Short answer
Choose a platform that fits your volume and complexity (Shopify, WooCommerce or a custom platform), prepare the product catalogue and images, add payments and delivery, connect the store to inventory and accounting, and take care of SEO and the legal terms.
The key decisions
1. Platform.
- Shopify — quick to start, a cloud service with a monthly fee.
- WooCommerce (WordPress) — flexible, but needs maintenance.
- A custom platform — when there is special business logic: a configurator, B2B prices, print-on-demand, complex integrations.
2. Catalogue. Products, variants, prices, good-quality images and descriptions.
3. Payments. Cards, bank payments, Apple Pay, Google Pay — see how to add online payments.
4. Delivery. Parcel lockers, couriers, in-store pickup.
5. Integrations. Inventory and accounting — see how to connect an online store to inventory.
6. Terms. Terms of use, a privacy policy, the right of withdrawal.
7. SEO and marketing. Product pages that can be found on Google.
When you need a custom platform
SelfNamed, which we built, is a print-on-demand platform with a design studio where customers create their own cosmetics line under their own brand. A standard store platform can’t support a business model like that. In 2023 SelfNamed won the “E-commerce Star 2023” (E-komercijas zvaigzne) Grand Prix.
