Shopify stores that are fast, findable and yours

Shopify is a hosted e-commerce platform: it runs the servers, the checkout, the security patches and the payment processing, and you pay a monthly plan instead of a hosting bill and a developer on call. For most retailers that is a good trade. Where stores go wrong is in the set-up: a heavy theme, a dozen apps fighting each other, product pages with duplicate content and no structured data. Meritbyte Technologies, a Nepal-based e-commerce and web development company, builds and fixes Shopify stores for retailers in the USA, Australia, Canada, the UK and beyond, always in the store owner's own account.

When is Shopify the right platform?

Shopify is usually the right answer when:

• You sell physical products and want checkout, inventory and order management that simply work.
• Your team has no developer on staff. Updates, security and hosting are Shopify's job.
• You sell in markets Shopify serves well, with its own payment gateway and local shipping integrations available.
• You want to grow without re-platforming, from a first product to multiple markets and channels.

It is not always right. Stores needing deep custom pricing, marketplace features or local gateways that Shopify does not support may be better on WooCommerce or a custom build. Our comparison of Shopify vs WooCommerce vs custom e-commerce sets out the trade-offs, and our e-commerce development service covers all three.

What our Shopify work covers

• Store set-up. Plan choice, theme, navigation, collections, product templates, shipping zones, taxes, policies, payments and email notifications, configured and tested end to end.
• Custom themes. Online Store 2.0 themes built from sections and blocks, so your team can rearrange pages in the theme editor without a developer.
• Migrations. Products, variants, customers, order history and, above all, URLs. Every old product and category URL gets a redirect so search rankings carry over; our guide to redesigning without losing SEO explains why that matters.
• Apps and integrations. Private apps and connections to stock, accounting, ERP and fulfilment systems through Shopify's APIs and webhooks.
• International selling. Shopify Markets for currencies, languages, domains and duties.
• Speed and SEO. Removing unused app code, compressing images, adding Product and Offer structured data, fixing duplicate collection URLs and writing product copy that answers buyers' questions.

Payments and fees: check before you build

Shopify Payments, Shopify's own gateway, is available only in supported countries. Where it is available, it is usually the simplest option. Where it is not, or when you choose another provider, you connect a third-party gateway and Shopify adds its own transaction fee on top of the gateway's, at a rate that depends on your plan.

For businesses selling inside Nepal, check gateway support for eSewa, Khalti or Fonepay before committing to any platform. Our guide to starting an e-commerce website in Nepal covers platform, payment and delivery choices for the Nepali market.

Themes, apps and headless Shopify

Most stores should start from a well-built theme and customise it. App sprawl is the most common cause of slow Shopify stores: each app can add scripts to every page. We audit installed apps, remove the unused ones and replace small ones with theme code where it is cheaper to maintain.

For brands that need an experience the theme system cannot deliver, Shopify can run headless: Shopify keeps the catalogue, checkout and orders, and a custom front end renders the store, built with Shopify's Hydrogen framework or Next.js. Headless costs more to build and run, so we recommend it only when a theme genuinely cannot do the job.

How a Shopify project runs with us

1. Free scoping call; you get a written scope, timeline and number.
2. Fixed-price first milestone, for example the theme, key templates and a test checkout running on a development store.
3. Two-week build blocks with a demo at the end of each; you can stop after any block.
4. Launch, with redirects, analytics, Google Merchant Center and Search Console checked, then a watched first week of orders.
5. Retainer or handover: ongoing improvements, or documentation and a walkthrough for your team.

Frequently asked questions

What does a Shopify development agency do?

A Shopify development agency sets up stores, designs and builds custom themes, migrates products and customers from other platforms, builds apps and integrations with stock and accounting systems, and improves speed and search visibility. Meritbyte does all of this with the store, apps and accounts in the owner's name.

Should we use Shopify or WooCommerce?

Choose Shopify if you want hosting, security and checkout handled for you and Shopify supports your payment gateway. Choose WooCommerce if you need full control, local gateways Shopify lacks, or deep customisation on a WordPress site. Running costs differ too: Shopify charges a monthly plan, WooCommerce needs hosting and maintenance.

Can you migrate our store to Shopify without losing rankings?

Yes. We export products, variants, customers and order history, then map every old product, category and page URL to its new Shopify URL with a 301 redirect. After launch we check Search Console for crawl errors and fix any missed URLs, so rankings and backlinks carry over.

Why is our Shopify store slow?

The usual causes are too many apps loading scripts on every page, oversized images, heavy theme features nobody uses, and third-party tracking tags. We measure Core Web Vitals on real visits, remove what is unused, and move small app functions into theme code where it is cheaper and faster.

Do you build custom Shopify themes?

Yes. We build Online Store 2.0 themes from sections and blocks, so your team can rearrange pages in Shopify's theme editor without a developer. Themes are built for speed and accessibility, with structured data for products, and the code is delivered to your store and repository.