Shopify B2B Ecommerce Development

Shopify’s standard setup handles B2C stores well, but when your buyers demand custom pricing tiers, account portals and segmented catalogs, you’ll hit limits. Addressing those gaps requires a targeted strategy: diagnose each missing link, define customer segments, layer in volume‐based b2b-pricing rules, and give clients a self-service dashboard—backed by bespoke-development through Shopify’s APIs.

Diagnose Shopify B2B Gaps and Structure Custom Catalogs

Before writing any code or installing apps, map out exactly where Shopify’s out-of-the-box flow falls short for B2B:

• Catalog access: Can you hide consumer SKUs and show only approved products?
• Customer‐segmentation capabilities: Are you limited to “tags” or do you need dynamic groups?
• Checkout restrictions: Do you need minimums, net terms or PO numbers?
• Reporting: Are you tracking B2B-specific KPIs like average order value by segment?

Action step: in a test store, assign a sample “wholesale” customer tag. Observe which menus, filters and product collections remain visible. If a tag still exposes retail items—or if discounts apply globally—you’ve diagnosed a catalog gap.

Case in point: QC Supply defined three segments—Distributors, Contractors and Dealers—then asked their Shopify Plus partner to build custom collections per tag. Instead of one “All Products” page, each group logs in and sees a tailored SKU list. That eliminated manual order corrections and improved usability by 30%.

“E-commerce Partners delivered segmented catalogs that simply worked—no more manual overrides or hidden mistakes.”

Tools & techniques:

• Shopify Customer Tags + {% raw %}{% if customer.tags contains ‘wholesale’ %}{% endraw %} blocks
• Shopify Flow for event-driven tagging and automated catalog assignment
• Custom metafields for multi-tier SKUs (Shopify Admin GraphQL API)

Next steps:

1. Audit your store with a sample “B2B” account. List which products/categories still leak.
2. Define at least two customer‐segmentation rules (e.g. annual volume > 500 units).
3. Use Shopify Flow or a lightweight app (e.g. Locksmith) to lock down collections per group.

Implement Tiered Pricing and Volume Discount Rules

Once segments are set, B2B buyers expect staggered pricing: buy 1–9 units, pay list; buy 10–49 units, get 5% off; 50+, get 10% off. Out of the box Shopify offers simple discount codes—not ideal for automated, catalog-specific b2b-pricing.

To implement:

1. Shopify Scripts (Plus only): Write Ruby scripts in the Script Editor to adjust line-item prices in real time. Example structure:

# tiered_pricing.rb Input.cart.line_items.each do |line| qty = line.quantity if qty >= 50 line.change_line_price(line.line_price * 0.90, message: "10% volume discount") elsif qty >= 10 line.change_line_price(line.line_price * 0.95, message: "5% volume discount") end end Output.cart = Input.cart 

or

2. Discount API + Custom App: For non-Plus stores, build a mini app using the Discount Code REST API. The app detects cart quantity via JavaScript, then fetches or creates the correct discount code and applies it before checkout.

Practical tip: Pre-generate discount codes per SKU range (VOL10, VOL5) and store them in Shopify Metafields. Your custom app can pick codes based on cart data—no on-the-fly code creation.

“Before, contractors manually requested discount codes. Now they see tiered rates instantly in cart.”

Key stats:

• 25% uplift in average order value when tiered pricing is visible on PDPs
• 40% reduction in manual discount requests

Next steps:

1. List your current price tiers and map them to discount codes or scripts.
2. Proof-of-concept: add a simple Script for one product; test with a “wholesale” login.
3. Roll out to all segments; monitor discount utilization rate in Shopify B2B Ecommerce Development dashboards.

Build Self-Service Portals and Extend Workflows with Shopify APIs

B2B buyers want to log in, view order history, reorder, and track net terms. Shopify’s standard “Account” page is thin. You need a bespoke-development approach:

• Custom App Embed: Build a private app that embeds in the storefront via script tags. Expose a new “Account Portal” link in the header.
• Use the Orders GraphQL API to fetch a customer’s past orders, line items and fulfillment status.
• Display a “Reorder” button next to each historical order; clicking pre-fills the cart.
• Integrate with your ERP’s REST endpoints for credit checks or net terms—if customer net term > 0, show “Pay by Invoice” option.

Example flow:

1. Customer logs in; the app makes an AJAX call to /apps/account-portal/orders.
2. GraphQL query returns last 12 months of orders and invoice due dates.
3. UI lists invoices; “Mark as paid” buttons call your back-office API.

“We moved from an email-only reorder process to self-serve portals—customers place 70% of repeat orders without support.”

Recommended stack:

• Shopify App Bridge + Polaris UI for embedded experience
• Node.js/Express backend handling Admin API calls
• Webhook listeners for order updates and payment status

Next steps:

1. Sketch a portal wireframe: include orders, invoices, and custom forms.
2. Prototype a GraphQL query using Shopify’s GraphiQL App.
3. Plan ERP integration points; document APIs and authentication flow.

By systematically diagnosing feature gaps, defining customer-segmentation rules, layering in tiered b2b-pricing, and building a self-service dashboard via Shopify’s APIs, you transform a standard store into a strong B2B portal. For deeper dives on custom app builds or tiered pricing scripts, explore our case studies or schedule a call with our Shopify Plus team.

Ready to customize your B2B workflows? Contact us to review your current catalog segmentation, pricing matrix and portal requirements—and get a tailored roadmap to launch in weeks, not months.