Shopify development · Themes, setup, custom features

Shopify development from a team that also runs your marketing.

Most stores hire one company to build and another to market, and tracking breaks in the gap between them. Our Shopify development services do both: theme customization, store setup, migrations, speed work, custom features and monthly care, built with ads, SEO and analytics in mind from day one.

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Free Shopify development audit

Send your store URL and we will write up what to build or fix.

Three fields and you are done. We review the theme, apps and setup, then send a PDF report showing what we would change and the order to do it in.

  • Theme, apps and settings reviewed by a developer
  • A PDF report on your own store
  • Fixes ranked by the revenue they touch
Chat on WhatsApp Prefer to talk first? Send us your store URL on WhatsApp.

Your PDF report comes by email. If you want to discuss going ahead after reading it, we’ll set up a video meeting. We use your details only for this audit.

Fit

Who it’s for

  • Shopify and Shopify Plus stores that need changes their theme can’t do out of the box
  • Brands launching a new Shopify store who want tracking and SEO right from day one
  • Stores moving to Shopify from WooCommerce, Magento, BigCommerce, Wix or Squarespace
  • Teams tired of waiting on a developer every time marketing needs a page or a fix

Not the right fit for public App Store apps or mobile apps; headless storefronts are scoped separately on our Next.js development page. We focus on what store owners need most: themes, features, integrations and the store’s performance. Above Clicks is a Shopify Partner, shown in our footer.

Problems we fix

Where Shopify projects usually go wrong.

  • 01

    Built without marketing in mind

    A new theme launches and the tracking, structured data and redirects that marketing depends on are missing, so ad performance and rankings drop.

  • 02

    Edits that break theme updates

    Changes made directly in theme files without a plan make every future theme update a risky manual merge.

  • 03

    An app for everything

    Each small feature becomes another app subscription and another script on every page, until the store is slow and the monthly bill is long.

  • 04

    Content hard-coded into templates

    Text and images written into code mean every change needs a developer, instead of the team editing sections and metafields.

  • 05

    Slow turnaround

    Small changes wait in an agency queue for weeks while campaigns that need them run without them.

  • 06

    No one owns the result

    The developer delivers, the marketer finds problems later, and the store owner ends up arbitrating between the two.

In 1:10 · animated

Before we change anything, we check five things.

A short animated walk-through of the first checks in our audit. No sound needed: everything is on screen, and the transcript is below.

What we check first in a Shopify store, an animated explainer of 1:10 with on-screen captions and controls to pause.

Read the transcript
  1. What we check first in a Shopify store Five checks before any new theme work.
  2. 1. What are the apps costing? Each small feature becomes another app, another monthly fee and often another script on every page. We list each app, its cost and whether it’s still used. (Example store.)
  3. 2. Is the store fast on mobile? We check Core Web Vitals from real visitors. Google’s “good” thresholds: LCP within 2.5 s, INP within 200 ms, CLS under 0.1. (Example store. Thresholds: Google Search Central.)
  4. 3. Will theme updates still work? Edits made straight in theme files make every update a manual merge. We look for changes kept in sections, blocks and app embeds instead. (Example store.)
  5. 4. Is marketing built in? Tracking, structured data and redirects that marketing depends on are easy to lose in a rebuild, and ad results and rankings drop with them. (Example store.)
  6. 5. Is there a safe way to ship? Changes are built on an unpublished copy of the theme, checked, then published, so the live store never breaks mid-edit.
  7. Then we fix them, in that order. Want this checked on your Shopify store? The free growth audit covers all five, in writing.

Our approach

Shopify development built for marketing.

Above Clicks was founded by Kashif Khan, who started as a WordPress and PHP web developer in 2021 before moving into performance marketing. That background is why, as a Shopify development company, we start with the questions marketing will ask later: will this be tracked, will search engines understand it, and can the team change it without a developer?

We build on Shopify’s own structure. Online Store 2.0 themes are made of sections and blocks that your team can add, move and edit in the theme editor. Product details, size guides and other structured content live in metafields and metaobjects, so they can be edited once and shown wherever they’re needed.

Custom features use the right tool for the job. Theme code in Liquid for storefront changes; Shopify Functions for discount, shipping and payment rules; Shopify Flow for automations; and small private apps for admin tools. Shopify’s docs note that custom apps with Functions need a Plus plan, while public apps containing Functions work on any plan, so we check the plan before proposing a build.

Apps are chosen carefully. Before adding one, we ask whether the theme can do it, whether an existing app already covers it, and what it loads on every page. Removing unused apps is often the quickest speed win in our site speed work.

Every change goes through a duplicate theme first. We test on real devices, check tracking events still fire and structured data still validates, and publish only after you approve. The previous theme stays as a backup.

New stores get the foundations from the first day. A Shopify development project for a launch includes payments, shipping zones, taxes, legal pages, analytics and ad pixels, Search Console, a clean collection structure and redirects from any old domain. Fixing those after launch costs far more than setting them up before it.

Shopify Plus stores get more options, and we build for them the way a Shopify Plus agency would: custom apps with Shopify Functions, more checkout customization and B2B features. We use them where they solve a real problem for your Shopify store, and tell you when a standard plan would do the same job.

Development connects straight to the rest of the plan. Landing pages for Meta Ads, collection content for Shopify SEO and purchase events for tracking are built by the same people who use them.

Shopify development tools by job: Liquid sections, metafields, Shopify Functions, Flow and private apps
The right Shopify tool for each kind of change.

How we use AI here

How we use AI in Shopify development.

Our founder started as a developer. We use AI coding tools the way a software team does: to move faster, with every change reviewed.

