It’s 2026, and it just got so much easier to build a B2B e-commerce portal on any website using Shopify. By easier, we also mean cheaper, because in April of 2026, Shopify abolished the cost of Shopify Plus.
In our opinion, it's because Shopify has rightly seen that this is where e-commerce is heading: the divide between DTC and B2B is blurring. Companies and traders will have omnichannel environments with multiple revenue streams. And if your website is incapable of providing the functionality to accommodate those channels, your competition will eat you alive.
Say you’re a musician. If you wanted to sell a t-shirt to a fan and a pallet of those same shirts to a boutique or to another festival, you essentially had to run two different companies.
Hold on, but that changed long ago. What's changed now and why this recent Shopify update is so important is that it was historically difficult, even on Shopify, to create those two different environments in one website. It was difficult and expensive. What makes the 2026 update so critical is that it is now affordable and relatively simple to run both your B2B and D2C environments on the same platform.
Making the B2B backend Functionality available to everyone with a pro subscription means that even small to medium-sized businesses can now reap the benefits of the artist previously known as PLUS (we started off at a rock concert. How did we get there!?) and its robust, native architecture.
What Does the Inside of Shopify’s Native B2B Ecommerce Architecture Look like?
Actually, it looks very similar to the DTC environment that everyone is used to. The difference is that now, everyone can access it.
However, even though everyone has access to the B2B functionality, what we've seen on the ground at SCF, when developing B2B sites for our clients, is the gap between the capabilities of Shopify and the strategic architectural considerations and setup required before you start building.
That's where things tend to go wrong, and that's where we are usually called in to help. There are so many things to consider in the way a B2B client buys on your e-commerce store that are totally different from the way a DTC customer buys.
This is usually experienced at the level of:
- Compliance
- Customs
- MOQs
- Shipping
- Order management
- Inventory management
The list is long though. These are just some of the things that a DTC customer never has to think about. Building in the Shopify B2B environment requires a strong, comprehensive list of considerations, and that's where professional expertise usually comes in handy.
Unlike the "old days" of Shopify wholesale, where merchants relied on complex apps or custom solutions, the new B2B functionality is baked directly into the core of Shopify.
At the heart of this architecture is the Company object. In a standard DTC setup, the "Customer" is an individual. In the Shopify B2B store model, a "Company" is the primary entity, which can have multiple Company Locations and Company Contacts.
How Should your company Manage Wholesale Pricing, Catalogs, and Customer Segmentation on Shopify?
The biggest hurdle in wholesale/distribution or manufacturing or even private labelling is that no two customers are the same. A legacy distributor might get a 40% discount, while a new boutique gets 20%.
For example, we've come on board to help a client who had customs compliance considerations that needed to be rolled out on their website and helped their customers in different locations with tax and shipping calculations.
We've had clients that have different pricing tiers based on the order quantity from clients, and those portals needed to be built in order to accommodate that. Even we can see on a daily basis how different B2B operational and transactional systems might be.
How does Shopify handle Wholesale-specific catalogs?
1. Dynamic Catalogs
Instead of creating duplicate products for wholesale, you create a Catalog. This is a subset of your existing products with adjusted pricing. You can apply a percentage-based discount across the board or set specific fixed prices for individual SKUs.
2. Customer Segmentation
By linking a Company to a specific Catalog, Shopify automatically updates the storefront the moment the user logs in. They don't see the MSRP; they see their contracted price.
"When we first moved to wholesale, we were terrified of a retailer seeing our DTC holiday sale price and demanding a further discount,"
says Sarah, a founder of a sustainable home goods brand.
"With Shopify's native segmentation, the B2B side is a 'locked box.' They only see what we’ve negotiated, ensuring our margins stay protected."
3. Quantity Rules and Increments
Wholesale isn't just about price; it’s about volume. You can set:
- Minimum Order Quantities (MOQs): "You must buy at least 10 units."
- Increments: "You must buy in multiples of 6 (case packs)."
How does the B2B pricing work for Shopify B2B in 2026?
It depends on your plan but it’s a lot better then it was in 2025.
We took the liberty of compiling an easily digestible single view of the various Shopify plans, their differing B2B capabilities and prices.
You'll see that while B2B features are expanding across the board, Shopify Plus B2B is still where the heavy lifting happens. Plus offers features designed for high-volume, complex operations.
What are the challenges when branching onto multiple selling channels?
We asked 15 ecommerce businesses about their experience when moving from DTC into B2B/wholesale channels and this is what they had to share. These are invaluable experience shares from business owners and brands that have already walked the path you’re about to travel on.
What other Ecommerce Professionals have to say:
“As VP Sales at GemFind since 2007, I've guided dozens of jewelry retailers from DTC-only stores to adding B2B wholesale channels.
“Biggest challenges were UX for massive catalogs--B2B buyers need advanced filtering by carat/clarity/metal while DTC shoppers want quick engagement ring visuals--and operations syncing inventory like Edge POS for real-time wholesale availability.
“Shopify made themes and SEO straightforward across both, handling large catalogs, sorting, quote forms, and DTC checkout natively; we fallback to Magento for complex B2B.
“Overall sales grew--our 20-site survey showed 70% traffic from 20-40s converting better via unified channels, like one vendor boosting wholesale orders 30% alongside DTC revenue.”
“We started Marygrove Awnings just selling to homeowners, but then landscapers and construction companies kept calling for direct pricing. The tricky part was changing how we worked. Business customers needed quotes and a specific person to call, not our regular fast, self-serve sales. Setting up tiered pricing in Shopify Plus was surprisingly easy, way less code than I expected. My advice? Figure out the different processes for each buyer early on, so your team doesn't get tripped up by clashing expectations.”
