Shopify B2B and Wholesale: Setting Up a Dual Channel Store

There's a moment in every successful DTC brand's journey where a retailer, a gym, a salon, or a distributor reaches out and says: "Can we buy in bulk?"

Congratulations. You've reached the point where wholesale makes sense. Problem is, your Shopify store is built for individual consumers buying one item at a time. Not for a retailer ordering 500 units at tiered pricing with net-30 payment terms.

So what do you do? Build a separate wholesale store? Install an app and hope it doesn't break your theme? Move to Shopify Plus?

The answer depends on your volume, your budget, and how seriously you want to scale the B2B channel. This guide walks through all the options — from scrappy to enterprise — so you can make the right call.

What "B2B on Shopify" Actually Means Now

Shopify has invested heavily in native B2B features over the past two years. As of 2027, Shopify Plus includes a built-in B2B channel that lets you run DTC and wholesale from the same store, with separate pricing, separate catalogs, and separate checkout experiences.

This was not possible three years ago without third-party apps and a lot of duct tape.

Here's what Shopify B2B natively supports (on Plus):

• Company profiles with multiple buyers per company
• Custom price lists per company or customer group
• Percentage-based or fixed wholesale discounts
• Volume-based quantity pricing (tiered pricing)
• Net payment terms (net 15, net 30, net 60)
• Minimum order quantities per product
• Draft orders and order approval workflows
• Tax-exempt purchasing
• Company-specific catalogs (show different products to different B2B customers)
• Separate B2B checkout with company billing

What you still need apps or custom solutions for:

• Quick order forms (bulk ordering by SKU number)
• Advanced shipping rate calculations for pallets/freight
• B2B-specific email flows in Klaviyo
• Sales rep assignment and commission tracking
• ERP/inventory management integration for large operations

Option 1: Shopify Plus with Native B2B (Best for Most Brands)

If you're already on Shopify Plus or ready to upgrade, this is the cleanest path. One store, two channels, shared inventory.

How it works:

You create a B2B sales channel alongside your online DTC store. B2B customers log in with their company credentials and see a completely different experience — different prices, different minimums, different payment options.

DTC customers see your normal store. B2B customers see wholesale pricing. Same products, same inventory pool, different storefronts.

Setup process:

1. Enable B2B in your Shopify admin. Go to Settings and turn on the B2B channel. This is available on all Shopify Plus plans.

2. Create company profiles. For each wholesale account, create a company in Shopify with their billing address, tax exemption status, and payment terms.

3. Add buyers to companies. Each company can have multiple buyers (purchasing agents, store managers, etc.). Each buyer gets their own login.

4. Set up price lists. Create wholesale price lists with either percentage-off retail or fixed prices per product. You can have multiple price lists for different tiers (e.g., Silver gets 30% off, Gold gets 40% off).

5. Configure payment terms. Set net-30, net-60, or other payment terms per company. Shopify tracks outstanding balances and sends payment reminders.

6. Set minimum order quantities. Per product or per order. Most wholesale operations require minimums to justify the discounted pricing.

Pros:

• Native Shopify feature — no third-party app dependency
• Shared inventory between DTC and B2B
• Clean, professional B2B checkout experience
• Built-in payment terms and invoicing
• Shopify support and regular feature updates

Cons:

• Requires Shopify Plus ($2,300+/month)
• Quick order forms need customization or apps
• Reporting could be more granular (improving with each update)
• Limited catalog customization compared to dedicated B2B platforms

Option 2: Wholesale App on Standard Shopify

If you're on Shopify Basic, Shopify, or Advanced (not Plus), you'll need an app to handle wholesale pricing and checkout.

Top wholesale apps:

Wholesale Gorilla — The most mature wholesale app. Creates a separate wholesale storefront with login-gated access. Supports tiered pricing, net terms, minimum orders. $34.95-$99.95/month.

Bold Custom Pricing — More flexible pricing rules but less B2B-specific. Good for simple volume discounts without the full B2B experience. $19.99-$39.99/month.

SparkLayer — Purpose-built B2B ordering platform that integrates with Shopify. Excellent quick order form, repeat ordering, and sales rep features. Premium pricing.

Pros:

• No Shopify Plus required
• Relatively quick to set up
• Lower monthly cost than upgrading to Plus

Cons:

• App dependency (if the app breaks or discontinues, you're stuck)
• Performance impact (additional JavaScript and API calls)
• Less seamless than native Shopify B2B
• Some apps create a separate subdomain or storefront (confusing for customers)

Our recommendation: If your wholesale revenue is under $10K/month, an app is fine. Above $10K/month, the upgrade to Shopify Plus pays for itself in operational efficiency and professional experience.

Option 3: Separate Wholesale Store

Some brands run a completely separate Shopify store for wholesale. Wholesale.yourbrand.com.

When this makes sense:

• Your wholesale catalog is significantly different from your DTC catalog
• You need completely separate branding for wholesale
• Your DTC and wholesale operations are run by different teams
• You want zero risk of wholesale pricing leaking to DTC customers

When this doesn't make sense:

• You want shared inventory (two stores = two inventory pools, which is a nightmare)
• You're a small team managing both channels
• Your product catalog is the same for both channels

The inventory problem: If you run two Shopify stores, you need an inventory sync solution (Stocky, Skubana, or a custom integration). Otherwise, you'll oversell on one channel because inventory doesn't update in real time across both stores. This is the number one reason we advise against separate stores for most brands.

