shopify store business plan

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A Step-by-Step Guide to Start Your Own Shopify Store

In today’s digital age, starting your own online store has never been easier. With the rise of e-commerce platforms you can turn your passion into a profitable business venture. The opportunity to embark on a journey as an online entrepreneur has never been more accessible or enticing. If you’ve ever dreamt of turning your passion into a thriving online store, Shopify, one of the most user-friendly e-commerce platforms, is here to transform your aspirations into a reality. Whether you want to sell handmade crafts, clothing, electronics, or anything in between, this step-by-step guide will walk you through the process of setting up your own Shopify store. We’ll explore everything from selecting your niche and crafting a business plan to registering your business and setting up your online store. We’ll delve into designing your store to captivate your audience, adding products that fly off the virtual shelves, configuring payment and shipping options, and finally, launching and marketing your Shopify store for success.

Table of Contents

Choosing your niche, creating a business plan, registering your business, setting up your shopify account, launching your store, marketing your shopify store, managing your online business.

Selecting the right niche is a pivotal decision in the journey of establishing a successful Shopify store. The niche you choose serves as the foundation upon which your entire business will be built. This step is not to be taken lightly, as it directly impacts your store’s profitability and long-term viability. Here’s a closer look at the intricacies of choosing your niche in a business context:

Market Research

Before you make a commitment to a particular niche, it’s essential to conduct thorough market research. This involves assessing the current demand, competition, and trends within the niche you’re considering. Market research should include:

Market Size and Growth: Determine the size of the market you plan to enter and its growth potential. A larger market may offer more opportunities but could also be more competitive.

Competitive Landscape: Analyze your potential competitors. Who are they, and what are their strengths and weaknesses? Understanding your competition will help you identify gaps you can exploit.

Target Audience: Define your ideal customer persona. Understand their needs, preferences, and pain points. Your chosen niche should align with the interests and desires of your target audience.

Passion and Expertise

While market research provides valuable data, it’s equally important to align your niche with your passions and expertise. Running a successful online store requires dedication and enthusiasm, and being genuinely interested in your niche can make the journey more rewarding. Additionally, your expertise in the niche can help you stand out as an authority, fostering trust with your customers.

Profitability Analysis

Beyond passion, assess the potential profitability of your chosen niche. Consider the pricing structure of products or services within the niche and whether it allows for a reasonable profit margin. Evaluate the lifetime value of a customer and the potential for repeat business.

Long-Term Viability

A successful Shopify store is not just about short-term gains but long-term sustainability. Assess whether your chosen niche has lasting appeal or if it’s a passing trend. You’ll want a niche that can provide a consistent revenue stream for years to come.

Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Identify what sets your store apart from competitors. Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) should be a clear and compelling reason why customers should choose your store over others in the same niche. It could be unique products, exceptional customer service, or a distinctive brand identity. Choosing your niche is a critical foundational step in the establishment of your Shopify store. It’s a blend of data-driven market research, personal passion and expertise, profit potential, long-term viability, and a unique selling proposition. By meticulously evaluating these factors, you’ll set the stage for a successful and sustainable e-commerce venture.

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In the realm of e-commerce entrepreneurship, a well-structured business plan is not just a formality; it’s a strategic compass that guides your Shopify store’s journey from inception to success. Here’s an outline of the key elements involved in creating a business plan:

Executive Summary: Begin with an executive summary that provides a concise overview of your Shopify business venture. This should include a brief description of your store, its objectives, the target market, and your unique value proposition. Think of it as a snapshot of your entire business plan, providing a quick glance at what investors, partners, or stakeholders can expect.

Business Description: Delve into the specifics of your business. Detail the nature of your online store, the products or services you’ll offer, and your niche market. Explain why you believe your chosen niche is viable and how it aligns with current market trends.

Strategy and Implementation

Outline your business strategy. How do you plan to penetrate the market and gain a competitive edge? Consider the following:

Marketing Strategy: Describe your approach to reaching and acquiring customers. Will you rely on digital marketing, social media, content marketing, or other channels?

Sales Strategy: Detail your pricing strategy, sales tactics, and sales funnel. How will you convert leads into paying customers?

Operational Plan: Explain the day-to-day operations of your store. This includes inventory management, order fulfillment, and customer service processes.

Financial Projections

Financial projections are crucial for assessing the viability and potential profitability of your Shopify store. This section should include:

Startup Costs: Itemize the initial investment required to launch your store. This includes expenses like website development, inventory, marketing, and legal fees.

Revenue Forecast: Present a detailed revenue projection for the first few years of operation. Break it down by product or service category, and consider various growth scenarios.

Expense Breakdown: List your anticipated ongoing expenses, such as hosting fees, marketing costs, and employee salaries.

Profit and Loss Statement: Create a projected profit and loss statement that outlines your expected income, expenses, and profitability over time.

Risk Analysis: Every business venture carries inherent risks. Identify potential risks and challenges that your Shopify store may face and explain how you plan to mitigate them. This demonstrates your awareness of potential obstacles and your ability to adapt.

Creating a robust business plan for your Shopify store is a critical step in ensuring its long-term success. It serves as a roadmap that not only guides your initial launch but also provides a framework for ongoing decision-making and growth. A well-structured business plan demonstrates your commitment to your e-commerce venture and provides confidence to investors, partners, and stakeholders.

To operate a legitimate online business, you may need to register your business name and obtain any necessary permits or licenses. Consult with your local government to ensure compliance with legal requirements.

Now it’s time to set up your Shopify account. Visit Shopify’s website and sign up for an account. You can start with a free trial to get a feel for the platform. Choose a memorable domain name that reflects your brand and niche. Shopify offers user-friendly templates to help you design your store.

Designing Your Store

Your store’s design is crucial to attracting and retaining customers. Customize your store’s theme to align with your brand. Ensure that your website is mobile-friendly, as many shoppers browse and make purchases using smartphones and tablets. Make navigation intuitive and display high-quality images of your products.

Adding Products

With your store’s design in place, it’s time to add products. Use captivating product descriptions that highlight the benefits and features of your items. Upload clear and appealing images. Set competitive prices and organize your products into categories for easy browsing.

Setting Up Payment and Shipping

Shopify offers a variety of payment gateways to facilitate transactions. Choose the ones that best suit your customers' preferences. Additionally, configure your shipping settings, including shipping rates and delivery options. Be transparent about shipping costs and estimated delivery times.

Before you launch your store, thoroughly test it to ensure that all features work correctly. Check for any spelling or grammatical errors. Once you’re confident in your store’s functionality, it’s time to hit the «Launch» button. Announce your grand opening on social media and to your network.

In the highly competitive landscape of e-commerce, effective marketing should be one of the key features of your Shopify store. It’s not merely about having a great product or a well-designed website; it’s about reaching your target audience and convincing them to choose your store over the myriad alternatives. Here’s an in-depth look at how to market your online store effectively:

Digital Advertising: It encompasses paid advertising efforts across various online platforms.

Social Media Advertising: Leverage social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to create highly targeted ad campaigns. These platforms offer granular audience segmentation based on demographics, interests, and behaviors.

Keyword Research: Identify high-value keywords relevant to your niche and integrate them strategically into your website’s content, meta descriptions, and product listings.

On-Page SEO: Ensure that your site is technically sound, with proper HTML tags, image optimization, and a mobile-responsive design. Improve page load times and enhance user experience.