“HeyCongrats was just a store for individuals until schools started calling for 50 certificates at once. Suddenly our old ordering system couldn't really handle the mix of single purchases and huge custom orders. Switching to Shopify fixed it. We could create separate storefronts for regular people and institutions, and setting up wholesale pricing was surprisingly easy. My advice? Figure out how to serve different customer types early on.”
“Japantastic started as a direct-to-consumer brand, but then boutiques and designers started reaching out, so we added wholesale. Balancing inventory between bulk orders and single-item sales was a nightmare at first. Setting up customer groups in WooCommerce helped a ton. The easiest part, surprisingly, was offering net terms through a plugin. It really boosted our sales, so my advice is to figure out your inventory segmentation early to avoid stock conflicts.”
“At my last e-commerce company, we started selling to businesses and almost broke our checkout process. The challenge was letting regular customers shop easily while handling bulk orders. After fumbling with pricing, separate account types in Shopify Plus made permissions surprisingly simple. B2B didn't make us rich overnight, but within months, those accounts became our most reliable source of big, repeat purchases. Plan for a rough start, but the payoff is solid.”
“At Latitude Park, we've transitioned national franchise clients from strictly B2B service models into hybrid DTC e-commerce hubs using Shopify's B2B platform. The biggest operational hurdle is managing "pricing hierarchy" to ensure wholesale partners don't feel undercut by direct-to-consumer promotions.
“Our toughest UX challenge was maintaining "message scent" so B2B bulk buyers and solo consumers didn't land on the same confusing page. Surprisingly, the technical SEO migration was straightforward once we replaced thin, "Frankenbrand" templates with unique, high-intent local content.
“This shift improved sales by capturing high-intent "near me" searches that were previously ignored. One 80-location brand we managed saw organic traffic jump 42% in 90 days after we integrated these channels and optimized their local listings.”
“Surrender to the middleman. In 2026, it's the smartest play a brand can make. The old "direct or death" mantra is a grave. For years, brands bled in the ad-cost meat-grinder. But the data doesn't lie: wholesale isn't a retreat. It's a violent revenue reset.
“The math is brutal. Take Solo Brands. Wholesale expansion didn't cannibalize their site; it unleashed 23% more first-time DTC traffic. Placing products in aisles isn't just about volume. You're building subsidized billboards in the real world. Shopify and BigCommerce have finally fixed the plumbing, with native B2B tools that handle net terms and tiered pricing without the usual backend slaughter.”
“I run ops for Clads (Sunshine VIC) and we were trade-supplier first, then added DTC on the same store so homeowners could buy DIY-friendly WPC/external cladding direct while builders still get trade workflows. The "same product, different buyer" problem is real in cladding because a homeowner shops by look/maintenance, while a builder buys by spec, meters, lead time, and repeatability.
“Biggest ops/UX pain: pricing + quoting without breaking checkout. Trade customers expect negotiated rates, invoicing, and fast reorders; DTC expects transparent per-panel pricing and standard payment at checkout.”
“We used to only serve trade clients, but then started selling directly to homeowners online. The tricky part was getting the website right for both groups. Trade pros needed spec sheets and bulk pricing, while homeowners wanted inspiration and advice. We used Shopify's tools to fix it, letting us tailor content for everyone. Sales went up. My advice is to find a system that handles different pricing and account types early on. It saves you a massive headache later.”
“We transitioned from primarily DTC into adding a B2B channel after years of selling direct. Clients we did marketing for kept asking for bulk pricing and wholesale access, so instead of sending custom invoices manually, we built out a proper B2B experience layered onto our existing store.
“The biggest operational challenge was pricing segmentation and user experience. Retail customers expect instant checkout, while B2B buyers want net terms, bulk discounts, and the ability to reorder quickly.”
“We did not transition from B2B to DTC. We structured our store to support both from the beginning.
“Our website operates like a DTC storefront with visible product pages, MOQs, tiered pricing, and cart checkout. At the same time, every order still goes through proofing and pre-press review before production. That structure allows small founders ordering 10 units and larger wholesale buyers ordering higher MOQs to use the same system without confusion.
“Instagram and Pinterest play a critical role in this dual model. Pinterest drives around 180,000 monthly views, and many buyers reference the exact product image they saved before inquiring. Instagram reels show real packaging in hand, opening, stacking, and texture. By the time buyers reach checkout, they already trust what they are ordering.”
“I started my shop just selling directly to people. Then we began getting orders from care agencies and clinics. That was a headache to figure out, since they needed invoices and scheduled deliveries, not instant shipping. We made it work by adding some custom plugins to our WooCommerce site, which saved us from having to rebuild everything. Sales went up, but I realized it only happened because we created a separate onboarding process and support line just for those business customers.”
Conclusion - Is Your Brand Ready for Wholesale?
Building a Shopify B2B ecommerce presence isn't just about selling more, it’s about selling smarter. By leveraging native Shopify Plus B2B features, you can eliminate the manual labor of spreadsheets and emails, providing your professional buyers with the same world-class experience your retail customers enjoy.
Whether you are a DTC brand looking to break into retail or a traditional wholesaler looking to modernize, the tools are now native, powerful, and ready to scale.
Ready to start? The transition from "Consumer-only" to "Hybrid Commerce" is the most significant move a brand can make to stabilize cash flow and reach new audiences. With Shopify, the architecture is already there, you just have to build on it.