Shopify Headless Commerce

Thinking about headless Shopify and want to know if a custom frontend is worth the extra development and upkeep? We create headless storefronts on Hydrogen or Next.js with Shopify Plus as the backend and a CMS like Sanity or Contentful for content, and we keep the native Shopify checkout in place.

Book a Discovery Call Our Work

16+

Years in business

500+

Projects Delivered

65+

Team Members

98%

Client Retention

Storefront API

How a headless store reads Shopify data

A headless store pulls products, prices and carts from Shopify through the Storefront API, while checkout stays on Shopify. We develop the frontend on that API so your content team keeps using the Shopify admin.

Liquid

When we recommend staying on a theme

Most stores get the speed they need from a well-made Liquid theme, and it costs less to maintain than a separate frontend. We recommend headless when you need content from several systems on one page or a frontend Liquid cannot create.

Hydrogen

Shopify's official headless framework

Shero creates headless Shopify stores on Hydrogen, Shopify's official React-based framework. Hydrogen stores are hosted on Oxygen, Shopify's edge infrastructure, and connect to the full Shopify Plus feature set via the Storefront API.

Customer Account API

Customer logins on a headless store

Headless stores use Shopify's Customer Account API so shoppers can log in, see past orders and manage addresses. We connect it alongside the custom APIs your frontend needs from other systems.

"This has been the most impressive vendor partnership I have experienced. Every meeting felt purposeful, every milestone was clear, and the process was incredibly well-supported from start to finish."

Kendra Borkholder, Operations Support, GEN-Y Hitch

Headless is not for every store

Many brands that ask about headless Shopify are unhappy with their current theme, and the Liquid architecture is not what holds them back. A well-made Shopify 2.0 theme with proper performance optimization resolves most of those frustrations at a fraction of the cost. Headless earns its place when the UX requirements exceed what any theme can produce, when you need to serve the same product data across a website, a mobile app, and in-store displays, or when content management at scale demands a headless CMS.

Hydrogen Framework
Storefront API Integration
Oxygen Hosting
Custom Frontend Development
Headless CMS Integration
Shopify Plus Backend
ERP and Third-Party Connections
Ongoing Maintenance

Compared on	Shopify headless commerce agency	A freelance React developer	An in-house frontend team	An offshore dev shop
Shopify data in a custom frontend	Storefront API wired to your CMS, with Shopify checkout kept	Strong in React, may be new to the Storefront API	Owns the code long term	Writes the spec, you check the data
Several storefronts, one backend	One Shopify store feeding more than one custom storefront	Each storefront adds to one person's load	Needs headcount for each new site	Quoted per storefront
Payments and Shop Pay	Shopify's hosted checkout kept, so Shop Pay keeps working	Custom carts can break the checkout handoff	Must learn Shopify's checkout rules	Needs clear checkout specs
Marketing editing pages	CMS set up so marketing edits pages without a developer	Often left as code changes	Designed around your team's needs	Handover docs vary
How you pay	Paid discovery, then an accurate estimate.	Hourly, often for months	Several salaries	A monthly team rate

Shopify headless commerce agency

Shopify data in a custom frontend Storefront API wired to your CMS, with Shopify checkout kept

Several storefronts, one backend One Shopify store feeding more than one custom storefront

Payments and Shop Pay Shopify's hosted checkout kept, so Shop Pay keeps working

Marketing editing pages CMS set up so marketing edits pages without a developer

How you pay Paid discovery, then an accurate estimate.

Compared with

A freelance React developer

Shopify data in a custom frontend Strong in React, may be new to the Storefront API

Several storefronts, one backend Each storefront adds to one person's load

Payments and Shop Pay Custom carts can break the checkout handoff

Marketing editing pages Often left as code changes

How you pay Hourly, often for months

An in-house frontend team

Shopify data in a custom frontend Owns the code long term

Several storefronts, one backend Needs headcount for each new site

Payments and Shop Pay Must learn Shopify's checkout rules

Marketing editing pages Designed around your team's needs

How you pay Several salaries

An offshore dev shop

Shopify data in a custom frontend Writes the spec, you check the data

Several storefronts, one backend Quoted per storefront

Payments and Shop Pay Needs clear checkout specs

Marketing editing pages Handover docs vary

How you pay A monthly team rate

01

Optimization after launch

Work on a headless project continues after launch. We track Core Web Vitals, conversion rate, and crawl health after go-live and adjust the frontend based on real data. Speed and SEO gains from a headless store only compound with ongoing optimization.

02

Maintenance plan before you commit

Headless stores require ongoing developer investment. Before any project starts, we define what the maintenance model looks like: internal team, Shero support retainer, or hybrid. Brands that go headless without a maintenance plan tend to experience performance degradation over time.

03

Hydrogen-first development

Shopify's Hydrogen framework is the most supported and maintainable path for headless Shopify. We use Hydrogen by default, hosted on Oxygen, using the Storefront API to connect your custom frontend to the full Shopify backend.

04

Third-party integrations via API

Headless Shopify stores have the same integration requirements as standard Shopify Plus stores, but the APIs are used differently. ERP integrations for headless projects use the Storefront API and Admin API differently, and this is mapped in discovery before any development begins.

05

SEO planned into the architecture

Headless stores can lose organic traffic if server-side rendering, hreflang tags, structured data, and canonical URLs are not set up correctly. We include technical SEO validation as part of every headless project.

