Shopify Development Agency: Headless Stores Without App Bloat

Q: Why Shopify Plus and not Magento or WooCommerce?

Shopify Plus is SaaS: automatic updates, managed security, 99.99% uptime. Magento requires dedicated DevOps. WooCommerce scales poorly. From €500K/year in revenue, Shopify Plus is usually the option that pays off.

Q: Can we keep our current apps?

We audit each app: performance impact, native alternative, criticality. Reviews and email marketing apps usually stay. Popup and countdown apps usually go. For recommendations and search, AI personalization beats generic apps. Goal: minimal, fast stack.

Q: Is Hydrogen necessary or can we use Liquid?

Well-optimized Liquid 2.0 can pass Core Web Vitals. Hydrogen is for: maximum speed, highly custom designs, or when you need React. We recommend Hydrogen for large brands that need a custom frontend; for most stores, Liquid is enough.

Q: What happens with SEO during migration?

We map all URLs. Configure 301 redirects before the switch. Validate with Screaming Frog. Monitor GSC for the first weeks. +100K URLs migrated without loss.

Q: Is Shopify GDPR compliant?

Yes. Shopify offers servers in Europe for Plus. We configure CMP, compliant privacy policies, and data deletion options. Certified for EU-US transfers.

Q: How long does a complete migration take?

8-10 weeks typically. Includes: data mapping, development, app audit, redirects, training, and stabilization period. No rushing that compromises quality.

Q: How much does a Shopify or Shopify Plus store cost?

A Shopify store starts at €8,000; most projects fall between €10,000 and €25,000. A Shopify Plus project, which pays off from around €500K a year in revenue, starts at €30,000. A headless Hydrogen build, meant for large brands that need a custom frontend, also starts at €30,000. What drives it up: a custom theme, the apps to be replaced, ERP or logistics integrations, markets and languages, and data and URL migration. It includes an app audit, development, migration with 301 redirects and 3 months of post-launch support. The licence is paid separately to Shopify (on Plus, ~€2,300/month). Packaged-service providers publish lower prices (a median of €1,200 in Spain for an online store in our published-price observatory): the difference is custom work, integrations and support. Indicative prices excl. VAT; we close the quote once we have defined the scope.

Q: Do you work with international companies?

Yes, we're a Shopify Partner with e-commerce experience since 2009. We work with clients across Europe and the Americas. Video conference meetings available.

Q: What if it doesn't work?

The store is yours from day one. If you're not satisfied, you can hire another partner. No lock-in. We document everything to facilitate transition if necessary.

We build Hydrogen headless architectures and Checkout Extensibility for brands selling at scale that need more than off-the-shelf plugins.

Talk to an architect View Architecture

<500ms TTI (Time to Interactive)
100% Core Web Vitals Passing

01 · Catalogue Products and prices in sync
02 · Experience Search, product page and cart
03 · Payment Gateways and anti-fraud
04 · Order ERP, stock and logistics
05 · Measurement Conversion and margin
06 · Operation Your team sells, the system scales
Every sale refines the catalogue

Scroll

In numbers

Auditable Results

Metrics from managed Shopify Plus projects.

€50M+ Transaction Volume Managed annually
-80% JS Bundle vs store with apps
+40% Conversion After optimization
17 Years of Experience Since 2009

Definition

What Is Hydrogen/Oxygen and Why Does It Matter?

Hydrogen is Shopify's React framework for headless commerce. Oxygen is their edge hosting. Together they enable ultra-fast custom frontends that consume the Storefront API. The result: static site speed with Shopify checkout power.

In traditional Liquid architecture, every request goes through Shopify servers and renders templates. With Hydrogen, the frontend is pure React served from edge (sub-50ms globally). Checkout remains Shopify (PCI compliance included). The best of both worlds: extreme performance + enterprise payment security.

What's included

Service Deliverables

What you receive. No ambiguity.