Quality Content: Create valuable, original content that appeals to your target audience. Regularly update your blog with informative articles and guides related to your niche.

Email Marketing: Email marketing is a powerful tool for nurturing leads and retaining customers. Implement automated email sequences, such as welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, and post-purchase follow-ups.

Social Media Marketing: Engage with your audience on social media platforms.

Content Marketing: Content marketing involves creating valuable and educational content to attract and engage your target audience.

Once your store is up and running, the work doesn’t stop. Regularly update your product listings, monitor your inventory, and analyze your sales data. Respond promptly to customer inquiries and feedback. Continuously optimize your website and marketing strategies to stay competitive.

Starting your own Shopify store can be a fulfilling and profitable endeavor. By carefully choosing your niche, creating a business plan, and diligently following the steps outlined in this guide, you can set yourself up for e-commerce success. Remember, consistency and dedication are key to growing and sustaining your online business. Now that you have a comprehensive guide to starting your own Shopify store, it’s time to take action and turn your e-commerce dreams into reality. Good luck on your entrepreneurial journey!

— How much does it cost to start a Shopify store?

Starting a Shopify store can cost as little as $ 29 per month for the basic plan. Additional costs may include domain registration, app purchases, and marketing expenses.

— Do I need to have technical skills to use Shopify?

No, Shopify is designed for users with varying levels of technical expertise. Its user-friendly interface makes it accessible to beginners.

— Can I sell digital products on Shopify?

Yes, Shopify allows you to sell both physical and digital products. You can easily upload and manage digital downloads for your customers.

— How long does it take to set up a Shopify store?

The time it takes to set up a Shopify store varies depending on factors like the complexity of your products and how quickly you complete each step. You could have a basic store up and running in a day or two.

— What marketing strategies work best for Shopify stores?

Effective marketing strategies for Shopify stores include social media marketing, email marketing, content marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO). The best approach may vary based on your niche and target audience.

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How to Create a Business Plan for Your Shopify Startup

• Elliott Pearce
• on March 22, 2023

Launching a Shopify store is exciting, but it’s easy to feel unprepared without a good plan.

You may have a brilliant idea—and the Shopify platform makes everything from marketing to finances easier to manage—but working out how to bring your vision to fruition is still a tremendous challenge.

Creating a business plan may be something a few entrepreneurs can do without, but for many others, it’s a vital tool for clarifying their startup’s objectives and their strategy for achieving them. A formal business plan is also a necessity for those seeking funding.

This article will help you decide if a traditional business plan is something that will assist you in launching your Shopify startup, and if so, show you the 8 key elements it should contain.

Are formal business plans essential?

Before we launch into the ins and outs of creating a successful business plan, it’s important to note that creating a full business plan may not be necessary or desirable for all entrepreneurs.

While almost everyone will benefit from doing some kind of planning before setting up a business, this doesn’t necessarily have to be a formal business plan.

For example, successful entrepreneur Cat LeBlanc uses what she calls a ‘concept to test’ . This involves laying out an idea and a value proposition, and then doing some marketing to see if the concept actually appeals to the target audience.

For those with the ability to be flexible and adapt rapidly in the face of market realities, this more minimal type of planning can certainly work. By contrast, sticking too rigidly to a business plan—no matter how well thought-through—in the face of changing or unexpected market conditions is a recipe for failure.

It’s also worth noting that for ecommerce entrepreneurs using Shopify specifically, various aspects of marketing, operations, and finances will be handled for them by the platform. This may reduce the level of detail required in a business plan.

But with all that being said, your personality type may be suited to engaging in meticulous planning and forethought before taking the leap. Creating a full business plan will force you to do several potentially valuable things:

• Think through every aspect of how the business would operate
• Clarify your business objectives and strategy
• Work out what is required in the way of resources
• Identity potential risks and roadblocks

So for many, working through all of these details may allow them to reach a more informed and confident decision about the viability of their business idea, provided that they’re willing to adapt their business plan once it meets with reality.

It should also be noted that for those looking to raise capital or take out a business loan, having a fully fleshed-out business plan to show to investors or your bank is pretty much essential.

Now that we’ve established that a formal business plan can be a useful tool for many (if not all), let’s discuss what it needs to contain to be effective.

What are the elements of a traditional business plan?

1. Executive summary

The purpose of the executive summary is to provide readers with an accessible, clear overview of your business, providing brief insights into key details like:

• Your business concept, vision, and goals
• What your product will be, and what sets it apart
• Your target market and customer demographics
• A summary of your marketing strategy
• An overview of your financial projections

If you’re writing the business plan only for your own planning purposes, the executive summary is optional. However, distilling everything in this way can be a useful exercise nonetheless.

2. Company description

This section involves describing your business in greater detail than in the executive summary. It should include setting out your company’s vision and mission, any important background information or history, and the ownership structure you’ll adopt (e.g. S corporation vs. sole proprietorship). Another important factor to plan for is where to base your startup .

As with the executive summary, this section is optional if you don’t intend to present your business plan to anyone. However, laying out in writing what the core values of your company will be, and what impact you want to have on the world is, can still be a very useful way to gain clarity on these big-picture issues.

3. Product breakdown

Here you’ll want to go into detail about the product (or range of products) that your Shopify store will be offering. You should flesh out:

• Product features and benefits
• Your pricing strategy
• Where products will be sourced from, e.g. will they be handcrafted locally or manufactured abroad?
• Information about any patents or trademarks required or already owned.

4. Market and competitor analysis

This section is where you’ll provide an analysis of the particular ecommerce market your Shopify store will operate in, as well as of your competitors.

This means firstly breaking down industry trends such as the size of the market, its growth rate, and projected future growth. These are crucial stats to consider, as you probably don’t want to be chasing a slice of a shrinking or stagnant pie.

You'll also want to break down data on your competitors, such as how they price their products, the marketing strategies they’re using, and how their products differ from yours.

Even if your product is first to market, it’s still worth considering any indirect competitors, i.e. where your customers are likely to be switching from spending their money.

5. Customer segmentation

Identifying your ideal customer (or target market) is crucial in creating an effective marketing strategy, as preferences can vary so widely between different groups—particularly in many ecommerce industries like fashion.

In order to work out which customer segment you should target, you’ll want to look at characteristics like:

• Physical location
• Education and income level
• Personal values, beliefs, and viewpoints

6. Marketing and sales plan

Once you’ve set out who your ideal customer is, you’ll need to explain what your strategy will be to actually get them to buy from you.

You’ll therefore need to figure out some key elements, such as your pricing strategy, how you’ll use the power of branding and design to set your product apart, and the marketing channels you’ll pursue to promote it.

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Who your ideal customer is will inform these parts of your marketing strategy. For example, if you’re targeting a younger demographic, you may opt for TikTok as an advertising channel—but probably not if it’s an older demographic.

7. Financial plan

Making a bulletproof projection of your business’s finances when you haven’t started it yet is likely to be tricky.

Producing realistic projections of profits and losses is an excellent exercise in determining how much financial headroom your business has.

If margins look tight, even in an optimistic projection that assumes you’d be making good levels of sales, you may need to think hard about how viable your business idea is.

The depth of information in your financial plan will vary based on who (you’re presenting the business plan to (if anyone)), but it generally includes an income statement, a balance sheet, and a cash-flow statement. You may also want to include your startup costs and funding needs.

