New software developer to big shopify based e-com company

Technical Q&A

Topic summary

A newly hired developer with limited coding experience (Ruby on Rails, basic front-end) is joining a large Shopify-based e-commerce company as their first IT/dev person. The company seeks increasing customization beyond their current setup.

Key Questions:

  • Where to start learning Shopify development, including recommended courses
  • How to build custom plugins and apps for the platform
  • How to create a test environment for evaluating apps without affecting the live site

Challenges:

  • The existing setup is complex with numerous apps, themes, and custom adjustments accumulated over years
  • Need to test potential apps before recommending them to the team

Suggested Solution:
One respondent recommends creating a Shopify development store:

  1. Sign up for a development/trial store through Shopify
  2. Replicate the live store’s theme or test alternatives
  3. Install and evaluate apps from the Shopify App Store in this isolated environment

The discussion remains open regarding learning resources and best practices for ramping up as a Shopify developer.

Summarized with AI on October 24. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

Hey everyone,

I was just hired as the first IT/dev person to a shopify powered company. I also have limited coding experience, having worked only with ruby (built websites using ruby on rails) and some basic front end knowledge. I guess I convinced the team in my new company that I am digital savvy enough and willing to learn so they trusted me.

The company is a rather big one, and is using shopify for a couple of years already, but they want more and more customisation.

My question would be, where would you say I should start? Any courses that might help me ramp up? Any tips that you wish you knew in the beginning? (Now I am just searching apps and setting them up, but I want to learn how to build custom plug ins and apps for them).

Second Q would be, how can I built a test environment to their website? I have a task now and I saw some apps that offer a solution but I want to test the apps before suggesting one that I think fits the best. I would like to do that in on a separate website and not go live or do any changes on the current one.

As they have been working with shopify for so long, they use so many apps, have so many themes, tailor made adjustments. It makes the whole learning journey pretty complicated.

Thank you so much in advance for your answer.

2

To create a test environment for a Shopify website where you can try out different apps and make changes without affecting the live site, you can follow these steps:

  1. Create a development store: Shopify allows you to create development or trial stores for testing purposes. Go to the Shopify website (www.shopify.com) and sign up for a new account. During the sign-up process, select the option to create a new development store.

  2. Customize the development store: Once you have your development store set up, you can install the same theme used in the live store or any other theme you want to test. You can also make adjustments and modifications to the theme as needed.

  3. Install apps: In your development store, you can browse and install the apps you want to test. You can search for apps in the Shopify App Store and install them directly in your development store. Test out the functionality and features of the apps to see if they meet your requirements.