For years, the burning question about Shopify has revolved around its capability to accommodate large-scale enterprises. Shopify provided a partial response in 2014 with the introduction of Shopify Plus, which has since demonstrated its prowess in propelling businesses like Gymshark from humble beginnings to international fame.

Despite these successes, major brands have remained somewhat cautious about entrusting their technological foundations to a SaaS solution historically focused on mass appeal rather than addressing niche requirements.

Fast forward to almost a decade after Shopify Plus made its entrance, and the Canadian ecommerce behemoth has taken another bold step to woo the big players. Kicking off a new year with the unveiling of Commerce Components, Shopify reinforces its dedication to supporting businesses across the entire spectrum, adding a dash of wit and intrigue to the world of ecommerce solutions.

Table of Contents

What exactly are Shopify's Commerce Components?

Shopify created Commerce Components to help businesses build their online stores more easily. But what does it actually do? Shopify offers over 30 building blocks that businesses can mix and match to create their perfect online store.

These building blocks are divided into six groups:

  1. Storefront Components help create the look and feel of your online store. They include tools for design, content, and search.
  2. Cart and Checkout Components help manage shopping carts, payments, taxes, and security during the checkout process.
  3. Core Commerce Components deal with things like products, international selling, subscriptions, customer data, and discounts.
  4. Data and Compliance Components help analyze data, provide marketing insights, and ensure security and legal compliance.
  5. Shipping and Logistics Components manage how orders are shipped, tracked, and returned.
  6. Omnichannel Components connect your online store with other sales channels, like social media and in-person sales.

More about Storefront Components

Enables you to design bespoke storefronts leveraging your favored framework and hosting provider.

Headless API

Forge unique commerce experiences across a wide range of platforms, from web and mobile apps to AR, VR, and 3D models. The Headless API allows for greater design flexibility, faster load times, and improved user experiences, resulting in increased customer engagement and higher conversion rates.

Headless SDK

Unleash the most enthralling commerce experiences with our headless SDK, Hydrogen – Shopify's React-based framework. By employing Hydrogen, you can create highly customizable and interactive shopping experiences that drive customer satisfaction. Launch with your preferred hosting provider or on Oxygen, our commerce-optimized hosting service, for seamless integration and optimal performance.

Low-code storefronts

Build dynamic, enterprise-scale storefronts using Liquid, Shopify's adaptable templating language. Low-code storefronts enable rapid development and deployment, reducing time-to-market and allowing for easy adjustments based on customer feedback or market trends. This approach also lowers the barriers to entry for non-technical team members, fostering collaboration and innovation.

Headless hosting

Effortlessly deploy your Hydrogen storefront with a single click at no additional cost on Oxygen, Shopify's integrated hosting platform. Oxygen ensures optimized performance on a global scale, providing consistently fast load times and a reliable shopping experience for customers worldwide, ultimately contributing to customer retention and loyalty.

Content

Deliver engaging content experiences for your storefront using Shopify's custom data models or your existing CMS. By offering rich and personalized content, you can build a strong brand identity, drive customer engagement, and foster long-lasting relationships. Integrating with your existing CMS also streamlines content management, enabling a more efficient workflow.

Storefront search

Help customers discover relevant products with our powerful AI-enabled search, designed based on product and user signals. An intuitive and accurate search function enhances the shopping experience, making it easier for customers to find and purchase desired items. This leads to higher customer satisfaction, reduced bounce rates, and increased sales.

More about Cart and Checkout Components

Boost revenue with a flexible and adaptable cart and checkout system.

Cart

Construct a unique cart tailored to your business by utilizing our APIs and cart app extensions. A customized cart enhances the shopping experience, encouraging customers to add more items and ultimately increasing your average order value.

Checkout platform

Maximize profits with the world's highest-converting checkout platform. Avoid the effort, expense, and risk of creating your own solution by opting for a proven, reliable system that streamlines the purchasing process and increases conversions.

Payments platform

Choose your preferred payments processor, integrate Shopify Payments, or collaborate with any of our top 100+ payment providers worldwide. Offering a wide range of payment options ensures a smooth transaction experience for customers, leading to higher satisfaction and repeat business.

Tax platform

Simplify your tax management by combining our tax technology with your chosen third-party services. Streamlined tax processes save time, reduce errors, and ensure compliance with local and international regulations, allowing you to focus on growing your business.

Fraud protection

Safeguard your revenue with robust fraud protection built on data from millions of retailers globally. This security feature detects and prevents fraudulent activities, minimizing financial losses and protecting your brand reputation.

More about Core Commerce Components

Fuel your enterprise with these indispensable commerce features.

Product catalog

Seamlessly integrate and synchronize product information, pricing, and collections from any source, ensuring a comprehensive and up-to-date product catalog that keeps customers informed and engaged.

Custom data models

Create custom fields and objects to represent your unique business data and extend core workflows. This tailored approach allows for better organization, analysis, and management of essential business information.

Cross-border selling

Streamline your global expansion into new markets with a unified system that simplifies selling, shipping, and scaling internationally. Facilitate a smooth customer experience across borders and currencies, propelling your business's growth.

Subscriptions

Develop subscription solutions that generate predictable revenue streams and foster customer loyalty. Customizable subscription plans cater to individual customer preferences, enhancing satisfaction and retention.

Customer data

Drive growth and customer retention with accurate, integrated customer data in a centralized database. Leverage this information to personalize marketing efforts, improve customer interactions, and create tailored shopping experiences.

Discounts

Design custom discounts and promotions using Shopify or your existing marketing platform, targeting the right offers to the right customers. Strategic promotions incentivize purchases and increase customer satisfaction.

