Variations are reusable catalog structures that give customers configurable choices on an item. A variation can change an item’s price or configuration. Use variations when the same choice structure is relevant to more than one item, so you can manage that structure from the catalog rather than treating it as a one-off part of a single item.
In the MENO dashboard, go to Catalog > Variations to work with variations. Items can use variations alongside other configurable choices, including required option groups and optional extras/add-ons.
Understand what a variation does
A variation is a configurable item-choice structure that may change the item’s price or configuration. MENO supports variation-based pricing in addition to a single price, sale price, and outlet/menu custom price where configured.
Before using a variation, decide what the customer needs to choose and whether that choice should affect the item’s configuration or price. Keep the variation focused on the choice it represents. This makes it easier to use the same structure where it is relevant across your catalog.
Variations are different from the following item choices:
- Required option groups are choices a customer must resolve before the item can be added. A required choice can affect price where configured.
- Optional extras/add-ons are not mandatory. Customers may select them, and a paid extra adds its configured price to the item. An item can have multiple optional groups.
Do not treat required groups and optional extras as the same customer experience: required groups block adding until the customer has resolved the required selection, while optional groups do not.
Use a reusable variation with an item
Once the reusable structure is available in Catalog > Variations, use it with the relevant item or items in your catalog. Items support variations as part of their configuration, and an item can use variation-based pricing when that is appropriate for the product.
When configuring an item, also confirm whether the item needs a required option group or optional extras. For example, use a required option group for a choice that must be made before adding the item. Use optional extras only for choices customers may add but do not have to select.
Review the item’s customer-facing configuration after you apply the choices. For an item that requires or exposes configuration, the customer’s plus control opens a configuration sheet. The customer selects required and optional choices, then confirms Add. By contrast, the plus control immediately adds a simple item with no required configuration, variation, or add-on choice to the cart.
Check pricing and the ordering result
If the item uses variation-based pricing, confirm that the configured variation supports the price you intend for that item. Also consider any sale price or outlet/menu custom price that is configured for the item.
After a customer orders a configured item, the merchant order page can display the full ordered configuration, including the item, quantity, variation, required options, optional extras/add-ons, and price where applicable. This helps you verify what the customer selected when fulfilling the order.
When a customer adds the same configurable product again through the add flow, MENO opens the configuration sheet again. The new selection is treated as a new cart entry and configuration rather than automatically copying the previous configuration.