Deactivate checkout

[MrPicky_Admin]

We want to create a site that simply directs customers to "order on Amazon" via buttons/links.  We do not want a cart or payment active.  It's a "dummy" site that will just look good for our brand and send customers to our Amazon store through links/buttons.  It would be preferred if there was a theme we could build around and simply "deactivate" the payment/cart functionality so that we still have it should we want to use it in the future.  However, I'm open to the idea of using a theme without a cart entirely and having to create a new site in the future should we want to add the ecommerce function back.  I wouldn't have thought this would be such a challenge, but it is.  Thanks in advance for your help.

[Ava]

Hey, @MrPicky_Admin!

Have you looked into the Pause and Build plan? This is a subscription plan that allows you access to the admin section, and it allows customers to view your storefront and product pages, but it deactivates the checkout. The purpose of this plan is to allow you time to build your store without having to keep up with customer orders. Would this plan work for you for your current needs? You can find more information about the plan here! 

For the redirect to Amazon, there is another guide here that will change your Add to Cart button to link to a Contact Us page rather than add an item to the cart for checkout. This is intended for merchants who are either not ready to sell just yet, or if they are taking a break from selling but would like the customer to contact them for more info on the reopening. I wouldn't be able to give specific instructions on how to change the Contact Us page link to an external link on a third-party platform, but what you would like to do should be possible! I can leave this post open to the Community here and you may get more specific instructions. 

Can I ask why you would like to only sell on Amazon at the moment? Just so I have more context to suggest some more help for you here!

[MrPicky_Admin]

Thanks.  I will give these a try.  I think I discovered a way to build the site without any products and then just "fake" the look by using the "photo and text" template that has a "button" that I can create to link to my Amazon page.  And, like you mentioned, when someone click on the "cart" icon, I can have it land on a page that also has the "photo and text" template.  Thanks for your help.  It was very beneficial.  As for why we want to do this, we have too many sales to process all of them from our corporate office and warehouse.  It's easier for us to have our customers order directly from us on the Amazon platform and have Amazon take care of the entire order process.  Again, thanks. 

[MrPicky_Admin]

Thank you, Ava.  I've found a way to simply use the "image and text" template and have the button link to my Amazon store.  As for the cart button in the upper right corner, I've programed that to also be a "image and text" template that also goes to my Amazon store.  As for why we set our store up this way, it allows us to "push" all of our sales to our account at Amazon and have them ship all our customer orders and still have them qualify for Amazon Prime.  Thanks for your help.

[Ava]

Oh, that is a great idea! I'm so glad to hear you found a way to make this work for your needs. I can definitely understand your reasoning behind this; shipping logistics can sometimes be the most difficult part of being a business owner. It can take a lot of the pressure off to have a third-party take care of this completely. 

Can I ask if you are currently based in the US or Canada? If you are, the Shopify Fulfillment Network may be of interest to you. After you prepare and send your inventory to the network of fulfilment centres, the Shopify Fulfillment network will pick and pack your orders, and then ship them to your customers for you. This would take a lot of effort out of your day to day workflow! There is more information on how this works here, feel free to take a look in your own time and let me know if you have any questions.

If this is something you're interested in, you can sign up for the fulfilment network here. Let me know what you think!