We’re launching a WooCommerce drop shipping store with a supplier file of 5,000 rows and require expert help restructuring the supplier data and importing it into our product catalogue, cleaning up SKUs, automating stock syncing from an XML feed, and replacing Elementor with the WordPress block editor.
A previous developer implemented workarounds that now need to be reversed, particularly the use of ‘P- 'prefixed SKUs on parent products, which breaks stock synchronisation and creates maintenance and stock control issues. The supplier provides a flat CSV file for product data, which does not link parent-child relationships or variations; however, sorting the data by brand, SKU and Product Title in Excel makes it easy to spot the groupings.
Key Problems: • Incorrect Parent SKUs (P- prefix): • Parent products were given prefixed SKUs like P-12345, while the supplier uses 12345. This causes SKU mismatches during scripted stock sync and import automation. • Flat Product File Structure: • The supplier CSV contains no clear parent-child relationships. Some variants (e.g. colour, size) are embedded in product titles or attributes, requiring structured parsing with Pandas and mapping to WooCommerce variation attributes. • Stock & Availability Management:
As a dropshipping business, we need: • Real-time or scheduled stock updates from the supplier’s XML feed • Proper use of WooCommerce stock status, stock quantity, and managing stock flags
• Elementor Cleanup: The site currently uses Elementor and a lot of CSS, which we’d like to entirely remove and replace with native WordPress blocks (Gutenberg). This applies especially to product templates and page layouts.
Tasks & Deliverables:
1. CSV Restructuring & SKU Cleanup • Standardise all SKUs by removing P- prefixes and revert to supplier SKU’s • Restructure flat supplier data into WooCommerce-compatible format to be imported by WP All Import: • Identify parent/child relationships in CSV file • Extract variant attributes (e.g. size/colour) from titles or attribute columns • Retain and correctly apply product categories, and attribute mappings
2. Product Import Into WooCommerce • Import using WP All Import Pro or WooCommerce REST API • Maintain parent-child structure, category/tag assignments, SEO fields, ACFs, etc. • Avoid duplication, and preserve image galleries where available
3. Stock Synchronisation & Automation • Use the supplier’s XML or csv feed to update stock levels • Match by supplier SKU Only • Set “Manage Stock”, stock quantity, and stock status properly • Set up cron job for regular (hourly/daily) sync with supplier • Optional: Automatically hide/discontinue products when unavailable from supplier.
4. Elementor Removal & Block Migration • Remove all Elementor dependencies from pages and templates • Rebuild key product layouts using Gutenberg blocks • Optimise for performance, speed, and mobile friendliness • Ensure a clean, block-based, future-proof setup
5. (Optional Bonus) Cleanup Tasks • Identify and remove any redundant ACF fields or orphaned metadata • Suggest structural improvements for long-term scaling
Store Details: • Platform: WooCommerce on WordPress ( products are sex toys & accesories) • Hosting: Cloudways (PHP 8+) • Product count: 4,000+ (CSV + XML) • Theme: Shoptimizer (compatible with blocks) • Tools Installed: WP All Import Pro, ACF Pro
Ideal Freelancer: • Proven experience with large WooCommerce product catalogues • Strong skills in data manipulation, CSV and XML processing, preferably with Python & rest API or WP All Import • Knowledge of WooCommerce variable product structure and stock syncing. • Comfortable with Gutenberg block editor and removing Elementor • Clean coder and confident working on an almost complete store with staging access ( site is not live yet)
Access Provided: • Staging + live environments • Sample supplier CSV and XML feed • WooCommerce REST API credentials (if needed) • Elementor pages/templates for conversion
Please include examples of similar WooCommerce import/migration projects, especially involving: • SKU restructuring • Stock sync automation • Elementor removal • Dropshipping or XML-based product updates
