look at — and edit — another strategy's exceptions without leaving the window.

Exception List

Status Filter (Top Row)

Filter exceptions by status using radio buttons:

Exception Type Filter (Second Row)

Filter by exception type:

The type is not stored — it is worked out from the exception's rule. An exception whose rule cannot be recognised at all gets the type U, which has no filter button of its own, so those rows appear only under All.

Exception Grid

Visual indicators:

• Error icon (red) appears with tooltip when an exception has a validation error
• Changes icon with "Unsaved Changes" tooltip on modified rows
• Delete button (X icon) appears on hover to remove an exception

The grid displays "No Sku Exceptions Found" when empty.

The footer shows the count: "Sku Exceptions: "

Exception Detail (Right Panel)

When you select an exception, the right panel shows:

Header

• SKU field (read-only)
• Description field (read-only)
• Active toggle switch (orange slider)

Store/Group Selection

A list box lets you assign which stores or groups the exception applies to:

• If store grouping is enabled, shows group names with checkboxes
• If store grouping is disabled, shows individual store numbers with checkboxes

Multiple selections are allowed.

Future Price Panel

The full Future Price configuration panel (see Future Pricing) allows you to configure what the exception sets the future price to.

Exception Actions (Hamburger Menu)

Resolve Unassigned

An unassigned exception is active but has no price level set (no "Set Future Price to" selection), so it never prices anything. The strategy pre-flight check warns about these before every run. Imported strategies commonly carry hundreds of them.

When any exist, the hamburger menu shows Resolve Unassigned (N) with three bulk actions:

Use the Unassigned status filter to review the affected rows before choosing an action.

Import Sku Level Exceptions

This feature allows you to import SKU exceptions from another strategy into your current strategy.

How it works:

1. Click Import Sku Level Exceptions from the hamburger menu
2. A dialog (480x160) appears showing available strategies
3. Select the source strategy to import from
4. Click Import
5. The system imports exceptions that don't already exist in your current strategy

Import Rules:

• Only imports exceptions where the SKU does not already exist in the current strategy
• Skips duplicate SKUs automatically
• Preserves the Active status, rule text, and description from the source strategy
• Preserves store number assignments
• Shows a confirmation message with the count of imported exceptions

Example Messages:

• If no other strategies exist: "No other strategies found in the database."
• On successful import: "Imported 15 Sku Level Exception(s) from 'Spring 2026'. Duplicate SKUs were skipped."
• On error: "Error importing Sku Level Exceptions: "

Saving

When closing with unsaved changes: "Would you like to save your changes?" (Yes/No/Cancel)

Warnings you may see when saving

Saving runs two checks, both of which you can override:

Two other prompts appear as needed:

• Activate Sku Level Exception -- when you save a brand-new exception that is still marked inactive, Margin Master offers to activate it ("Would you like to make the new Sku Level Exception Active for Sku: ?"). An inactive exception never prices anything.
• Save Failed -- lists any exceptions that could not be written. They stay marked as changed, so you can simply try saving again.

How exceptions run

Exceptions are always the last thing a strategy does, after every regular step and after custom groups. That is what makes them an override.

Two behaviours worth knowing:

• The strategy step controls the whole phase. The green Sku Level Exceptions step in the Pricing Strategy Manager gates all of them at once. If that step is inactive, no exception runs, no matter how many are marked Active.
• Duplicates: the newest wins. If two exceptions cover the same SKU in the same store, only one is applied — the one added most recently. The others are recorded in the strategy execution log as not applied, so you can find and reconcile the contradiction.

Before every run, the Strategy Pre-flight Check dialog lists any active exceptions and groups that have nothing to price from, and lets you cancel the run to fix them first.

The lock icon on the main grid

After a strategy runs, items priced by an exception show a padlock in the narrow * column of the main grid. The symbol inside the padlock reflects what the exception did — a percent sign for a margin, a dollar sign for a fixed retail, and so on — not the fact that it was an exception. See The Lock Column for the full key.

Common Questions

Q: What's the difference between a plugged retail and a plugged margin? A: A plugged retail sets a fixed dollar price (e.g., always $9.99). A plugged margin sets a target margin percentage (e.g., always 35% margin), so the price adjusts when cost changes.

Q: Can an exception apply to specific stores only? A: Yes. Use the Stores/Groups selection in the detail panel to choose which stores the exception applies to.

Q: How do exceptions interact with the pricing strategy? A: Exceptions override the strategy. If a SKU has an active exception, the exception's pricing rule takes precedence over whatever the strategy step would calculate.

Q: How do I add a new exception? A: From the Sku Detail window. Double-click the item on the main grid (or right-click it and choose Show Sku Detail), open the Sku Level Exceptions tab, and click the + button. The Manage Sku Level Exceptions window edits existing exceptions but cannot create one.

Q: I have two exceptions for the same SKU. Which one wins? A: The one you added most recently. The other is skipped and listed in the strategy execution log under conflicting duplicate exceptions. Delete or deactivate the one you do not want.

Q: I saved my exception but the price did not change. A: Check three things, in order: is the exception Active; is the green Sku Level Exceptions step active in the Pricing Strategy Manager; and does the exception have a Set Future Price to value. If the last one is missing, the Strategy Pre-flight Check will name it before the run.

Q: What does "Not in Database" mean? A: The SKU referenced by the exception no longer exists in your data. Use "Remove Skus 'Not in Database'" from the hamburger menu to clean these up.

Q: Can I copy exceptions from another strategy? A: Yes. Use Import Sku Level Exceptions from the hamburger menu. Select the source strategy and the system will import all exceptions that don't already exist in your current strategy. Duplicate SKUs are automatically skipped.

Q: What happens to exceptions for SKUs that already exist when I import? A: They are skipped. The import only adds new SKUs that don't already have exceptions in the current strategy.