8. Operations and logistics plan

The logistics and operations section outlines how you’ll ensure that your customers are being served by a finely tuned machine.

Key aspects to cover include:

• Sources of raw materials and your production location
• Manufacturing method and production time, and details of how you’d handle high demand
• The technology and equipment you’ll need
• Whether shipping and fulfillment will be handled in-house or through a third-party
• How you’ll manage your inventory

Your operations plan should also address how you’ll staff your business, e.g. how many employees will you need and in which roles?

Comprehensively planning operations and supply chain issues will also help to determine things like your pricing and break-even point, thus helping to inform your marketing and financial plans.

Even though Shopify businesses have functions like shipping handled for them, it’s still a good idea to have a solid plan for those elements of operations that don’t fall under the platform’s umbrella.

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Hopefully, you now understand how a business plan can be an excellent tool to help you successfully launch your Shopify startup (even if it’s not mandatory).

Provided you adapt any plan once it meets the realities of the market, it can really help you clarify your ecommerce startup’s objectives and strategies.

Once you’ve launched your business, you’re likely to want to leverage the power of automation to save you time and money while reducing the potential for costly errors.

Sufio is a professional invoicing app for Shopify that allows you to generate invoices that are fully compliant, display the right currency, and are translated into the customer’s language. All automatically.

So, when you’re ready, try Sufio’s powerful automated features with this 14-day free trial.

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Retail | Ultimate Guide

Shopify Starter Plan: Review of Shopify’s $5/month Plan

Published August 18, 2023

Published Aug 18, 2023

REVIEWED BY: Meaghan Brophy

WRITTEN BY: Agatha Aviso

This article is part of a larger series on Retail Management .

• 1 Starter Plan At a Glance
• 2 Who the Shopify Starter Plan is Right for
• 3 When to Use an Alternative
• 6 Bottom Line

Shopify Starter is the social selling option of Shopify, replacing its previous entry tier, Shopify Lite, which lets you embed Buy Now buttons on existing sites. At $5 a month, Shopify Starter is an excellent option for content creators and influencers who already have an established audience on their respective platforms.

My Shopify Starter review takes you through its fees and included features. I also show you how to set up your Shopify products through Linkpop, Shopify’s link-in-bio tool.

Shopify Starter Plan At-a-Glance

• Pros & Cons
• Deciding Factors

Visit Shopify

Who the Shopify Starter Plan Is Right for

• Sellers who have previously built websites and sell sporadically and in limited quantities: If you already have a website and offer new products every now and then, Shopify Starter lets you link directly to checkout pages without the need for a full ecommerce store setup.
• Sellers who have their audience primarily on social platforms, such as creators or influencers: Bloggers, vloggers, and influencers can monetize their link in bios by directly linking to product pages under the Shopify Starter plan using Linkpop. Customers also checkout directly from Linkpop.
• Aspiring businesses who want to test products and markets first: Those who want to have a feel of their market can test products by offering them on social platforms, through direct messaging with friends and colleagues, and in person using Shopify Starter.

Test Shopify’s Starter Plan for Free

When to Use an Alternative

• Businesses that need a full standalone store: Those that need an ecommerce platform complete with website pages are better off subscribing to any of Shopify’s higher-paid tiers. Alternatively, there are other free ecommerce website builders like Square Online and Big Cartel that let you have a website and store under a free plan.
• Businesses that want lower transaction costs: Again, upgrading to Shopify’s paid plans lowers transaction costs to the standard rate (2.9% + 30 cents per transaction) if you are using Shopify Payments.

Shopify Starter Plan Pricing

Shopify Starter costs $5 a month—no hidden fees and fixed. You get no discount if subscribing for a year ($60). It is a straightforward, no-fuss plan to get selling online right away. Similar to other Shopify plans, you can get a free three-day trial and extend it for three months for just $1/month.

Its transaction fees are the following:

• Online credit card rates: 5% + $0.30 USD
• In-person credit card fees: 5%

It is important to note that Shopify Starter’s transaction fee is at 5%—higher than fees in Shopify’s standalone site plans.

The transaction fees might be a dealbreaker for those that have a good-enough online sales volume, so upgrading to any of Shopify’s plans (Basic at $39/month, Shopify at $105/month, and Advanced at $299/month) is a better decision. You can calculate fees and pricing on our ultimate guide to Shopify pricing .

Shopify Starter Plan Features

I signed up for a free trial to explore and test the platform features for my Shopify Starter plan review. During my review, I found that one has access to the following features under the plan:

• Unlimited products for selling, which equates to unlimited product and checkout pages
• Shopify order management and integrated fulfillment networker
• A very basic set of website pages—homepage, contact page, 404 page–on top of product and shopping cart pages
• Ability to directly link product pages to Linkpop (a link-in-bio tool that helps you sell products with shoppable links)
• Ability to sell products via Shopify Inbox (chat)
• Full backend tools—product and inventory management, tax rates, and more (similar to other Shopify plans, except for marketing features)
• Ability to use the Shopify’s full suite of order management tools—Shopify Shipping and Shopify Fulfillment network for all product storage (an incredible value)
• Reports and analytics

You cannot build a full standalone store under the Shopify Starter plan, but you can brand your pages. To do so, go to your Shopify dashboard > Settings > Brand. You can set up the following:

• Your logo and brand colors (primary and secondary)
• A cover image (a key image that shows off your brand in profile pages and apps)
• Your slogan or brand statement (up to 80 characters)
• A short description of your business often used in bios and listings (up to 150 characters)
• Social links (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, TikTok, Tumblr, Snapchat, YouTube, Vimeo)

The only theme you can work with under the plan is the Spotlight theme. You won’t be able to do anything with the theme save for setting up your branding options (which you already have under Brand settings).

Under the Shopify Starter plan, your store address will be under a Shopify subdomain (myshop.myshopify.com). Whenever someone visits the URL, they will see your online storefront like below.

Shopify’s Spotlight theme is the only theme for Shopify Starter plan users. (Source: Shopify)

I compare it to Ecwid’s Instant Site , a single landing page for customers to look over your products in one go.

Sell Anywhere—In-person & Online

Shopify Starter lets you share product links that take people directly to checkout pages (as in the image below). Use these links to share on direct messages, such as WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, and everywhere else.

When someone clicks through your shared product link, they’re redirected to the product page where they can check out, add more products (by browsing your storefront), and make a payment for the item using Shopify Checkout.

You can also sell in-person too, using Shopify’s basic point of sale, POS Lite. Just download the Shopify POS app on your smartphone or tablet to sell products in person. You can instantly accept payments using Tap to Pay on an iPhone or buy any of the available card readers from Shopify.

• Shopify POS Review: Best for Omnichannel Retail
• How to Use Shopify POS

Monetized Links Through Linkpop

Social media bios are limited to just one link, which is extremely limiting for most users. Enter Linkpop , a free Shopify tool that lets you make a shoppable landing page accessible through social media apps. You can use Linkpop to link to your other profiles on social media, share links to your sale items, new blog posts, or opt-in forms, and sell products using shoppable links.

Under Shopify Starter, you can add Linkpop as a sales channel from your Shopify dashboard and directly link your products to it. You set up Linkpop directly inside your Shopify dashboard, too.

