SAP MM43 — Display Article (SAP Retail)
In SAP Retail, what the rest of SAP calls a material is called an article. It is the same underlying object with retail-specific extensions bolted on, and MM43 displays it. MM41 creates, MM42 changes.
Two things make an article different from a plain material. First, every article belongs to a merchandise category — a node in a hierarchy that classifies what the thing is, drives which characteristics it can carry, and underpins most retail reporting. Second, an article must be listed at a site before that site can sell it. Existing is not the same as being available.
The other retail-specific idea is the generic article. A t-shirt is a generic article; the individual size and colour combinations are its variants. Customers buy variants, but you plan and purchase at the generic level.
When you would actually use MM43
- Checking whether an article exists and how it is classified before investigating a failed sales or purchasing document.
- Finding out why a store cannot sell an article — usually listing.
- Looking at the variants belonging to a generic article.
- Confirming the merchandise category assignment when reporting looks wrong.
What the screen looks like
Article data
The fields, in plain English
MARA-MATNRThe article number. Stored in the same field as a material number, which is why the two look identical in tables and why article and material data can be confusing to tell apart.
Watch out: Leading zeros again — the internal value is usually zero-padded even though the screen shows it trimmed.
MARA-MATKLThe classification node the article belongs to. Mandatory in Retail, unlike the equivalent material group in standard MM, and it drives characteristics, assortment and most reporting hierarchies.
Watch out: Changing it later is painful because so much hangs off it. Getting it wrong at creation is a long-lived mistake.
What kind of article this is. A single article is sold as itself. A generic article is a parent whose variants are the sellable units. A sales set is several articles sold as one. A prepack or display is a pre-assembled unit of several articles.
Watch out: You cannot sell a generic article directly — only its variants. "The article exists but will not go on an order" is very often this.
The link between an article and the sites allowed to carry it, via assortments. The Listing view shows where this article is listed and for what period.
Watch out: An article that exists but is not listed at a store cannot be ordered or sold there. This is the single most common retail "why does it not work" answer.
Enter a site on the initial screen to see the data specific to that store or distribution centre, rather than the general view.
MARA-MEINSThe unit the article is stocked in. Retail often carries several alternative units — a consumer unit, a case, a pallet — with conversions between them.
Step by step
- 1Enter the article number. Use the search help on merchandise category if you only know roughly what it is.
- 2Enter a site if you need store-specific data rather than the general view.
- 3Select the views you want from the tab strip.
- 4Check Basic Data for the article category and merchandise category.
- 5Check the Listing view to see which sites may carry it and from when.
- 6For a generic article, use the variant overview to see the sellable variants.
Errors you will hit, and what they mean
Article 4182 does not exist
Why: Wrong number, or the article exists but not in the view or site you asked for.
Fix: Search by merchandise category or description. Also try without a site — it may exist generally but not be extended to that store.
The article exists but cannot be ordered at this store
Why: It is not listed at that site, or the listing period has not started or has ended.
Fix: Check the Listing view for that site and the validity dates. Listing is maintained through assortments, not on the article directly.
Cannot create a sales order for this article
Why: It is a generic article, which is a planning parent rather than something a customer buys.
Fix: Order the variant, not the generic. The variant overview shows the sellable ones.
Common questions
What is the difference between MM43 and MM03?
MM03 displays a material master; MM43 displays an article master, which is the retail-extended version of the same object with merchandise category, listing and variant handling. On an IS-Retail system, articles are what you work with.
What is a generic article?
A parent article whose variants are the sellable units — a shirt with size and colour variants. You plan and buy at the generic level and sell at the variant level.
Why can a store not sell an article that clearly exists?
Almost always listing. The article has to be listed at that site, within a valid period, through an assortment. Existence and availability are separate things in Retail.
Transactions that go with MM43
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