AI Assistant for Retail: Catalog and Stock
In a store or a warehouse, every question about stock or a product's price pulls someone away from what they're doing and depends on them knowing which sheet to check. This article explains how Fold answers those questions with the exact row from your own catalog, which connections it already has, and how you request what it doesn't do yet.
27 September 2026 · David Burnao
When the counter waits on someone checking a spreadsheet
A customer asks whether an item is in stock, or what a specific reference costs, and the answer is sitting in a spreadsheet — sometimes several, one per warehouse. While someone looks it up, the customer waits at the counter or on the phone. And if the person who knows where to look isn't around right then, the answer takes longer than it should.
What every repeated lookup costs you
The same item gets checked several times a day, and each check pulls someone away from restocking, helping another customer, or preparing an order. As the catalog grows or a new warehouse gets added, the problem doesn't shrink — there are just more places the data could be. And a customer who waits too long to find out if something's available might just buy it somewhere else.
How Fold answers, step by step
Here's how Fold works:
- It reads your catalog. The spreadsheet or file where you keep your products, prices and stock, exactly as you already have it.
- It learns what each column means. The first time it sees a new file, it suggests what each piece of data means, and you confirm it before it's used.
- It answers with the exact row. The price or the stock count, plus which file and which row it came from, so anyone can check it.
The stock and rates modules, a starting point
Stock and Rates and pricing are two of the modules Fold already has built: you can look up stock by product, warehouse or date, and ask the price of any product with the exact row it comes from. These are a starting point, not a limit — if what you need is an order history, an alert when something runs low, or checking several warehouses at once with your own rules, that gets built as a custom automation on the same foundation. A starter template for retail is already built into Fold, with example questions and the typical columns of a catalog recognized from the start.
When the data isn't there, it says so
If a product doesn't show up in the file you've uploaded, Fold doesn't estimate or guess at a stock figure — it says the item isn't there. And if two rows could both be the answer, like two similar references, it shows you both instead of picking one. That's the difference between answering a customer with confidence and having to double-check it afterwards just in case.
What files and programs it connects to today
Fold reads your Excel and CSV files from day one. Once you sign up, it also connects to Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive and Dropbox, always with read-only access: you choose which folders it can see, and you can revoke access at any time from inside the app. SharePoint and a generic connector for other store software are coming soon.
What happens the first time you upload a file
The first time you upload your catalog, Fold doesn't just start answering — it detects the sheets, the header row, and the type of each column, and suggests what each one means, drawing on the terms typical of a store or a warehouse. You confirm that mapping before anything gets used, and if something isn't clear, it asks instead of assuming. It's a step that takes a few minutes, and only needs repeating when the file's structure changes, not every time you upload a new one in the same format as always.
Start free, upgrade when it makes sense
The free plan needs no card: up to 2 questions a day and 10 a week, enough to try it with your own catalog. Paid plans start at €49.99 a month, with more questions and an AI that can chain several steps together from the Standard plan up. Prices are shown before tax: tax is added depending on the country your business is registered in.
If something's missing, you request it from inside the app
You describe what you need, with what data, and you're told the price and timeline before accepting anything: a small tweak starts at €59.99 and 3 business days, a new feature at €399.99 and 10 business days, and for something large — an automatic alert when stock drops below a threshold, say — a free 30-minute call, with a quote afterwards.
If Fold works for you, you can recommend it
Every company using Fold gets its own referral code. If you recommend Fold to another retailer and it stays a paying customer, you get a discount on the custom automations you request afterwards — up to 50% during the launch (the first 100 companies), and up to 20% after that. Your own monthly fee is always charged in full, and the store you refer gets 100 free questions in its first paid month.
Which retailers this works for
Fold works for any store or warehouse that keeps its catalog, stock or prices in some kind of file: a shop with many references, a warehouse supplying several points of sale, a distributor with its own price list. No need to switch software — what's needed is for that data to live in an Excel file, a CSV, or a folder you can connect.
How to get started
Sign-up and payment inside the app are opening very soon. In the meantime, you can leave your email to be notified the day you can create an account, and try Fold with your own catalog on the free plan as soon as it's available.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to switch management software to use Fold?
No. Fold reads your files from the outside, with read-only access — it doesn't replace your billing or stock-management software.
How does Fold find out stock has changed?
You upload the updated file (or, once you sign up, connect the folder where it's saved) and Fold answers with the most recent data you've given it.
Can it warn me when a product is running low?
That kind of automatic alert is built as a custom automation on top of the stock module — it isn't included by default.
How much does Fold cost for a small store?
It starts free, no card required, with 2 questions a day. Paid plans start at €49.99 a month, plus tax depending on your country.
Keep reading
Want to see it with your own business?
Try Fold with your own catalog: the free plan needs no card.
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