When I tested the feature, I found it easy to add to my Shopify dashboard. The setup for my Linkpop bio was quick. I can also brand my Linkpop to my shop’s colors, customize my bio, and—as shown in the image below—add products from my Shopify store as well as add a lot of other links.

I set up my Linkpop to test checking out product links and found I can check out straight from Linkpop, which I found impressive as a shopper.

Order Management

While Shopify Starter’s features are limited on the front end, Shopify still gives you full access to ecommerce tools on the back end, such as product management, inventory, and order fulfillment.

Your dashboard is the same as those under the higher Shopify plans, save from other marketing features. You can easily set up your products, track inventory, and fulfill orders.

What really is impressive is that even under this plan, you can use the Shopify Fulfillment Program. Just pay a monthly fee to have Shopify store, pick, pack, and ship products for you. Note that this is just one way of fulfillment—you can send the order to a warehouse, dropshipper, or print-on-demand location or package and ship the product yourself.

Sales Reports & Analytics

You can also track your business performance using reports. The Starter plan includes an analytics page, financial reports, product analytics, Live View, acquisition reports, inventory reports, behavior reports, and marketing reports. You don’t get as many advanced reports compared to Shopify’s higher plans, but these reports are enough to notice trends for you to strategize your marketing.

Note that your Linkpop comes with analytics reports, too, such as how many clicks each of your links got.

Bottom Line

If you are serious about online selling, Shopify Starter isn’t the best option for you. I’d recommend going with Shopify’s Basic plan. At $39 a month, you get a full standalone store and built-in marketing tools that can help set up your online store for success.

I would recommend the Starter plan for influencers, content creators, bloggers, YouTubers, and those wanting to get their feet wet in online selling. For $5/month, you can sell products without much overhead costs and promote them anywhere—via DM, social media, and other websites. Once sales grow, consider upgrading to a Shopify Basic plan. It will be worth more than your initial investment.

Sign up for a three-day Shopify free trial, and extend your trial for three months for just $1/month today.

About the Author

Find Agatha On LinkedIn

Agatha Aviso

Agatha Aviso is a retail software expert writer at Fit Small Business. She specializes in evaluating ecommerce and retail software features that help small businesses grow. She has evaluated dozens of the top software for retail SMBs. Agatha has more than 10 years of experience writing online content for both small business owners as well as the marketing industry. She also served as a content strategist and digital marketing manager for many entrepreneurs.

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Table of Contents

What is Shopify?

Free shopify trial.

Among online retail options for small businesses, Shopify is one of the best e-commerce platforms. What was once a robust option for selling products online has blossomed into a solution that includes web hosting and in-store point-of-sale (POS) systems .

You’re likely to find a Shopify plan that fits your business needs, but you’ll want to compare each plan’s features and pricing to determine which works best for you. Here’s a rundown of available plans, features and pricing.

Shopify is an e-commerce-focused platform that helps online businesses sell their products. Businesses can create e-commerce websites on Shopify that offer seamless buying portals for customers, and the platform also supports selling through other marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay and Instagram.

Shopify has also branched out into brick-and-mortar businesses, offering mobile card readers, its own POS software and inventory management. What started as a simplified way to sell online has now become a full-scale merchant solution for small businesses and individual entrepreneurs.

Shopify's plans include four non-enterprise options and one enterprise-level tier. Each plan has a set of features that cater to different types and sizes of businesses and comes with its own pricing structure.

Plan comparison

Shopify Starter

Shopify Starter is a great option for businesses that are just getting started with selling online and costs $15 a month, with transactions starting at 5%. The Shopify Starter plan includes basic features, including:

Accepting credit cards in person and online.

Adding purchase links on existing websites.

Accepting gift cards.

Unlimited product pages.

Contact page.

Shopping cart for multiple purchases.

While this plan doesn’t provide you with an online store, you can add purchase links to your existing website to make it easy for customers to checkout on desktops and mobile browsers. Popular website hosts that work well with Shopify include Squarespace , Weebly , Wix and WordPress .

You’ll also have access to simple features, like managing online orders, inventory and customer profiles. As Shopify’s cheapest plan, it is best for small businesses that are looking for minimal options and an easy setup to sell online.

Basic Shopify is designed to help burgeoning small businesses that need to do more than just sell online but might not need the full slate of features. This plan costs $29 per month when paid annually and includes:

A customizable online store.

Unlimited product listings.

Up to 1,000 inventory locations.

Two staff logins.

Customer segmentation to filter by feature.

Marketing automation.

Alternative sales channel support outside of the Shopify ecosystem.

Shipping discounts and shipping label printing.

Support for international market management, including currency conversation and translation.

With this plan, payment processing fees are 2.9% plus 30 cents per online transactions, and 2.7% per in-person transaction.

» MORE: How to start an online store

Shopify Plan

The middle-tiered Shopify Plan is geared toward medium-sized businesses with a more robust set of e-commerce needs. At $79 per month when paid annually, this plan incorporates the features from the lower-priced subscriptions along with additional benefits. These include:

Five staff accounts.

Standard reporting options.

A shipping discount up to 88%.

UPSP Priority Mail Cubic pricing.

These features can boost businesses that are growing and need more insight into their sales, expansion for more locations and shipping support. Online transactions have a processing fee of 2.6% plus 30 cents, and in-person transactions come with a 2.5% processing fee.

» More from Shopify: Learn about loans from Shopify Capital and banking with Shopify Balance .

Advanced Plan

At $299 per month (when paid annually), Shopify’s Advanced plan builds on the lower-tiered plans to offer the most features for larger businesses that don’t consider themselves at the enterprise level — those that need advanced insight into sales, are handling a lot of shipping, have a larger employee base and need full assistance for international sales. In addition to what the previous tiers offer, this plan includes:

15 employee logins.

Advanced sales and performance reports.

Third-party shipping calculations that show customers what they’ll pay in real-time.

Automations for workflows and tasks.

Tax estimates and custom market pricing for international sales.

The Advanced Shopify plan charges 2.4% plus 30 cents for online transactions and 2.4% for in-person purchases.

Shopify Plus Plan

Finally, if you’re a high-volume multichannel seller, you might want to opt for Shopify Plus. This plan is built for enterprise businesses and offers several features for high-volume businesses, including:

Additional permissions to further restrict what employees can and can’t access.

International payment processing in multiple currencies and languages.

3D modeling of online store products.

Automated workflows to simplify processes.

Scheduling for sales.

Shopify also advertises that customers who use this plan can work with Shopify Plus Certified Apps and Partners to get the most out of their system. Pricing for this plan — from the monthly subscription fee to transaction fees — is quote-based, depending on your sales volume.

Shopify offers a free three-day trial for new customers with their Starter, Basic, Shopify and Advanced plans. A trial is currently unavailable for Shopify Plus.

The trial lets you build a store to try out different features and determine how well the platform will work for your business. But you can’t start selling until you sign up for a paid plan. And the trial doesn’t automatically sign you up after three days: if you don’t choose a plan before the trial ends, your store is paused and you aren’t charged anything until you sign up for a paid plan at a later date.

Shopify Plus is designed for enterprise-level companies and offers features that most small businesses are unlikely to need. But if you're processing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, you might want to look into it.

You can have an online store, but you can't host it with Shopify. You'll need to already have it set up before you add a Buy Button to let customers checkout through Shopify.

According to Shopify, your credit card will not be automatically charged at the end of the trial. You'll only be charged if you sign up for a particular monthly plan.

