Architecture planning
Choosing the right commerce backend and frontend approach based on your catalog, checkout needs and performance targets.
Overview
For when the storefront theme is the bottleneck
Most stores don't need to go headless, a well-built theme on Shopify, BigCommerce or WooCommerce covers the vast majority of merchants perfectly well. Headless earns its extra complexity when the frontend needs something the theme layer genuinely can't do: a highly custom browsing experience, sub-second load targets, or content and commerce blended in ways a template wasn't built for.
We build the frontend in React or Next.js and connect it to a commerce backend, Shopify's Hydrogen, BigCommerce's APIs, or a dedicated commerce engine like Commerce Layer or Medusa, depending on what fits. The backend handles inventory, checkout and orders; the frontend is built entirely around your brand and your performance targets.
Tools & platforms we use
- Next.js
- Shopify Hydrogen
- Commerce Layer
- Medusa
- Stripe
What's included
A frontend built around your brand, not a theme's limits
Custom frontend build
A React or Next.js storefront built entirely around your brand, not adapted from a theme.
Commerce backend integration
Inventory, cart and checkout wired to Shopify Hydrogen, BigCommerce, or another commerce API.
Custom checkout flow
Built to your specific requirements where the underlying platform allows it, rather than a locked default flow.
Questions
Common questions about headless commerce
4 questions
When does headless commerce actually make sense?
When a theme-based store genuinely can't deliver what the brand needs: a highly custom UI, aggressive performance targets, or a content-heavy shopping experience a template wasn't built for. If a well-built Shopify or BigCommerce theme would cover it, we'll say so instead of recommending headless for its own sake.
Which headless commerce backend should we use?
Depends on whether you already have a preferred commerce platform. Shopify Hydrogen if you want to stay in the Shopify ecosystem. BigCommerce's APIs if you're on BigCommerce. A dedicated engine like Commerce Layer or Medusa if you're starting fresh and want more architectural flexibility.
Is headless commerce more expensive to build and maintain?
Generally, yes, both the initial build and ongoing maintenance take more work than a theme-based store, since you're maintaining a custom frontend instead of configuring one. It's worth it when the performance or design gains justify that cost.
Can our team still manage products and orders normally?
Yes, the backend platform (Shopify, BigCommerce, or your chosen commerce engine) still handles inventory, orders and fulfillment through its normal admin. Going headless changes the frontend, not how your team manages the store day to day.
Quick question?
Ask us about Custom & Headless eCommerce
Not ready for a full brief? Send a question and a developer who works on this will answer it, usually within one business day. No sales call, no obligation.
Already have designs or a scope? Send a full project brief instead.
Ready to get started?
Tell us what the current storefront can't do.
Send your requirements and current platform, and we'll come back with an honest read on whether headless is worth it, along with a fixed estimate if it is.
If the first milestone doesn't match the brief, we'll revise it at no extra cost.
NDA signed before we see anything. Delivered under your brand.