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hoopes and frames with embroidery
Shopify Collective enables businesses to expand their product offerings and collaborate seamlessly with trusted partners. Image courtesy of Kate Latham of Modern Hoopla.

Shopify, one of the world’s leading e-commerce platforms, now offers Shopify Collective, a feature that allows Shopify store owners to sell products from other Shopify stores. The Collective was launched in mid-2023 and is currently available in the U.S. and Canada.

Akin to dropshipping and print-on-demand, the Collective is a tool designed to benefit both the retailer and the supplier.

Retailers can add products from other stores to their own store’s inventory without having to stock and ship the additional items. Suppliers gain increased exposure to new audiences, cost-efficient brand building and the potential for greater profits.

How it Works

Eligibility

Shopify Collective is available to Shopify users that meet the following requirements:

  • Shop is based in the United States and uses USD currenc
  • Shop made at least $50,000 USD in the past 12 months.
  • Shopify Payments must be activated.

There is currently no upcharge for using Shopify Collective.

Partnering

To get started on Shopify Collective, qualified shops download the supplier app or the retailer app to their Shopify dashboard. Shops also have the option to download both apps to establish themselves as a retailer and as a supplier.

Suppliers in the Collective designate which of their products are available for retailer listings. Suppliers set the retail price for their products as well as the margin — the percentage the retailer will earn on each product. The supplier is not locked into set pricing on the Collective; they have the flexibility to customize pricing for each retail partner.

In turn, retailers in the Collective can search for available items and view product descriptions and retail prices from suppliers. If they are interested in partnering with a supplier, the retailer then clicks “Request Pricing” for the margin that the supplier has set.

Although much of the Shopify Collective arrangement is automated, there are certain policies that the partners need to agree upon. These include shipping rates and return and exchange policies.

Once the retailer chooses which of the supplier’s items to list in their shop, Shopify syncs the listings to go live. Inventory is managed in real time by Shopify so retailers can sell only what is actually available from the supplier.

Through the Collective app, retailers and suppliers have the option to have their shops “discoverable,” thereby alerting others that they are part of the Collective and allowing invitations to connect. Additionally, suppliers have the opportunity to include a referral page on their site that directs retailers to install Shopify Collective so they can then request to connect.

Sales Process

When a product is purchased through a retailer’s site, notification goes directly to the retailer as well as to the supplier who then processes the payment, packs the item and ships it out. The retailer receives the tracking information in the Collective app and collects the agreed upon payment through Shopify. The supplier is paid once the purchase is fulfilled.

Customer Experience

The Shopify Collective arrangement is meant to be a seamless experience for the end user, giving shoppers the advantage of visiting one site but interreacting with more than one vendor thereby accessing a broader inventory. Although items purchased through a Collective arrangement will be delivered from separate locations, the customer only sees one shipping fee; Shopify combines the fees in the back end.

embroidery in frames
embroidery
Kate Latham of Modern Hoopla uses Shopify Collective to curate needlework bundles—on the right is one of her Collective partnership bundles with MCreativeJ.

Craft Businesses and Shopify Collective

Shopify Collective looks to be an interesting option for craft business owners wanting to enhance and expand their current offerings and to strategically partner with trusted brands.

One such business owner is Craft Industry Alliance member Kate Latham, owner of Modern Hoopla. Kate manufactures wooden frames and embroidery floss organizers for needlework projects. Her top selling product is an innovative frame design that fits right over an embroidery hoop for easy display of a maker’s needlework.

Kate doesn’t, however, design or manufacture the actual needlework patterns herself. She knew that finding the right partners was a key element to a successful craft business, one where she could offer her stitchcraft customers a broad assortment of relevant products like patterns, floss, and cloth, in addition to her frames.

After researching the features of the leading sales platforms, Kate migrated to Shopify from Squarespace to take advantage of the Collective feature, among other things. With Shopify Collective, Kate is both a retailer and a supplier.

One thing she knew for sure: she had to pick her partners very carefully. “The partnerships that you pursue must be a good fit with your business,“ says Kate. “This needs to be an intentional choice between brands.”

Kate researched brands that she knew would make great partners and reached out to start a dialogue. Her current partnerships on the Collective include MCreativeJ, Junebug and Darlin, Embroidery and Sage, and Lucky Jonquil.   

According to Kate, Shopify has made it very easy to collaborate because they handle all the backend work for you: “As a retailer, Shopify makes it really easy to import suppliers’ products right into your product listing,” something that was time consuming to configure on her own.

Her product line is ideal for a platform like Shopify Collective because it lets her curate a broad inventory for her maker customers. A key to her success is her ability to easily create needlework bundles for her customers that include a pattern, fabric and embroidery floss from a partner brand and a frame from her own shop. “This is good added value for my customers because they get a “set” that already coordinates and fits together with one purchase,” says Kate.

On the flip side, Kate is a supplier to needlework pattern designers who also create bundles that include her frames.

According to Kate, “Shopify handles sharing the order details straight to the supplier and handles the money exchange according to your commission settings. So, you’re able to please your customers with a wider range of product without having to stock it, ship it, or invoice it.”

Her advice for craft business owners pursuing collaborations on Shopify Collective:

  • Be diligent: search out quality brands that fit well with not only your product line but also your values and goals. Treat this colab like any other business partnership.
  • Be clear on all the details: including shipping costs, product pricing, margin percentages and customer service policies.

Shopify Collective may be an interesting option for craft businesses looking to expand their product offerings and create strategic partnerships. As with all decisions you make about your craft business, you’ll want to delve deep into the details to see if Shopify Collective is a good fit for you.

Paula Wilson

Paula Wilson

contributor

Paula is a freelance writer and editor with a background in marketing and communications. She is a lifelong maker who especially loves to crochet and quilt. Her latest craft endeavor is learning how to weave on a floor loom. Paula has been published in the New York Times and has written 10 children’s nonfiction books. She lives in Glastonbury, Connecticut.

 

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