Shopify Payments is the company's payment processing service and is available for all plans.

Shopify Payments

is the company's payment processing service and is available for all plans.

A version of this article was first published on Fundera, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.

Whitney Vandiver, a writer at NerdWallet, contributed reporting to this article.

On a similar note...

Shopify Store Business Plan [Sample Template]

By: Author Tony Martins Ajaero

Home » Business Plans » Wholesale & Retail

Are you about starting a Shopify company? If YES, here is a complete sample Shopify store business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE . If you want to set up an e-commerce company that is like Shopify, then it is important that you take concrete steps in making that plan a reality. Even though eCommerce might look like an easy business to start up, but the competition out there is stiff especially as you would need to compete with well-known brand names where people prefer to sell from or shop from.

Though there are a lot of great tools you can use in gathering information on how to set up your shopify-like company; but it is best you consult a business expert who has knowledge about the industry you are in to help advice you on the possibility of your business making it.

Another important thing you will need to do is formulate a business plan for your e-commerce platform by thinking up features that will sway sellers and buyers to your site. Your market research must be competitive so that you can become successful. If you do not know how to write a business plan, it is best to seek the services of a business plan writer or check online for sample business plan templates.

A Sample Shopify Store Business Plan Template

1. industry overview.

The fact that consumers have been finding it difficult to visit brick and mortar stores due to hectic schedules has allowed for the growth of the e-commerce industry where customers can sit at home or in their office to shop. Also, transportation trouble is eradicated with the home or destination delivery offered by these platforms.

According to trends, products available online are usually cheaper than those sold in retail stores. Also, online stores usually give customers discounts, cash-on-delivery offers and other features that make it more attractive to shop online.

One good feature about shopping online is that buyers are able to see the specifications of the products and then compare them with similar products or alternatives. The speed of the internet and the increase in the ownership of smartphones and tablets has allowed for the growth of this sector.

The industry has experienced a lot of mergers and acquisitions as major brands keep acquiring other companies with niches in other areas in order to continue with their hold on the industry.

The industry has also experienced a lot of collaborations as major players have collaborated with third part vendors especially in providing logistic services. These collaborations are done in order to ensure that the processes flow smoothly.

North America has dominated the market on a global level in areas like consumer awareness, purchase pattern, and secured internet transactions; and this trend is expected to continue for a long time. Following closely behind is the Europe market.

It is expected that Asia-pacific will witness a rapid growth in the future on account of increase in the use of internet and technological devices.

The industry has had its share of difficulties as there has been counterfeit goods delivery from certain merchants or customers. Also, the monetary transactions being conducted online have given hackers opportunity to try and break into websites in order to get the information of customers.

2. Executive Summary

Juvia.com is an e-commerce company that has positioned itself to become a market leader by offering online retailers and buying customers a secure and simple way they can conduct their transactions online. Our company will offer a business-to-business solution to our online merchants regardless of what products or services they will be offering.

Our vision is to make eCommerce better for everyone by providing a hassle-free platform that will allow our customers build and focus on their retail businesses without distractions. We want online merchants from all over the world to use our platform in managing every aspect of their business and also change how purchasing works at the fundamental level for buying customers.

The eCommerce industry is filled with intense competition as there are huge brands such as Amazon, Shopify, eBay and the rest that have a huge share of the market, which is why our unique policy on handling returned merchandise will ensure that we secure a space for ourselves in the industry.

Part of our services include taking care of the needs of online merchants so that they are able to concentrate on their core competencies and not get distracted. Our other services include online 24/7 customer service, transportation and logistics as well as advertisements.

Because of how much we value our customers, we have developed a software application that will cater to the satisfaction of our customers by managing all their business activities seamlessly. We will also ensure that we form a strategic relationship with our online merchants as this will enable us to grow our customer base.

We have built a solid business structure that will allow us hire only the best to work for us. Our employees are not only competent but they also align with our core values as a company and are willing to work in ensuring that we attain our goals and objectives.

We have created an environment that is conducive enough to all our workforce and their welfare packages are one of the best in the industry especially amongst similar startups such as ours.

The company is founded by Jeff Ways, Diane Schultz and Michael Owen. Jeff has more than 15 years’ experience in this industry as he was top management for Amazon and Shopify. Diane has worked in UPS and will handle carrier alliances. Michael has close to 10 years’ experience in the information technology industry and has worked at big brands such as Microsoft and IBM.

3. Our Products and Services

At Juvia.com, we intend to offer services that will help retailers streamline their return process. We intend to allow the retailers on our platform to outsource a large part of their business so that they can focus fully on their core competencies and avoid distractions that will add little or no benefit to their business.

However, this will not be our only service as we intend to create multiple sources of income that will be in line with our objectives. It should be noted that while we might be looking to create a unique eCommerce platform for our clients (retailers and buying customers), we are established just like any business to generate profit and we will ensure that our revenue generation is within reasonable ambition for a company and under the permissible laws of the united states of America.

Some of the services that we intend to offer our various customers include;

• Domain name purchasing
• Secure Ecommerce hosting
• Online store
• Shopping cart system
• Integration of various payment gateway
• Marketing & SEO
• Escrow Service

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

• Our vision is to make eCommerce better for everyone by providing a hassle-free platform that will allow our customers build and focus on their retail businesses without any sort of distractions. We want online merchants from all over the world to use our platform in managing their business and also change how purchasing works at the fundamental level for buying customers.
• Our mission is to ensure that we enhance customer service for our various merchants so that we not only help them increase their sales but we also help them retain a high number of their customers. We intend to improve the image of our eCommerce platform both for the merchants as well as buying customers by enhancing the interaction process and problem resolution time.

Our Business Structure

Our intention of starting Juvia.com is to build a brand that offers merchants a hassle-free platform in selling their products and or services and also ensure that their buying customers have the best experience possible when using our platform. It is to this effect that we have laid down plans to ensure that we get it right from the beginning by ensuring that we hire only competent and professional hands to all the available positions in our company.

We are building a management team that is not only filled with core professionals in their various fields but a team that has identified with our objectives and value and are therefore committed to ensuring that we are able to attain them.

We intend to ensure that our employees work in an environment that is not only conducive but also well structure. Due to the fact that we intend to offer a wide range of services to help us compete with already established brands, we will be hiring enough employees to fill in available positions in our company.

