# Product type ## How to Create a Product Type Metafield in Accentuate Custom Fields (ACF) *** ### Prerequisites Before you begin, make sure you have: * An active Shopify store * Accentuate Custom Fields installed from the Shopify App Store * Staff permissions to access Apps in your Shopify admin * (Recommended) An Online Store 2.0 theme, which allows metafield values to be displayed via the theme editor without touching code *** ### Key Concepts to Know First Scope — The Shopify object the metafield attaches to. For Product Type, this will be Products. Namespace & Key — The unique identifier for your field. The namespace groups related fields (e.g. custom) and the key is the specific field name (e.g. product\_type\_beauty). Together they form custom.product\_type\_beauty, which is the address used in your theme to pull the value. Note: the key cannot simply be product\_type as that is a reserved native Shopify field — appending \_beauty or your brand name avoids any conflict. Field Data Type — Controls what kind of data the field holds. For Product Type in a beauty and skincare store, a Single Select is recommended. Each product belongs to one primary category (e.g. Serum, Moisturiser, Cleanser) and a dropdown keeps the data structured, consistent, and filterable across your store. *** ### Step-by-Step Guide Step 1 — Open ACF from your Shopify Admin Go to your Shopify Admin, click Apps in the left sidebar, and open Accentuate Custom Fields. You'll land on the ACF dashboard, which shows the Metafields and metaobjects section with cards for Products, Shops, Metaobjects, and Customers. Step 2 — Open Product Metafields In the Products card, click the Metafields button. This takes you into the Product Custom Fields screen where you can see all existing fields listed with their types and manage your definitions. Step 3 — Add a New Section Click the + Add section button in the top-right area of the Product Custom Fields screen. An Add Section modal will open across two pages. Page 1 — Basic Details: * Title: Product Type — displayed in bold as a visual header when editing product values (1–50 characters, no HTML) * Name: product\_type\_beauty — must be unique within your Product fields (3–64 characters, letters, digits, underscores or dashes only) * Description: Optionally add a note like The beauty or skincare category this product belongs to — supports Markdown * Color: Leave as the default #dfe3e8, or choose a colour to visually distinguish this section from others like Skin Type or Skin Concerns * All fields in this section apply to: Leave as All types unless you want to restrict this to specific product types * Make visible to the Storefront API: Leave checked (default) — this makes the product type value accessible in themes and custom storefronts Click Next to continue. Page 2 — Advanced Settings: * Repeatable section: Leave unchecked — each product belongs to one product type category, not a repeating block. * Include value of first text field: Leave unchecked — not needed for a select-type field. * Show as collapsed when editing: Leave unchecked — keeps the section expanded by default so it is easy to find and fill in when editing a product. * Hide section: Leave unchecked — checking this would make the section invisible in the editor entirely. * Show section even if empty: Optionally check this if you want the Product Type section to always appear on products, even before a value has been assigned. * Exclude from layout: Leave unchecked — only tick this if you want the section excluded from ACF's layout editing tools. Click Done to save the section. Step 4 — Add the Product Type Field Once the section is saved, click + Add field to add the actual field inside it. Fill in the details: * Label: Product Type * Namespace: accentuate (ACF's default, or use your own e.g. beauty) * Key: product\_type\_beauty * Field Data Type: Select Single Select — this restricts input to your predefined beauty and skincare category options Step 5 — Add Your Product Type Options Once Single Select is chosen, add each allowed value one by one: Skincare: * Cleanser * Toner * Essence * Serum * Moisturiser * Eye Cream * Face Oil * Face Mask * Exfoliator & Scrub * SPF & Sunscreen * Lip Care * Spot Treatment Body Care: * Body Lotion & Cream * Body Oil * Body Scrub * Hand Cream Makeup: * Foundation & Concealer * Blush & Bronzer * Eye Makeup * Lip Colour * Setting Spray & Primer Hair Care: * Shampoo * Conditioner * Hair Mask & Treatment * Hair Oil * Scalp Treatment Tools & Accessories: * Facial Tool * Brush & Applicator * Sponge & Pad Add, remove, or rename options at any time to match your store's specific range. Step 6 — Save Click Save. Your Product Type field will now appear inside its section on every product edit page in your Shopify admin. *** ### Populating Product Type Values on Products One by one: Open any product in Shopify Admin, scroll to the Product Type section added by ACF, select the appropriate category from the dropdown, and save. Bulk edit: Back on the Product Custom Fields screen, click Edit Values to open the table/bulk edit view. All products appear as rows and you can update the Product Type column across many products at once. This is the most efficient method when setting up a new store or categorising a large range for the first time. CSV import: Use the Export button to download a CSV template, fill in the product\_type\_beauty column for each product row, then re-import via the Import button. Best for large catalogs or migrating data from an existing spreadsheet. *** ### Displaying Product Type on Your Storefront Theme Editor (no code, OS 2.0 themes): Go to Online Store → Themes → Customize. Open a product template, click Add Block, select an ACF or Metafield block, choose the Product Type field, position it on the page (typically near the product title or in a product details section), and save. It will display automatically for any product with a value set. Liquid Code (all themes): Add this to your product template file where you want the product type to appear: {% if product.metafields.custom.product\_type\_beauty%} \

\Product Type:\ {{ product.metafields.custom.product\_type\_beauty.value }}\

{% endif %} If you used a custom namespace (e.g. beauty), replace custom with your namespace name. *** ### Tips & Best Practices * Don't use product\_type as the key — this conflicts with Shopify's native Product Type field. Use product\_type\_beauty or a similarly distinct key to avoid issues. * Keep your category list focused — only add product types that exist in your current range. A long list of unused options creates confusion for your team when editing products. * Use Product Type for collection automation — in Shopify, you can create automated collections that pull in all products where custom.product\_type\_beauty equals Serum, for example. This keeps your collections always up to date without manual curation. * Enable storefront filtering — connect product\_type\_beauty as a filter in Online Store → Navigation → Filter menus so shoppers can browse by product category directly on collection pages. * Pair with Skin Type and Skin Concerns — combining Product Type, Skin Type, and Skin Concerns gives you a complete attribute set for building highly targeted collections, recommendation tools, and personalised shopping experiences. * Avoid the shopify namespace — it is reserved by Shopify and can cause conflicts. Use custom or a brand-specific name. * Review your list periodically — as your range grows, revisit the options list and add new categories as needed. Consistency across your whole catalog is key to clean filtering and collections. * Multi-language stores — ACF supports translatable metafields. Mark Product Type as translatable if you need localised category names for different markets. *** ### Quick Reference | Setting | Value | | ---------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Scope | Products | | Section Title | Product Type | | Section Name | product\_type\_beauty | | Field Label | Product Type | | Namespace | custom | | Key | product\_type\_beauty | | Full Identifier | custom.product\_type\_beauty | | Field Data Type | Single Select | | Options | Cleanser, Toner, Essence, Serum, Moisturiser, Eye Cream, Face Oil, Face Mask, Exfoliator & Scrub, SPF & Sunscreen, Body Lotion & Cream, Body Oil, Foundation & Concealer, and more (see Step 5) | | Storefront API | Enabled (checked by default) | | Liquid Reference | {{ product.metafields.custom.product\_type\_beauty.value }} | *** For further details, visit the official ACF documentation at help.accentuate.io