Pricing Strategy for Wholesale

Your wholesale pricing needs to work for both parties: profitable enough for you, attractive enough for the retailer.

The standard wholesale pricing framework:

| Level | Discount Off Retail | Typical Buyer | |---|---|---| | Tier 1 (Small retailer) | 30-40% off | Small boutiques, individual shops | | Tier 2 (Mid retailer) | 40-50% off | Multi-location retailers, regional chains | | Tier 3 (Large/distributor) | 50-60% off | National retailers, distributors |

How to set your wholesale price floor: Your wholesale price needs to cover cost of goods sold (COGS) plus a minimum margin. We recommend a minimum 30% margin at your deepest wholesale discount.

Example:

• Retail price: $50
• COGS: $12
• Tier 3 wholesale price (50% off retail): $25
• Margin at Tier 3: ($25 - $12) / $25 = 52%

That's healthy. If the math gives you less than 30% margin at any tier, either raise your retail price or cap the discount at that tier.

Volume-based pricing within tiers:

Beyond the tier system, you can offer quantity-based pricing within each tier:

• 1-49 units: Tier price
• 50-99 units: Tier price minus 5%
• 100-249 units: Tier price minus 10%
• 250+ units: Tier price minus 15%

Shopify Plus handles this natively through quantity price breaks in the B2B price list.

Payment Terms: The Cash Flow Balancing Act

DTC is simple — the customer pays at checkout. B2B is different. Retailers expect payment terms.

Common payment terms:

• Net 30: Payment due 30 days after invoice. Industry standard for most wholesale.
• Net 60: Payment due 60 days after invoice. Common for larger retailers.
• 2/10 Net 30: 2% discount if paid within 10 days, otherwise full amount due in 30 days. Encourages early payment.
• Prepayment: Payment required before shipping. Use this for new wholesale accounts with no track record.

Cash flow warning: Net-30 means you ship $10,000 in product and don't see payment for a month. If your wholesale channel grows fast, cash flow can get tight. Plan for this.

Our recommendation: Start all new wholesale accounts on prepayment or Net 15. Move them to Net 30 after their third order with a clean payment history. Reserve Net 60 for your largest accounts only.

Shopify Plus tracks all of this natively — outstanding balances, overdue invoices, and payment reminders.

Setting Up the B2B Customer Journey

Wholesale buyers don't browse your store the way consumers do. They know what they want. They want to order fast, repeat past orders easily, and manage their account without calling you.

The ideal B2B customer journey on Shopify:

1. Application. Wholesale prospect fills out a B2B application form on your site (company name, tax ID, estimated monthly volume, business type).

2. Approval. You review the application, verify the business, and approve or decline. If approved, you create their company profile in Shopify.

3. Onboarding. Send a welcome email with login credentials, price list, minimum order info, and payment terms. Include a PDF catalog if your B2B customers expect one.

4. Ordering. The B2B customer logs in, sees their wholesale prices, places an order. Quick order forms (add multiple SKUs by number) are critical here.

5. Reordering. B2B buyers reorder the same products regularly. Make past orders easy to duplicate.

6. Account management. Self-serve invoice viewing, payment submission, and order tracking.

Marketing Your Wholesale Channel

Having a wholesale channel and getting wholesale customers are two different things.

How to attract wholesale buyers:

• Dedicated wholesale page. Create a /wholesale or /partners page on your DTC store. Explain the program, show the benefits, include an application form.
• Trade shows. If your industry has trade shows, attend them. Nothing replaces in-person relationship building for B2B.
• LinkedIn outreach. Connect with retail buyers in your niche. Share your brand story and wholesale program.
• Existing customer conversion. Some of your DTC customers are business owners. Send an email to your list: "Do you own a store? Ask about our wholesale program."

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Not protecting your DTC pricing. If wholesale customers can buy at retail on your DTC site, some will. Gate your wholesale pricing behind authentication and enforce minimum order quantities.

Mistake 2: No MAP policy. Minimum Advertised Price protects your brand. If retailers can undercut your DTC price, your direct customers will feel cheated. Set a MAP and enforce it.

Mistake 3: Treating B2B like DTC with a discount. B2B buyers have different needs — quick reordering, invoicing, company accounts, purchase orders. Just slapping a discount code on your DTC store is not a wholesale solution.

Mistake 4: Not segmenting wholesale emails. Your B2B customers should get different email communication than your DTC customers. New product launches for retailers, restocking reminders, seasonal ordering deadlines — these are B2B-specific messages.

Ready to Launch Your Wholesale Channel?

We've set up B2B channels for brands doing $50K to $5M in wholesale revenue. We'll evaluate your current Shopify setup, recommend the right B2B approach, configure the pricing and payment structure, and build the customer journey.

Book a free strategy call.

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Mark Cijo is the founder of GOSH Digital, a full-service eCommerce marketing agency and Klaviyo Gold Partner that has driven $70M+ in revenue for 150+ brands. He thinks wholesale is the most underleveraged growth channel for DTC brands doing $1M+ in annual revenue.