Below therefore is the business structure that we are looking to build at Juvia.com;

Board of Directors

Chief Executive Officer

Director of Finance

Logistics and Operations Manager

Information Technology Manager

Sales and Marketing Executive

Human Resources and Administrative Manager

Customer Service Executive

5. Job Roles and Responsibilities

• In charge of overseeing the strategic direction and growth of the company in specific areas such as financial stability, operations and well-being of the company
• Acts on behalf of shareholders in ensuring that the day-to-day affairs of the company are in order
• Provide report to shareholders regarding the performance of the company
• Engages in opportunities that will allow for the expansion of the company
• Creates room for strategic alliance and management of relationships with internal and external customers
• Engages in strategic guidance of the company
• Oversees the day-to-day running of the company
• Drafts the policies and structures that will be used by the company
• Ensures that policies are implanted and reviewed regularly in order to modify or remove ineffective ones
• Handles financial oversight on behalf of the company
• Ensures that the assets of the company are safeguarded
• Ensures that the overall budget is duly implemented
• Handles transportation and other logistics on behalf of the company
• Creates a strategic relationship between carriers for the benefit of the company
• Works hand-in-hand with the online merchants
• In charge of the overall technological efficiency of the platform at all times
• Develops software when needed and upgrades existing software on behalf of the company
• Controls the dissemination of information on the platform
• Develops marketing strategies and engages in marketing activities on behalf of the company
• Generates revenue for the company
• Handles and enhances public relations on behalf of the company
• Sources for and recruits competent employees and conducts orientation on behalf of the company
• Engages in employee appraisals and ensures that employees undergo regular trainings
• Oversees the administrative affairs of the company
• Handles customers on behalf of online merchants as well as on behalf of the company
• Ensures speedy resolve of customer complaints
• Remains updated as regards organizational policies so as to disseminate accurate information to clients at all times

6. SWOT Analysis

The fact that we intend to run a standard platform means that we must do all we can to ensure that we have the right information regarding the business which we intend to run. We have therefore engaged the services of a business consultant who has a thorough understanding of the industry to look through our business concept and determine our likelihood of survival.

The consultant intends to use an analysis that is objective to determine how ready we are internally and externally to handle the different scenarios that we would encounter running our business. The analysis will be done based on similar startups such as ours in the country.

The business consultant will be making use of internal attributes such as strengths and weaknesses and external factors such as opportunities and threats to determine if our business will be a success. Below is the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Juvia.com by our business consultant;

We have several strengths that will be of huge advantage to our business and they are the fact that we offer an operation that runs all hours and days of the week. This means that no matter where our customers might be located, they will experience no stoppage in their services.

Our business is one that is global and we have several retailers that have signed up from other countries other than the United States. Our services are fast and effective and we offer our customers comparison shopping where they can compare prices in our stores to that of our competitors. Also, our financial transactions are very secure and fast.

There are several weaknesses that plague our platform such as the fact that we are still a new brand and as such have not gained as much prominence as we would like in the industry, this we would solve through aggressive advertisement and publicity.

We have also found that transportation costs are a bit high and are therefore inadvertently increasing the price of products for our various merchants. We hope to tackle these by looking to partner with more transportation and logistics firms in order that we might have the upper hand when negotiating rates till we are able to handle transportation and logistics ourselves.

• Opportunities

Internet users are increasing daily which means more people are going to grab the opportunity to sell online or become buyers from online retail stores, thereby increasing revenue for platforms such as ours. Also, more opportunities exist in the fact that more people feel comfortable buying from the internet.

There are several threats that we expect to face when looking to start our business and while we expect to be able to handle some threats, some we understand will be beyond our control. Some of the threats that we expect to face include; dishonest merchants who will damage the confidence of customers in ecommerce platforms, dishonest customers who will damage the faith of merchants in the system, adverse government policies, arrival of a new competitor and economic downturn.

7. MARKET ANALYSIS

• Market Trends

The online retail sector is one of the largest segments in e-commerce as this is the sector that accounts for the sale of consumer goods and accessories. Online retail stores in the United States according to the U.S Commerce Department generated revenue of close to $262 billion in 2013.

The revenue boom experienced by online retail stores is not only due to the fact that consumers have become more sophisticated when it comes to shopping but the advantage of speed and dynamics has continued to see online retail stores having an advantage over brick and mortar stores.

According to a research report by Forrester, it is expected that in the next several years, online retail sales will outgrow sales from brick and mortar stores. The growth experienced in online retail sale has received great boost due to smartphones and tablets as well as penetration of internet service on a global level.

The business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumers (B2C) market is very huge in the United States, as during 2013, the B2B aspect alone generated nearly $560 billion. The players in the B2B sector are however huge brands that include networking and infrastructure companies. Other sectors in the B2B industry are growing as well from cloud computing to social networks and advertising.

8. Our Target Market

Our target market is wide enough as our platform is open to online retailers of various categories. We have however decided to conduct a thorough market survey of our target market based on information obtained regarding similar businesses like ours in the country.

Our intention of conducting a market survey is so that we have a better idea of what it is our target market wants in order that we might then offer the right services that will meet these wants. The fact that there are already huge ecommerce platforms in the industry doesn’t mean that there isn’t still a need that hasn’t been met.

From the result of our market survey, we are therefore in business to offer our services to the following;

• Online retailers
• Buying customers
• Carrier companies
• Corporate bodies
• Advertising companies
• Payment Processing Companies
• Other ecommerce platforms

Our Competitive Advantage

Even though there are huge brands in existence like Amazon, eBay, Shopify and the rest, we foresee that there will be three types of competition from three avenues such as Direct, Internal and Channel. Regardless of the avenue, we have laid down policies and plans that will ensure that we offer top notch services to our various customers not only here in the United States of America but also on a global level as well. In order for us to be able to achieve this, we intend to have several laid down strategies that will allow us have the needed edge we need over our competitors.

One of the first competitive advantages that we intend to have over our competitors is ensuring that we are able to offer unique services to our internal competitors by striking a partnership and strategic agreement with the merchants that will enable Juvia.com cater to agreements when it comes to handling returned merchandise, a service that other platforms haven’t perfected for their various customers.

We intend to also have strategic partnerships with various carriers so that we will have the upper hand when it comes to negotiating rates and preferential service terms for our online retailers as well as buying customers. We will ensure that we create a higher degree of flexibility in our services so that we will be able to adjust to the needs of our customers.

We intend to have top notch customer service in order to be able to support our online retailers and the buying customers. Our customer service will be online all hours every day to speedily handle requests, complaints and feedback. We will ensure that our customers are satisfied most of the time as this is likely going to help increase our retention rate.

We intend to have the best welfare packages for our employees especially when compared to similar start-ups such as ours. We will also ensure that our employees work in an environment that is conducive enough and that they undergo regular training that will enhance their skills and boost their productivity for our company.

9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY

• Sources of Income

Juvia.com has been established with the intention of not only generating revenue but also making profit in the eCommerce industry here in the United States of America. In order for us to achieve our aim of attaining profitability, we intend to offer various services to all our customers.

The services we are looking to offer in order to be able to generate revenue for Juvia.com include;

10. Sales Forecast

Juvia.com is an eCommerce platform that intends to offer merchants and buying customers an experience like never before when it comes to selling or buying via the platform.

The fact that we have chosen an easy enough name for merchants and customers to remember and easy enough to rank high in search engines means that we have strategically positioned ourselves to take on the available market and generate the revenue that will be needed to grow, sustain and expand our business. Through our estimation, we are confident of meeting our target and recouping our investment within our first three years of starting the business.

Our optimistic evaluation is borne out of the fact that we have conducted a critical evaluation of the eCommerce industry and our chances of making it in the industry. We engaged the services of a reputable business consultant who understands the business thoroughly to help evaluate our chances, and using data and information from similar startups such as ours in the industry, our projections were predicted.

Therefore, the findings of the business consultant for Juvia.com and based on certain assumptions are;

• First Fiscal Year: $1,000,320
• Second Fiscal Year: $2,200,000
• Third Fiscal Year: $5,000,000

N.B : It should be noted that the above sales projection was conducted based on what is obtainable in the industry during the period of the projection. Several factors were taken into consideration such as the arrival of a major competitor, change in government policies and downturn of the economy. Should the factors change from what it is now either positively or negatively, the sales projections for Juvia.com will either increase or decrease as well.

• Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy

Marketing is crucial to a business’s survival and no business either established for profit or nonprofit can bypass this aspect. Through marketing, a business cannot only generate awareness but also generate the revenue that will allow the business to become profitable.

The right marketing strategies will not only enable us to penetrate our intended target market but we will also enable us gain a huge share of the market for ourselves and compete favorably against our competitors in the United States and even globally.

Before any marketing strategies can however be crafted and deemed effective, it is necessary that there be an overall marketing plan as this is what will act as a guide for any strategies that will be created. Our marketing plan was formulated based on the market survey that we conducted in our bid to know and understand or target market and know what is expected from us as well as what we should expect from them.

We intend to engage the services of a reputable brand consultant who has a thorough understanding of the market to help us create the right strategies that will be of huge benefit to our business and therefore enable us win a large percentage of the market not only here in the United States of America but also globally as well.

We will also engage a sales and marketing team to engage in marketing strategies on behalf of the company. Below are some of the sales and marketing strategies that Juvia.com will adopt in order to deliver quality services to our various clients;

• Ensure that we create a quality and secure website for the various online stores on our platform making sure that the website loads easily and ranks high on search engines
• Engage in push strategy by engaging in direct sales force promoted to only the merchants
• Place advertisements about our platform on several media outlets such as newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations
• Place advertising banners on popular forums and blogs as well as on websites of participating merchants
• Use social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to massively engage in sales and marketing activities

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

Deploying the right publicity and advertising strategies is very important if we intend to survive and gain awareness for our business in an industry that is quite competitive. We intend to use our publicity and advertising strategies to not only penetrate the market but also gain a huge share of the market that we can convert into revenue generation and profit maximization for our business.

Because we intend to hit the ground running when we start our business, we are going to hire the services of a brand consultant to help us create and deploy the right publicity and advertising strategies that will help boost our brand and communicate our image positively to the public.

Some of the publicity and advertising strategies that we intend to use in creating awareness for our business include;

• Promotion of our story and values to leading online blogs and forums
• Install our billboards in strategic locations all around Virginia as well as in certain cities in the United States of America
• Place adverts about our platform in newspapers and various magazines as well as on radio and television stations
• Sponsor and participate in relevant programs in various communities across the country
• Use our social media platform such as Facebook and Twitter to effectively promote our platform

12. Our Pricing Strategy

We have used a whole lot of factors to determine how our rates will be set. We intend to conduct a market research that will enable us know the right rates to set that will be affordable to our merchants, while not allowing us to run at a loss. We will also ensure that the prices we offer for our various packages are within the range of what our competitors are offering.

In order for us to attract more customers and increase awareness for our business, we intend to reduce our rates for at least three months across all packages and also offer a free two weeks trial for certain category of products that will be offered on our platform.

We have conducted a thorough analysis on whether our promo offer will hurt our bottom line and have found that even though we may not be making much during the three months period, but what we stand to gain will be for a long term.

• Payment Options

As an ecommerce platform, we are concerned about the convenience for our various merchants and their customers when it comes to providing payment options that will suit their different tastes and preferences. Therefore the different payment options that we intend to offer all our customers include;

• Payment via Juvia Pay
• Payment via Paypal
• Payment via Cyrptocurrency such as Bitcoin
• Payment via credit card
• Payment via Google pay
• Payment via Apple pay

It should be noted that the above payment options were carefully chosen because we had the interest of our several clients in mind. The payment options we know will work for all parties involved without hitches of any sort.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

Even though starting an eCommerce platform might look easy since it is a service based business, it requires a substantial amount of capital in order to be able to stand out and compete with other existing eCommerce platforms. Capital will be needed to pay the salaries of employees, lease a facility, handle secure hosting and take care of other running costs till the business is able to generate revenue to take care of itself.

The areas where the generated capital will be spent on include;

• Fees for registering and incorporating Juvia.com – $2,000
• Obtaining of zonal and regulatory licenses and permits, as well as accounting, database and CRM software – $100,000
• Insurance coverage (General liability, errors and omission insurance and Workers Compensation) – $20,000
• Marketing expenses for general e-commerce activities as well as promotional activities to promote grand launching of Juvia.com – $100,000
• Cost of hiring reputable business and publicity consultants – $50,000
• Operational costs for the first 1 year of operation (employee salaries, hosting fees, utility bills) – $500,000
• Leasing of office facility for a period of three years including renovations – $150,000
• Cost of purchasing furniture, computers, printers, fax machines, phones – $50,000
• Cost of launching and designing a website – $20,000
• Cost of our opening party – $10,000
• Miscellaneous – $50,000

From the above breakdown, we would need the sum of $1,052,000 in order to not only be able to startup but to also successfully run Juvia.com here in Virginia. It should be noted that the bulk of the capital will go into paying the salaries of employees for at least one year as well as providing secure hosting on our platform.

Generating Funding/Startup Capital for Juvia.com Business

Juvia.com is an ecommerce platform that is owned by three friends, Jeff Ways, Diane Schultz and Michael Owen, who have enough experience in the ecommerce business. They have plans of allowing external investors inject capital into their business both at the start-up phase as well as the expansion phase.

The areas where they are therefore looking to generate their startup capital from are;

• Generate part of the start-up capital from sale of stock and properties
• Apply for loan from the commercial bank
• Get startup capital from external investor

N.B : We have been able to generate the sum of $352,000 from our sale of stock and properties. We have sought for capital from an external investor to the tune of $400,000 in return for a 5% equity. We consider this to be a fair deal and have signed the necessary documents.

We sought the sum of $300,000 from our bank and after due negotiation, we have agreed to pay back the loan in 5 years at a return interest rate of 3%. All the documents with the bank will be signed within the week and we will have the money credited to our account after then.

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

Even though our intention is to offer a hassle free platform for merchants and visitors, we are established to generate revenue and maximize profit that will allow us to sustain and expand our business. Our sustainability and expansion strategies include reinvesting back into the business to boost our bottom line; ensuring that we provide our customers’ quality service in order to enable us retain and attract more customers to our business.

We are starting off our business with a substantial amount of capital from our pockets and also borrowed from the commercial bank and an external investor and it is therefore important that we have laid down plans and strategies that will enable us recoup this investment in order that we not remain indebted further than we should be, while also striving for profitability. We have a competent director of finance who will conduct periodic financial analysis and statement and ensure that we remain on the right path when it comes to our finances.

The eCommerce industry is filled with intense competition especially as there are already huge brands that have taken a huge share of the market; however in order to be able to gain awareness in the market, we intend to offer all our customers – merchants, buying customers and visitors quality service.

Our merchants will have no problems focusing on their business as we intend to handle all the other aspects of the business – customer care, shipping, advertising and so on – that might cause them any distraction.

Our customer service is top notch because we know how valuable our customers are to us. We have a customer support service that will ensure that all our customers get adequate attention on whatever issues they might need resolved or whatever inquiries they might need attended to.

We have a dedicated staff that will ensure that we are able to satisfy about 95 percent of our customers. We know that deploying the above strategies will enable us to achieve our sustainability and expansion strategies.