06

We tell you if headless is not the right fit

Headless architecture adds complexity and cost. Shero recommends it only when there is a specific requirement that Shopify's native storefront cannot meet. For most brands, Shopify Plus development with Checkout Extensibility delivers better results with lower ongoing maintenance overhead.

Digital products

Ordergroovedigital memberships with free trials and plan changes, connected through custom middleware

Stripesubscriptions and saved cards moved off Stripe at go-live

Shift WorshipShopify

Entertainment

Custom appcredit based checkout rebuilt in a custom Shopify app

+40%faster page loads than legacy Magento

Regal CinemasShopify

Read the case study

Backup camera systems

+32%Google clicks in the 12 weeks after the move from Magento

+65%Google impressions, same 12 weeks vs the 12 before

Camera SourceShopify

Read the case study

Lacrosse and Hockey Gear

STX

Looking to scale alongside growing global markets and competitor consolidation, the premium American manufacturer of lacrosse, field hockey, and ice hockey equipment, partnered with Shero to migrate from Adobe Commerce (Magento) to Shopify, delivering a unified D2C and B2B experience, custom ERP integration, and a refined storefront that reflects the engineering quality of their products.

STX

Premium Knives

Benchmade

For more than three decades, Benchmade has been known for producing high-quality knives for everyday carry, hunting, rescue, and outdoor use. Launched on Magento Commerce Cloud in 2018, the brand partnered with Shero to expand online amid rising outdoor consumer demand. Since then, they have seen: +100% revenue growth, +68% transaction growth after relaunch, and a +20% increase in average order value.

Benchmade

Musical Instruments

F-Musiikki

F-Musiikki is one of Finland's leading music instrument retailers, serving both consumers and businesses with over 15,000 products. Looking to reduce costs and modernize their platform, the brand partnered with Shero to migrate from Magento to Shopify Plus and launch a hybrid B2C/B2B store in just two months.

F-Musiikki

Movie Theaters

Regal Cinemas

One of the largest cinema chains in the US, Regal Cinemas, partnered with Shero to migrate from Magento to Shopify, building a 100%Credit-based checkout logic replicated in a custom Shopify app, loyalty reward redemption, Vista Cloud integration, and automated corporate gifting workflows across two distinct eCommerce platforms. As a result, they achieved over 40% faster page load time.

Regal Cinemas

Built to load fast and stay fast

Every build goes live with the speed and code standards that keep the store fast after launch.

Core Web Vitals
Templates built and tested to pass on mobile.
Fewer apps
Features built into the theme when an app would slow the store.
Clean code
Online Store 2.0 sections your team can edit without a developer.
QA
Every release tested on desktop, mobile and checkout.

Not sure headless is worth it for your store?

Let's look at yours

Scope My Headless Project

01

Discovery and fit check
In recorded workshops we weigh your frontend needs, team capacity and maintenance budget against a well-made Liquid theme. You get the scope and acceptance criteria.
02

Architecture
We plan the storefront, Storefront API queries, CMS connection and which apps need rebuilding through the API.
03

Develop
The React storefront is developed on Hydrogen and deployed to Oxygen, with server-side rendering so search engines can read it.
04

SEO, testing and UAT
We check rendering, canonical tags, structured data and Core Web Vitals, plus checkout with live payments. Your team tests the store and signs off.
05

Launch and care
We go live with a rollback plan and the maintenance plan agreed up front, then keep tuning the frontend.

Frequently asked questions.

Can't find what you're looking for? Reach out to our team.

01

What is the difference between a headless Shopify store and a standard one?

02

Which brands actually benefit from going headless?

03

What framework does Shero use for headless Shopify projects?

04

How much more does a headless store cost compared to a standard Shopify store?

05

Can Shopify apps still be used with a headless setup?

06

What ongoing maintenance does a headless store require?

What our clients say.

We design experiences that make a difference. See what our clients have to say about working with us.

Benchmade Knife Co.

"I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for a very successful launch! I know there was a lot of great work put in by everyone to make this happen. Our accounting and sales teams are thrilled to have this functionality working, and that means our customers are also taking full advantage of these enhancements. We appreciate the partnership in the development and testing, and are looking forward to more enhancements in the future."

Bren Rafaelly

Head of Digital Transformation / Benchmade Knife Co.

STX

"Since partnering with Shero Commerce, our eCommerce revenue has grown by 200%. Their 24/7 support and innovative solutions have been game-changers for our business."

James McKenna

Senior Commerce & CX Manager / STX

Memphis Drum Shop

"Working with the Shero team was professional, efficient, and inspiring. The Shero development team was extremely competent and provided solid solutions for our needs, as well as addressing any bugs or issues that arose during the process. Working with Shero exclusively through video technology was a new concept for our team that forced us to embrace modern methods of communication that will likely benefit our future relationships and business endeavors."

Shaun Carman

eCommerce Manager / Memphis Drum Shop

Swag Golf

"We partnered with Shero for the SWAG site development. The dev was highly nuanced, specialized and complex. The Shero team went above and beyond. They were collaborative, organized and professional, consistently setting expectations clearly and usually exceeding them."

Matt Kaminsky

Co-founder & Managing Director / Swag Golf

And you?

Let's build something great together.

Ready to scale your eCommerce business? Tell us about your project and we'll get back to you within 24 hours.

Email

[email protected]

Locations

New York • London • Helsinki • Tirana

Shopify Headless Commerce

Headless is not for every store