Shopify developer for Toronto businesses

An existing theme is a useful starting point when its layouts suit your products and the way customers buy. Customising it keeps the initial work lighter, and later theme updates are simpler. A custom theme gives you more room for unusual products and a distinct brand, but subsequent layout changes need development work. Think about who will make those changes after launch as well as what you need on the first day.

A headless storefront built with Hydrogen or Next.js is another route for a content-led brand or an unusual buying flow. The trade-off is that you give up the theme editor, and apps that add features through a theme may not work on the new storefront. It is worth checking those app dependencies before choosing this route, particularly if your staff expect to make layout changes themselves.

Checkout has its own limits. Shopify runs it, and standard checkout customisation is available from the Basic plan up. Apps that change the information, shipping and payment steps are limited to Shopify Plus, so bring any specific checkout requirements into the decision before settling on a theme or plan.

The GST or HST rate charged depends on the place of supply, such as the province or territory where goods are delivered. We configure the store's taxes for its market and use your shipping requirements to inform the setup, so the destinations you sell to are part of the work from the start.

If you sell into Quebec, commercial publications on your website need to be in French. We plan for French store content as part of the market setup; Shopify can manage translated content and market-specific shipping from one admin.

Gather the material that applies to your store, including any exports from an existing platform.

• Your Shopify account and plan in the business's own name and billing.
• A product sheet with titles, prices, SKUs, weights, options and stock per location.
• Consistent product photos, plus size charts, care instructions and specifications.
• Business and bank details for your payment gateway, and reviewed shipping, returns, privacy and terms policies.
• For a migration, product, customer and order exports, plus the URLs bringing the most traffic and sales.

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  Editing the live theme directly

  Duplicate it first, make changes on the copy and preview them before publishing. A live edit exposes mistakes to visitors immediately.

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  Using inconsistent product data

  Keep tags, product types and vendors consistent so automated collections and filters put products in the right place.

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  Leaving demo content in place

  Review placeholder policies and default notification wording before launch, alongside the theme's sample content.

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  Adding an app for every small task

  Check the scripts and subscriptions each app brings, and inspect theme files when uninstalling because some apps leave code behind.