Check List/Milestone

• Business Name Availability Check: Completed
• Business Registration: Completed
• Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
• Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
• Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
• Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
• Application for business license and permit: Completed
• Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
• Conducting feasibility studies: Completed
• Generating capital from family members: Completed
• Applications for Loan from the bank: In Progress
• Writing of Business Plan: Completed
• Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
• Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
• Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
• Graphics Design and Printing of Promotional Materials: In Progress
• Recruitment of employees: In Progress
• Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
• Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
• Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
• Opening party planning: In Progress
• Establishing business relationship with vendors – wholesale suppliers/merchants: In Progress
• Purchase of trucks: Completed

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Moscow's High Rise Bohemia: The International Business District With No Business

• Written by Dario Goodwin
• Published on March 17, 2015

The Moscow International Business Center (Also known as Moskva-City ) was meant to be Russia ’s ticket into the Western world. First conceived in 1992, the district at the edge of Moscow’s city center is intended to contain up to 300,000 inhabitants, employees and visitors at any given moment and, when completed, will house over 4 million square meters of prime retail, hotel and office space to create what the Russian government desired most from this project: an enormous financial district that could dwarf London’s Canary Wharf and challenge Manhattan . Twenty three years later though, Moscow-based real estate company Blackwood estimates that as much as 45% of this new space is entirely vacant and rents have plummeted far below the average for the rest of Moscow. The only press Moskva-City is attracting is for tenants like the High Level Hostel , a hostel catering to backpackers and other asset-poor tourists on the 43rd floor of the Imperia Tower , with prices starting at $25.50 for a bed in a six-person room. This is not the glittering world of western high finance that was envisioned back in the post-Soviet 90s; but what has it become instead?

As one might expect from a project of this sheer ambition, Moskva-City has a troubled past. The economic crash in 2008 hit Russia hard enough to evict the previous Mayor of Moscow , Yuri Luzhkov, who had been a cheerleader for the district, and replace him with the considerably more austere Sergei Sobyanin, who famously declared that the whole idea was an “urban planning mistake.” But as recently as 2013, the Wall Street Journal was triumphantly claiming that Moskva-City had risen from the dead, citing 80% occupancy rates and glowing quotes from industry insiders claiming that Moskva-City was the "place to be." Driven by record highs in oil prices, Moscow looked poised to become the next Dubai .

Instead, Moscow is now in the grip of an economic winter prompted by western sanctions and drops in the price of oil. The large financial groupings that Moskva-City was meant to shelter have been warned off by their inability to issue credit to international markets, for example - but Moskva-City isn’t just an Empire State Building left empty by the Great Depression.

A fundamental problem that is holding Moskva back compared to the rest of Moscow is the simple fact that currently, getting to Moskva-City is nigh-on impossible at peak hours. Moscow has long been plagued with transport problems, ever since the government failed to match the dramatic expansion of the city with a dramatic expansion of the transport system after the Second World War. Despite being only 2.5 miles from the Kremlin , Moskva-City is only just inside the ring road that bounds the city center and which acts as the only real transport link to it (and as a result, is clogged by construction vehicles.) A railway and metro hub has been finished, but so far only runs a one-stop shuttle service to the closest Metro station that is actually integrated with the rest of Moscow Metro. The isolation of the outer districts is a large, negative part of the Moscow psyche, and it’s not surprising that this is driving away the globetrotting financial elite this project was meant to attract.

The project is managed by architectural practice No.6, which is a constituent part of the large Moscow based practice Mosproject-2 , which is itself a public corporation headed up by Mikhail Vasilyevich Posokhin, who is apparently the “People’s Architect of Russia.” Despite all this state involvement, the project has still managed to become bogged down in bureaucratic infighting - each lot is managed and developed individually, which has led to developers competing for occupants by slashing rates.

Much has been written about the way modern financial districts and towers that inhabit them can be unwelcoming, forbidding or even hostile by design, but the skyscrapers of Moskva-City seem even less friendly than usual. The site - a former stone quarry, chosen out of necessity as the only place in the city center where a new district could be plausibly constructed - is isolated both physically and visually, leaving the cluster a stark anomaly on the city skyline. Even the names seem more imposing than optimistic now: Imperia, City of Capitals , Steel Peak.

The Mercury City Tower , so far the tallest completed building on the site, is officially “a strong reference to Russian constructivism, [which] gives the tower a strong vertical thrust similar to the one found in New York's Chrysler building .” It would be easy to criticize the Mercury City Tower for picking ‘inspirations’ that are so totally opposed to each other - The Chrysler building the defining emblem of American pre-crash confidence and Constructivism created with the express purpose (especially architecturally) of extending the Bolshevik revolution into a social revolution - but the way they smash those two inspirations together is almost beautifully ironic.

Even though the High Level Hostel is less an asset to a financial district than it is a PR problem, it’s been a huge success since opening in September, already ranked 27th out of 766 hostels in Moscow by TripAdvisor. According to the management agency for Moskva-City , 58% of the new occupant signings this year have been non-financial, including a number of small to medium size businesses. Other areas of office space have been occupied by a restaurant and a culinary school, while another space has been redeveloped into a 6,000 seat theater.

While Moskva-City is failing to be a financial district that could take on the world, it’s inadvertently becoming a humanized space catering to the very groups that the Russian economic miracle left behind. Taking advantage of rents lower than the rest of Moscow , the world class facilities and the sheer desperation of the developers, the humanization of Moskva-City could well create the world’s first high-rise bohemia.

Of course, these are not spaces designed for a community, or even for people: these are spaces designed for money, and there’s little scope for changing something that seems so baked into the design of Moskva-City . The High Level Hostel is trading off of the irony of being a hostel in a banking tower, but it’s perfectly possible that at some point people will no longer find this joke funny (especially in a building that seems hostile to the very idea of humor). The isolation of Moskva, even though it allowed this community to spring up in the first place, is just as detrimental to a humanized district as it is to a financial one: even bohemians need to move around the city, or the district risks becoming a black-spot instead of a hot-spot.

Moskva-City’s isolation won’t last forever. The end of construction will open the roads up to traffic, and plans to properly integrate the spur lines of the Metro in this area into the wider system are well under way. The integration of the district will inevitably push up rents, and the Russian economy will eventually boom once again. When that happens, Moskva-City is prime territory to be reconquered by the giants of international finance, and it seems unlikely that the municipal or national governments would want to step in to protect this accidental district. For now, though, the towers capture perfectly this moment of Russia ’s schizophrenic understanding of its place in the world.

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Business Hotel 1905 on Krasnaya Presnya

A modern four-star business hotel in the center of Moscow with  rooms of various categories from standard rooms to executive apartments. “City hotel 1905” is located in the historical Presnensky district of Moscow, within walking distance from the business heart of the capital. The hotel is located near the World Trade Center, the Central Exhibition Complex “Expocentre”, the Business Center “Moscow City”. It is very easy to get to us, cause the hotel is located next to the “Ulitsa 1905 Goda” subway station.

Most of the rooms are equipped with panoramic windows, which offer a stunning view on the Moscow International Business Center Moscow City. In “City Hotel 1905” on Krasnaya Presnya you will find everything you need not only for rest, but also for work. The hotel has everything for business tourism: in the business area of ​​the hotel you will find a comfortable and modern conference hall with all the necessary equipment and a sufficient number of seats. Space to accommodate delegates for a coffee break or full lunch.

After successful business negotiations, you can visit our unique SPA CITY RETREAT CLUB . The club is equipped with a modern swimming pool with an adaptive system, a sauna and a hammam.

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