My first question/doubt is: I have a store which is based in the USA but I live in Switzerland with a swiss bank account. I see that i can’t use shopify payments as I don’t have a US id so what provider would be best for my situation. In addition, I wanted to ask if it is possible for a provider to only show the business’s name and not the owner name even if the business is not registered.
My second question/doubt: How exactly do returns work? Do I need to use my address to stock returned products, is there some kind of shopify warehouse, if I send back to the supplier does shopify automate the process or do i need to contact them for every individual return?
Thank you for taking the time I appreciate it a lot
I hope your day is going well, and welcome to the Shopify!
When you mention your business is based in the US, but operated from Switzerland, can you provide more information? Generally speaking, your business is based where it is operated. If you are targeting US customers from Switzerland, your store is still based in Switzerland.
Since Shopify Payments is not available in Switzerland, the best payment gateway will most likely be Stripe. However, each merchant and business is different and another gateway might suite your needs. In that case, you can check out the full list of acceptable payment gateways here.
When it comes to returns, this will depend on your business model. Can you tell me a bit more about where you are sourcing your inventory?
If you are dropshipping, generally your supplier will not accept returns unless they made a mistake. For example, the wrong size or color was shipped out. Or, the item is damaged. That being said, customer service is important, and you should decide if you will accept returns even if your supplier doesn’t.
If you choose to accept returns, you would receive them to your home address. You can then use the returned merchandise how you please. A great option is to use the returned product to shoot marketing campaigns. I recommend checking out thisin-depth article from Oberloon how to manage returns when dropshipping.
In the meantime, as it sounds you are just starting out, make sure to use the Shopify Launch Checklist, to ensure you have completed each necessary step in the set up process. This will ensure you are ready to rock come launch day!
I own an address in the US which is used for my store (store details>address) but I operate in Switzerland. As from what I understand is that this address will show up on all customer billings therefore I would prefer having a secondary address. For returns however I don’t mind using my home address as the recipient.
I currently source my inventory from different suppliers through spocket. It seems that most suppliers offer returns and is managed by them but is there a more automated process that can be done using shopify? Though your idea to shoot marketing campaigns is genius and will be used.
Thank you for sending the article and checklist they were as helpful as you.
The address listed in Settings > Store Details is listed on your confirmation emails, however you can easily remove it should you seek to. Simply head to Settings > Notifications and modify your order confirmation email to remove your store address. Additionally, it will populate under your store policies. Again, you can simply head to Settings > Policies and remove this address. That being said, if you want to use the US address, please do!
When it comes to returns, if you want to remove your supplier from the equation you can absolutely process the returns through Shopify. To refund the order, open the order in Shopify and select Refund. You will then need to confirm the refund amount, and confirm the refund. It will then take a few days to fully process back to the customer.
When it comes to returning the products, it might be more cost effective to have the customer keep the item. Shipping from the US to Switzerland is expensive, and generally you would pay for the return shipping. It would most likely be better to have the customer keep the item and dispose of it how they see fit.
We do have a feature in some countries that allows you to pre-purchase return labels for your customer, however it is sadly not yet available in Switzerland.