Hydrogen headless or optimized Liquid 2.0
Checkout Extensibility with Shopify Functions
ERP connectors (SAP, Navision, Odoo)
Data migration without SEO loss
Audit and replacement of heavy apps
Training for your operations team

Why

App bloat vs custom engineering

The app trap and how to escape.

You install 20 apps for basic functionality. JS jumps to 3MB. The site takes 6 seconds to load. Conversion drops to 0.5%. It is a common pattern in Shopify stores. We replace heavy apps with lightweight custom code (Shopify Functions). We move logic to the backend. Your store loads faster and conversion improves.

app/routes/products.$handle.jsx

// Hydrogen + Storefront API

export async function loader({ params, context }) {

const { product } = await context.storefront

.query(PRODUCT_QUERY, {

variables: { handle: params.handle }

});

return json({ product });

}

-80% JS Bundle
+40% Conversion
0 Apps

Summary

Executive Summary

For Management.

Shopify Plus development offers typical ROI of 3-6 months from conversion improvement. Complete migration in 8-10 weeks depending on complexity.

Requirement: >€500K/year revenue to access Shopify Plus. Main risk: loss of app functionality without equivalent. The Shopify account is yours, with full access and no lock-in.

3-6 months Typical ROI
8-10 wks Migration
+40% Conversion

For the CTO

Technical Summary

For the CTO.

Headless architecture with Storefront API (GraphQL). Shopify Functions for custom checkout logic. Metafields/Metaobjects for structured content.

Webhooks for ERP synchronization. Native PCI DSS compliance. Servers in Europe available (EU region) for GDPR compliance.

Technologies

Hydrogen 2.0
Storefront API
Shopify Functions
Checkout Extensibility
React
TypeScript

Frontend on edge with Oxygen (<50ms global)
Native PCI compliant checkout
Bidirectional webhooks with ERP

Who it is for

Is It For You?

Shopify Plus is for brands with volume and advanced requirements.

Who it's for

B2C brands with volume needing enterprise performance (the brands we usually work with bill over €5M/year).
E-commerce with app bloat needing to clean dependencies and improve speed.
Companies migrating from Magento/PrestaShop to a stable SaaS platform.
Teams wanting headless (Hydrogen) for maximum UX control.
Businesses with customization requirements beyond standard themes.

Who it's not for

Simple projects that a standard theme can solve without custom development.
B2B businesses with complex requirements (Net Terms, Price Lists): BigCommerce is better.
If a Theme Store theme covers your needs without customization.
Companies expecting to "install apps" for everything (that's the problem, not the solution).
Projects where immediate time-to-market is more important than performance.

Key points

Shopify Plus Services

Architecture designed for high volume.

01
Checkout Extensibility

Shopify Functions replaces checkout.liquid hacks. Custom discount, validation, and shipping logic running on the backend. No third-party apps in the critical path.
02
Headless With Hydrogen

GraphQL API for catalog, cart, and checkout. React frontend served from edge. Static site speed, total design flexibility.
03
Native B2B

Shopify Plus includes native B2B: per-customer price lists, payment terms, quick orders. No €500/month apps that break. GDPR compliant.
04
Zero-Downtime Migrations

We parallelize the new store while the old one keeps selling. Switch in minutes with pre-configured 301 redirects. Zero SEO ranking loss.

How we work

Work Process

From legacy platform to Shopify Plus.

01
Mapping and Audit

Data extraction from your current platform. Existing app audit. Mapping of products, variants, customers, historical orders. Free initial audit.
Week 1-2
02
Theme/Headless Development

Development in Hydrogen (React) for maximum performance or optimized Liquid 2.0. Mobile-first. Core Web Vitals passing.
Week 3-6
03
Launch and Scaling

301 redirect strategy. Load testing. Post-launch monitoring. Training for your team.
Week 7-10

Risks and how we cover them

Risks and Mitigation

Transparency about what can fail.

