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Commerce · Headless commerce

We separate your store's front end from its commerce engine, so you can design any experience while Shopify or another platform handles orders. Pages load fast and the same products feed your website, app and kiosks.

Talk to us about this →What you receive
One product, three storefrontsKora Sneakers

↓One product, three storefronts. Each loop is a different brand, engine and CMS; tap Web, App or Kiosk to bring one forward

In plain words

Headless commerce,explained without jargon.

What is headless commerce?

One idea at a time. Each sheet lays over the last, so the picture builds up. Tap a number to jump.

Think of it like this

It is like a restaurant kitchen that serves the dining room, a delivery app and a food truck from the same menu.

01 / 04

In a normal online store, the design and the shopping engine come as one package.

02 / 04

Headless commerce splits them: the engine keeps products, cart and orders, while a separately built front end shows them to customers.

03 / 04

The two talk through APIs.

04 / 04

This lets you build any design, mix in rich content and serve websites, mobile apps and in-store screens from one catalogue.

Signs you need it

Heard yourself say this?Count how many fit.

Five things owners tell us before a project like this starts. Every one you recognise adds a tally mark.

Your tally0of 5

Tap the lines you have said this year.

What you receive

Six parts,all handed over to you.

Your Headless commerce work is made of these six parts. The comb lights each one in turn; tap a cell to read it.

Headless commerce
Part 01 of 06

Architecture plan

A diagram of which system owns products, content, search, cart and customers, and how they connect. It is agreed before any code is written.

  • Architecture plan
  • Custom storefront
  • Headless CMS
  • Search and merchandising
  • Preview and publishing flow
  • Hosting and monitoring
How it runs

Four legs of one relay,about 20 weeks, start to finish.

Each leg is sized by how long it usually takes. Watch the baton go round, or tap a leg to jump there.

Leg 1 of 4Week 1 to 2Decide if headless fits
The decision

The question we hear most:Theme-based store or headless?

The board turns through each option. Tap one to hold it and read the trade-off.

Pick this when

Your needs fit theme sections and apps, and you want lower build and running costs.

The trade-off

It is simpler to run, though complex layouts and multi-channel setups hit limits.

What shapes the quote

Four factors,four corners of your project.

Each corner grows when that factor is on the larger side. The outline is your project's footprint, and the quote follows it.

Footprint

A compact project. The smallest footprint for your quote.

An example

Picture a business like yours,in three frames.

A typical situation, not a client story. The line in each frame goes from tangled to straight as the work is done.

A Mumbai home decor brand mixing magazine content with shopping

Common mistakes

Four things that trip a project,and the fix we fit instead.

Each fuse is a mistake we see often. Watch it blow and get replaced, or tap a fuse to read the fix.

Trips when

Going headless because it sounds modern

How we avoid it

We first check whether a good theme solves the problem, and only recommend headless when it clearly pays back.

Headless commerce questions,answered plainly.

Search the answers. If yours is missing, ask us on the call.

Cost & timeHow long does a headless build take and why is it pricier?

Most headless projects take ten to twenty weeks because the front end, content model and integrations are built from scratch. Channels, content depth, engine and integrations drive the price. We scope it in phases so you can launch the core store first.

Getting startedIs headless always faster?

It can be very fast when built well, using server rendering and caching. A poorly built headless site can be slower than a good theme, so we measure Core Web Vitals throughout the build.

Getting startedWill headless hurt our SEO?

Not when pages are rendered on the server with proper titles, structured data and sitemaps. We set these up from the start and test what Google sees with Search Console.

In IndiaDo Indian gateways work with a headless Shopify store?

Yes. Checkout still runs on Shopify, so your existing Razorpay, PayU or Cashfree setup continues to work. Custom checkouts on open-source engines integrate gateways directly through their APIs.

OwnershipWho owns the code and accounts?

You own the storefront repository, CMS workspace, hosting and commerce accounts. We work as invited collaborators.

After launchCan our in-house developers maintain it?

Yes, if they know React. We document the architecture, write tests and run a handover so your team can take over or work alongside us.

Getting startedCan we move to headless gradually?

Yes. We often start with a few high-value pages, such as the home page or a campaign hub, while the rest of the store stays on the theme. Other pages follow in later phases.

After launchWhat ongoing support do headless stores need?

Framework and dependency updates, CMS changes and performance checks. Our monthly plan covers these and is billed monthly with no lock-in.

Keep exploring

Works well alongside,from the same practice.

Part ofCommerceSee the full Commerce page →
Launch and scaleShopify & Shopify PlusRead more →Multi-vendor platformsMarketplacesRead more →Move without losing salesStore migrationsRead more →
Also in CommerceB2B orderingLogisticsPaymentsWooCommerce
Next step

Outgrown what a theme can do? We'll design a storefront without limits.

Walk us through the experience you want, and we will tell you honestly whether headless is worth it.

Start your project →How we work →