Is Shopify Good for Wholesale? Here’s What You Need to Know

Is Shopify good for wholesale? It is a burning question for all the wholesalers aiming to upscale their B2B ecommerce sales. Looking at the bigger picture, the overall ecommerce trends are promising. According to a Statista survey, in 2021, business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce sales in the United States reached a staggering $1.7 trillion. With a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.7%, U.S. B2B ecommerce is set to surpass $3 trillion US dollars in sales by 2027.

Fig 1: B2B ecommerce growth in USA

This survey highlights the potential business opportunity for wholesalers, but is Shopify good for wholesalers to grab this growth opportunity? Many businesses use Shopify as their ecommerce platform, but most are B2C businesses. However, B2C and B2B businesses have fundamentally different needs.

So, in this blog, we will find an answer to this burning question, Is Shopify good for wholesale? or does it fall short for wholesalers?

Why Shopify Excels in B2C Ecommerce?

Shopify has become a leading platform in B2C ecommerce, tailored specifically for small and medium-sized businesses. It offers tools that simplify online selling. Let’s explore Shopify’s strengths, making it an ideal choice for B2C businesses.

1. Shopify’s User-Friendly Interface

Shopify stands out for its user-friendly, intuitive, and no-fuss interface. Its drag-and-drop builder makes the store setup process a breeze without requiring any coding skills, and customizable templates empower businesses to create professional, branded stores effortlessly. With tools to simplify tasks like shipping and currency settings, Shopify keeps things efficient, making it ideal for retailers of all sizes.

2. Robust App Ecosystem

Shopify’s app ecosystem is one of its greatest assets which offers over 1,200 apps to enhance functionality and scalability. These apps provide tailored solutions for diverse business needs, from translating stores into multiple languages to streamlining email campaigns and optimizing cookie consent. With these tools, B2C businesses can create engaging customer experiences and stay competitive in a constantly evolving market.

3. Marketing Support

Shopify provides comprehensive marketing support to help businesses grow and engage with their audience. Its tools allow you to create discount codes easily, set up email sign-ups, and manage promotions directly from the dashboard. Shopify’s app marketplace also provides access to integrations with email marketing platforms like Mailchimp, Klaviyo, and SMS tools. These apps enable businesses to launch targeted campaigns, automate customer communication, and optimize marketing strategies across multiple channels.

The Limitations of Shopify for B2B Ecommerce

Shopify works well for B2C, but it falls short for B2B. It doesn’t fully support the complexities of wholesale operations, making it less ideal for businesses looking to scale in the B2B space. Here are the limitations of Shopify for B2B ecommerce.

• Expensive Plans with Limited B2B Features
• Limited Customization
• Integration Challenges
• No Multiple Price Lists
• Restricted Data Transfer
• Transaction Fees
• App Dependency
• Restricted User Roles
• Inventory Management Challenge
• Invoicing limitations

1. Expensive Plans with Limited B2B Features

Shopify offers several pricing plans, starting at $25 to $399 per month and Shopify Plus, costing $2,300 per month. However, many essential B2B features, such as advanced customer management and bulk pricing, are only available on the Shopify Plus plan. Businesses relying on additional third-party apps to fill in functionality gaps can quickly escalate the costs, potentially requiring multiple app subscriptions alongside the monthly Shopify fee.

This can significantly stretch your budget, especially when considering the additional limitations Shopify presents for B2B use. For wholesalers seeking an all-in-one solution, Shopify’s pricing structure can become cost-prohibitive without the desired functionality.

2. Limited Customization

Shopify drag and drop feature to customize may seem ideal at first, but it doesn’t suffice to meet the needs of B2B businesses. To meet the B2B wholesale needs, Shopify relies on its proprietary liquid software, which developers do not adopt widely and creates extra bottlenecks for businesses seeking unique workflows and seamless automation.

Moreover, B2B needs like automatic discounts for specific customers, multiple price lists, customized catalogs, and many more often require third-party tools, making it more complicated. Thus, Shopify’s limited customization makes it a challenging choice for wholesalers looking for a tailored B2B ecommerce experience.

3. Integration Challenges

Shopify excels at integrating with the apps available in its app store, but it often stumbles when it comes to integrating with the tools B2B companies rely on, such as enterprise-level CRM or ERP platforms. These crucial integrations are either not available or need complex workarounds which leads to operational inefficiencies.

Shopify’s support is also very limited when it comes to custom integrations. Wholesalers are forced to invest more money for third-party solutions or for developers to bridge the gap. A platform tailored for B2B should seamlessly connect with essential business tools, but Shopify’s integration challenges make it less practical for large-scale wholesale operations.

4. No Multiple Price Lists

Tailored pricing for different customers is one of the critical aspects of B2B ecommerce, and Shopify is not inherently designed to support such wholesale dynamics. While Shopify Plus offers features like customer-specific pricing through its wholesale channel, it comes with a heavy cost of $2300/month.

For standard Shopify users, creating multiple price lists requires third-party apps or manual adjustments, which are time-consuming and inefficient. This lack of built-in flexibility makes it challenging for wholesalers to manage custom pricing for different clients.

5. Restricted Data Transfer

Shopify makes it challenging for businesses to transition to another platform if they switch. While you can export basic product information in a CSV file, critical elements like store design, customer data, and transactional history are not easily transferable. This data transfer limitation forces businesses to rebuild essential components from scratch if they move elsewhere.

Businesses will face downtime and must pay additional amounts while migrating from Shopify to another platform. Businesses seeking long-term flexibility should carefully evaluate this restriction, as it may hinder scalability and the ability to adapt to changing needs.

6. Transaction Fees

Additional transactional fees are charged by Shopify for those businesses who don’t use their payment system which significantly reduces wholesalers profit margins. These fees quickly add up for the wholesalers who handle high-value or bulk orders. It forces businesses to commit to Shopify payments, which may not support their preferred payment gateways.