01
Loss of app functionality

Mitigation
Prior gap analysis. Custom development with Shopify Functions for critical functionality.
02
SEO drop during migration

Mitigation
Exhaustive URL mapping, 301 redirects pre-migration, GSC monitoring post-launch.
03
SaaS platform dependency

Mitigation
Data is exportable, headless architecture reduces lock-in, documented contingency plan.
04
Team learning curve

Mitigation
Training included, process documentation, 3-month post-launch support.

Technologies

Technology Stack

Tools for high-performance commerce.

Hydrogen 2.0
Oxygen
Storefront API
Shopify Functions
Checkout Extensibility
Metafields
React
Remix
TypeScript
Tailwind CSS
Klaviyo
Algolia

The proof

Enterprise Commerce Specialists

We're not an agency that "installs themes". We're a Shopify Partner and we've been building high-performance e-commerce since 2009. Hydrogen, Checkout Extensibility, complex migrations from Magento or PrestaShop. Fixed rate because results matter more than hours.

17 Years in E-commerce
60+ Shopify Projects

Lighthouse Score 95+
Reliability 100%

What's included

Investment

Indicative prices excl. VAT, updated September 2026.

Initial audit: free (app analysis + opportunities)
Full migration: custom Liquid theme or Hydrogen headless based on your needs
No lock-in: the store is yours
Shopify project: from €8,000 (typically €10,000-25,000); Shopify Plus or headless: from €30,000
Shopify Plus license: ~€2,300/month (paid to Shopify)
Post-launch support: 3 months included

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What e-commerce directors ask.

Why Shopify Plus and not Magento or WooCommerce?

Shopify Plus is SaaS: automatic updates, managed security, 99.99% uptime. Magento requires dedicated DevOps. WooCommerce scales poorly. From €500K/year in revenue, Shopify Plus is usually the option that pays off.

Can we keep our current apps?

We audit each app: performance impact, native alternative, criticality. Reviews and email marketing apps usually stay. Popup and countdown apps usually go. For recommendations and search, AI personalization beats generic apps. Goal: minimal, fast stack.

Is Hydrogen necessary or can we use Liquid?

Well-optimized Liquid 2.0 can pass Core Web Vitals. Hydrogen is for: maximum speed, highly custom designs, or when you need React. We recommend Hydrogen for large brands that need a custom frontend; for most stores, Liquid is enough.

What happens with SEO during migration?

We map all URLs. Configure 301 redirects before the switch. Validate with Screaming Frog. Monitor GSC for the first weeks. +100K URLs migrated without loss.

Is Shopify GDPR compliant?

Yes. Shopify offers servers in Europe for Plus. We configure CMP, compliant privacy policies, and data deletion options. Certified for EU-US transfers.

How long does a complete migration take?

8-10 weeks typically. Includes: data mapping, development, app audit, redirects, training, and stabilization period. No rushing that compromises quality.

How much does a Shopify or Shopify Plus store cost?

A Shopify store starts at €8,000; most projects fall between €10,000 and €25,000. A Shopify Plus project, which pays off from around €500K a year in revenue, starts at €30,000. A headless Hydrogen build, meant for large brands that need a custom frontend, also starts at €30,000. What drives it up: a custom theme, the apps to be replaced, ERP or logistics integrations, markets and languages, and data and URL migration. It includes an app audit, development, migration with 301 redirects and 3 months of post-launch support. The licence is paid separately to Shopify (on Plus, ~€2,300/month). Packaged-service providers publish lower prices (a median of €1,200 in Spain for an online store in our published-price observatory): the difference is custom work, integrations and support. Indicative prices excl. VAT; we close the quote once we have defined the scope.

Do you work with international companies?

Yes, we're a Shopify Partner with e-commerce experience since 2009. We work with clients across Europe and the Americas. Video conference meetings available.

What if it doesn't work?

The store is yours from day one. If you're not satisfied, you can hire another partner. No lock-in. We document everything to facilitate transition if necessary.

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