  • AI-assisted Liquid and app code

    Theme sections, scripts and small apps are written with AI coding assistants, then reviewed, tested in a development theme and documented.

  • Shopify’s own AI

    We set up Shopify Magic and Sidekick for your team where they help, such as drafting product text or building reports.

  • Code reviews

    AI helps read unfamiliar theme code and apps quickly, so problems are found before they become rebuilds.

Where it doesn’t help: untested code. Nothing AI writes goes live without a review and a test, and it stays on Shopify’s supported APIs.

What’s included

Six ways we build better stores.

Two store builds we led are written up on our results page: a custom CMS replaced by a 4,736-page Shopify store, and a Wix store moved to Shopify with 1,082 redirects.

  • Theme customization

    New sections and blocks, layout changes, product page features and design adjustments, built so your team can edit them.

  • Store setup and launch

    A new Shopify store with theme, apps, payments, shipping, tracking and SEO foundations in place before the first visitor.

  • Migrations to Shopify

    Products, customers, orders and content moved, with redirects and tracking rebuilt.

  • Site speed and Core Web Vitals

    App clean-up, image and script loading, theme code fixes.

  • Custom features and integrations

    Shopify Functions, checkout extensions, Flow automations and API integrations.

  • Monthly care plans

    A block of development time each month for fixes, updates and small features.

  • Tracking built in

    Customer events and pixels checked on every release, so changes don’t break analytics.

  • Handover and documentation

    What we built, where it lives in the theme and how to edit it, written down for your team.

Six Shopify development services: theme customization, setup, migrations, speed, custom features and care plans
Six services, one team that also runs the marketing.

How we run it

Four steps, in this order.

Nothing goes live without a test on a duplicate theme. Typical timing: the scope within 2 workdays, the build in 2 to 4 weeks depending on size, then testing, launch and handover in the final week.

  1. Step 1

    Scope

    We agree what to build, how it will be edited, how it will be tracked and how we’ll know it works.

  2. Step 2

    Build on a duplicate

    Changes are made on a copy of your live theme, with code reviewed and kept tidy.

  3. Step 3

    Test

    Real devices and browsers, tracking events, structured data and speed checked before you review.

  4. Step 4

    Launch and hand over

    Published with your approval, the old theme kept as a backup, and documentation handed over.

Four steps of a Shopify development project, from scope to handover
Scope, build on a duplicate, test, launch.

Pricing

Starting prices, in US dollars.

The audit is free. Paid work starts at these prices, and your exact cost is fixed in writing before any work begins.

  • Free audit

    Free no obligation

    Send your store URL and we will write up what to build or fix.

    Get my free audit

  • Fixed scope

    Store build or rebuild

    From $1,200 one-off

    Theme setup, customization or a full rebuild, scoped from the audit.

    • Theme setup and customization
    • Apps installed and configured
    • Speed and SEO basics included
    • Handover video for your team
    Start with the free audit

  • Monthly development

    From $400 monthly

    Ongoing builds, fixes and improvements for stores that keep changing.

    • A developer on your store each month
    • Theme and app updates handled
    • Small features built as needed
    Ask about this option

All prices are starting prices in US dollars. Custom work beyond these options is quoted after the audit.

By industry

What changes for your category.

  • Jewelry

    Jewelry stores need detailed product pages: zoomable images, ring size guides, metal and stone options and care information. We build them as editable sections and metafields.

  • Fashion & apparel

    Fashion stores need size charts, color swatches, quick views and collection filters that work on phones. We build them into the theme rather than adding an app for each.

  • Luxury & high-ticket

    High-ticket stores need trust and contact: provenance details, inquiry forms, appointment booking and financing information, built into product templates.

Sources

The documentation we work from.

Platform rules change. These are the official pages we check the work against, so you can check it too.

FAQ

Straight answers.

Can’t find yours? Ask on WhatsApp or by email and we’ll answer it.

Do you build custom Shopify themes from scratch?

Usually we customize a well-built theme, which is faster, cheaper and easier to keep updated. A fully custom theme makes sense for some brands, and we scope it separately with a designer.

Can our team edit what you build?

Yes. We build with sections, blocks and metafields so text, images and products can be changed in the theme editor without code.

Do you work on Shopify Plus?

Yes. Plus adds options such as custom apps with Shopify Functions and more checkout customization, and we use them where they help.

Will your changes survive theme updates?

We keep custom code organized and documented, so updates can be applied with a clear list of what to carry over. Major theme versions sometimes still need a planned merge.

Do you build Shopify apps?

We build small private apps and Shopify Functions for a single store. We don’t build public App Store apps.

How do you handle access?

Through a collaborator or staff account with only the permissions the work needs. You can remove it at any time.

How do you price Shopify development?

By project, from a written scope, or monthly through a care plan for ongoing work. We quote after seeing the store and the request, so the price reflects the real work.

Can you help us choose a Shopify theme?

Yes. We compare a few well-built themes against your catalog, design and features, and pick one that needs the fewest customizations and loads fast on mobile.

Why use the same team for development and marketing?

Because most problems happen between the two. When the people who build a page also run the ads and tracking for it, fewer things break and changes ship faster.

Related guides

Read before you decide.

All E-commerce SEO guides

Free growth audit

Find out what’s holding your store back.

Tell us about your store. We’ll review your tracking, campaigns and SEO and send you a written audit with the top fixes, ranked by impact.

  • Written audit as a PDF, delivered within 2 workdays (see a sample)
  • A video meeting to go through it, if you want to discuss next steps
  • Free and no obligation
  • Read-only access or screenshots are enough
Chat on WhatsApp [email protected]

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