Functions extensibility

Expand Shopify's backend business logic to customize checkout, order routing, and more. This adaptability allows for seamless integration with your existing processes, ensuring an efficient and consistent workflow.

B2B

Efficiently manage wholesale and direct sales from a single location with flexible integrations, open APIs, and automated order processing. Simplify B2B transactions and enhance communication with suppliers and customers.

More about Data and Compliance Components

Boost sales with reliable and secure customer data

Data analysis

Gain valuable business insights using ShopifyQL, our custom-built query language for commerce, or export data to your own data warehouse. Make data-driven decisions to optimize your business strategies and stay ahead of the competition.

Marketing insights

Establish a robust data layer with secure events that link customers across devices, providing a holistic view of customer behavior. Utilize these insights to enhance marketing campaigns and deliver targeted, relevant content.

Card data and vaulting

Leverage our secure vault or integrate your existing solution to achieve faster processing and higher authorization rates. Safeguard customer payment information while streamlining the transaction process.

Security and compliance

Maintain privacy and security with detailed permissions, robust security controls, and SOC 2 compliance. Protect your business and customers while adhering to industry standards and regulations.

More about Shipping and Logistics Components

Optimize your order logistics for efficiency.

Fulfillment

Provide comprehensive logistics solutions, covering inventory, inbounding, freight, and last-mile delivery. Streamline the entire fulfillment process for a seamless customer experience.

Order management

Integrate your preferred order management system and establish custom business rules. This tailored approach ensures your order management aligns with your unique business needs and goals.

Inventory

Synchronize your inventory management system in real-time, enabling confident selling and effective stock control. Accurate inventory management reduces the risk of overselling and stockouts, maintaining customer satisfaction.

Returns

Monitor the impact of returns on your bottom line with a centralized system for managing returns. Streamlined return processes minimize confusion, improve customer trust, and provide valuable insights into product performance.

Shipping Labels API

Secure the best rates for shipping labels using our Labels API or integrate your own account. Cost-effective shipping options benefit both your business and your customers, enhancing the overall shopping experience.

More about Omnichannel Components

Expand sales channels while maintaining a cohesive view of your enterprise.

Point of Sale

Consolidate retail and online sales with custom integrations compatible with any point of sale system, including Shopify POS. This unified approach streamlines operations and simplifies management across all sales channels.

Social commerce

Leverage popular social media platforms and online marketplaces to sell products directly from Shopify. Reach a wider audience and capitalize on the potential of social commerce to boost sales and brand visibility.

Chat and Support

Incorporate chat and support products to develop bespoke sales workflows. Enhance customer engagement, provide timely assistance, and foster strong relationships by offering responsive, personalized support.

Is Commerce Components for you?

Commerce Components is not a one-size-fits-all solution. It's designed particularly for large retail enterprises. Retailers with over £500M in revenue are the target audience for this offering from Shopify. It's best suited for businesses that operate multiple brands, engage in both online and offline sales, and have extensive teams. For many existing merchants, this might feel like a new direction, but it marks a crucial advancement for Shopify as it vies with other platforms catering to major brands.

Pricing

Shopify has not disclosed specific pricing details for this solution. However, they have indicated that the cost will be determined by usage and the number of components a retailer chooses to utilize. For projects of such magnitude, it's always advisable to undertake a comprehensive discovery phase to accurately assess the retailer's needs and customize pricing accordingly.

Commerce Components vs Shopify Plus

In the past, when businesses chose Shopify, they usually went all-in. While there was an option to incorporate just a Shopify buy button on a website, the majority of users built their entire store within the Shopify ecosystem.

As businesses expanded, Shopify Plus emerged as a more attractive choice for accessing extra features and modifying the checkout process. However, the decision to upgrade to Shopify Plus was often driven by financial considerations rather than a need for enhanced functionality. Key distinctions between Plus and Components include:

  • Shopify Plus serves as an all-encompassing solution for digital-focused brands, while Commerce Components offers a collection of modules that large retailers can employ to create tailored experiences and smoothly integrate into their ecommerce infrastructure.
  • Shopify Plus follows a standard pricing model with a 0.4% variable fee and a 0.15% discount when using Shopify Payments, with a minimum monthly charge of $2,000 USD. In contrast, Commerce Components features customized pricing based on each retailer's specific needs.
  • Shopify Plus users receive assistance from a Success Manager and launch support, while retailers utilizing Commerce Components gain access to Shopify Professional Services, enterprise-grade SLAs, and a dedicated account team.
  • Although Shopify Plus comes with a well-defined set of features and functions, with more enhancements arriving in 2023, Commerce Components arrives fully equipped with no API limits, 40,000 checkouts per minute/store, increased product variant limits, and an extended range of features. Additionally, it offers new customization options for storefronts and fresh partnerships with third-party technology providers.

Conclusion

As enterprise retailers increasingly embrace ecommerce, they often find themselves grappling with constructing a vast technology infrastructure atop legacy systems to maintain their presence. This not only adds considerable expense but also diverts attention from their core expertise as product creators and retailers.

Enter Commerce Components—Shopify's contender in the enterprise market—empowering retailers to harness a commerce-focused technology stack that effortlessly integrates with their broader operations.

This nimble solution grants retailers the adaptability they crave while providing access to a suite of top-tier tools and fostering a lean approach to ecommerce development.

So, if you're a retailer eyeing digital transformation and mulling over Shopify's Commerce Components as your potential savior, don't hesitate to reach out to our team and kick off the conversation today. Let's explore the possibilities together!