For B2B operations, where competitive pricing is critical, these transaction fees present a considerable drawback, making Shopify less appealing for wholesalers focused on maximizing profitability.

7. App Dependency

Wholesalers have to depend on a multitude of apps if they want to run their business on Shopify’s core platform. It lacks many key features that wholesalers need, such as bulk discounts, invoicing, volume-based pricing, etc. So, they have to depend on third-party apps to access these features, which can increase operational costs and add complexity to site management.

It can create compatibility issues and a fragmented user experience. For wholesalers who require streamlined and scalable solutions, this heavy app dependency can make Shopify a cumbersome and costly option for running a B2B ecommerce business.

8. Restricted User Roles

Shopify’s user role management system falls short regarding the complex needs of B2B wholesale operations. Granular control over user roles and permissions—such as assigning different access levels for sales reps, account managers, or warehouse staff—is not natively supported. Businesses often need costly custom development to achieve this functionality.

This limitation can lead to inefficiencies and security concerns for wholesalers handling multiple accounts and team workflows. A platform that prioritizes robust user role management is essential for seamless operations, but Shopify’s restricted capabilities make it less suited for B2B businesses.

9. Inventory Management Challenges

It is evident that wholesale needs are very complex and Shopify’s inventory management tools are designed for standard operations, which makes it challenging to track stock levels accurately in real-time, increasing the risk of overselling or underselling.

For businesses managing extensive inventories, multiple SKUs, or operating across multiple warehouses, Shopify’s system often falls short without additional apps or custom solutions. This creates inefficiencies and adds operational challenges for wholesalers who need precise inventory control to meet B2B demands.

10. Invoicing Limitations

Shopify does not offer an in-built invoicing system which is a big setback for wholesalers who are always looking for detailed and customizing invoicing. Since Shopify lacks this functionality, the wholesalers have to turn towards third-party apps that come with extra costs and complexities.

The most concerning part of these external solutions is the integration issues they come with. This can affect workflow and create inefficiency for financial operations. Businesses looking to streamline professional invoicing operations may find Shopify’s absence of a built-in invoice system a significant limitation.

How WizCommerce Revolutionizes Wholesale Operations?

WizCommerce is a tailored solution designed for wholesalers to overcome the limitations of traditional ecommerce platforms. Its focus on seamless integration, user-centric features, and flexibility makes it an ideal platform for businesses looking to optimize their wholesale operations. Let’s explore why WizCommerce is a game-changer for wholesalers.

1. Infinite Customization Options

WizCommerce allows businesses to customize their platform infinitely concerning design and functionality. Using a robust Content Management System, you can easily tweak product information, layouts, and sections. Also, you can customize the freight options and payment terms, ensuring that every aspect of your wholesale ecommerce site can be tailored to your unique business needs.

2. Seamless Integration Capabilities

WizCommerce excels in integrating with leading ERPs, CRMs, and inventory systems like QuickBooks, NetSuite, Business Central, Zoho, Fishbowl, and many more. These seamless integrations enable real-time synchronization of customer data, inventory levels, and order details, streamlining operations and eliminating manual workflows.

3. Customer Approval Flows

WizCommerce simplifies access management by allowing you to control who sees product pricing. Only registered users can view prices, while visitors are prompted to sign up. This ensures sensitive pricing information remains exclusive to approved customers, offering a more controlled B2B experience.

4. Multiple Price Lists

WizCommerce makes tiered pricing or customer-specific price lists effortless. Whether you’re offering volume discounts or tailored pricing to individual clients, the platform’s advanced features help you easily handle dynamic pricing, catering to diverse customer segments seamlessly.

5. AI-powered Personalized Recommendation

WizAI is our product recommendation engine, and it helps businesses deliver tailored product recommendations like Amazon. By analyzing purchase history and buying patterns of the customers, it suggests relevant products and similar products for out-of-stock items, ensuring no sales opportunity is missed. WizAI enhances customer experience and boosts conversions through smart automation.

6. Flexible B2B Checkouts

WizCommerce provides a streamlined B2B payment experience with flexible options like adding notes, preferred shipping dates, and multiple billing or shipping methods. Its PCI-compliant system supports upfront payments, deposits, or net terms while allowing businesses to capture card details at checkout and charge later at shipping, ensuring maximum flexibility for diverse business needs.

7. Customer Account Management

Empower customers with a centralized view of order history, shipment tracking, and invoices. WizCommerce automates updates like order confirmations, shipping notifications, and payment reminders, saving your customer service team time while enhancing customer satisfaction.

8. Segmented product catalogs

WizCommerce allows you to create segmented product catalogs, ensuring that specific customer groups see tailored product selections. This feature is ideal for showcasing exclusive products or controlling visibility based on customer profiles, enhancing personalization, and optimizing the B2B shopping experience.

Real-World Success with WizCommerce

Indian Touch of Gallup, a prominent jewelery wholesaler, had the vision to connect artisans with customers worldwide. However, their journey was hindered by the limitations of platforms like Shopify and Wix, which couldn’t keep up with the demands of their large-scale wholesale business. The inefficiencies of these B2C-focused tools led to fragmented data, manual processes, and missed growth opportunities.

By adopting WizCommerce’s B2B eCommerce solution, Indian Touch of Gallup transformed its operations. With features tailored to wholesale needs—such as bulk product management, custom pricing, and flexible payment options—they streamlined their workflows and enhanced customer experiences. The results were extraordinary: $279,000 in new revenue, 50+ monthly leads, and a digital infrastructure built for scalability—all achieved within just five months.

Read the full case study here to discover how WizCommerce can help your business unlock new growth opportunities.