Would like to display different nav items to customers tagged 'wholesale." Is Dawn 9.0 different?

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

A user is attempting to display different navigation menus for customers tagged ‘wholesale’ in the Dawn 9.0 theme but cannot get the code to work despite trying various placements in header.liquid.

Attempted Solution:
The user tried implementing conditional logic to assign different menu handles based on customer tags, using code that checks if a customer has the ‘wholesale’ tag and then assigns an alternate menu. However, inserting this code into header.liquid at various locations has been unsuccessful.

Technical Issue:
One respondent noted that Dawn theme uses menu values from header settings rather than hard-coded values, suggesting the user should modify the theme’s for loops to reference hard-coded menus instead.

Alternative Approach:
Another participant recommended using the Navvy app, which enables dynamic navigation based on customer tags without manual code editing, potentially avoiding issues with theme updates breaking custom code.

Status:
The discussion remains open with no confirmed resolution. The original poster has not indicated whether either suggestion resolved the issue.

Summarized with AI on October 30. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

This is my second crack at asking about this. I’ve gone through three pages of posts about the subject in this discussion and I’m beginning to wonder if the Dawn 9.0 theme is just set up differently? Perhaps it’s related to the issue this fellow had: https://community.shopify.com/c/technical-q-a/creating-a-separating-navigation-to-tagged-users/td-p/1949421 I’ve appended the full code for Dawn’s header.liquid at the bottom of this question.

I’d really like to do the thing where if a customer is tagged ‘wholesale,’ then the code assigns a completely different menu. So, in an ideal world, I’d just use this:

{% assign menu_handle = 'main-menu' %}
{% if customer %}
{% if customer.tags contains 'wholesale' %}
   {% assign menu_handle = 'main-menu-wholesale' %}
{% endif %}
{% endif %}
{% include 'site-nav', linklist: menu_handle %}

I have inserted this into the header.liquid document in various places and it doesn’t work. But then, I have no idea what I’m doing. I have scoured every section, snippet, and other thing in that editor and I can’t seem to find any other place where it might go.

For the life of me, I don’t comprehend why Shopify doesn’t make this easier… I’m migrating here from squarespace because Shopify’s better for e-commerce, but I’m missing SP a lot.

Thanks!

For reference here is header.liquid from Dawn:


{%- if settings.predictive_search_enabled -%}
  
  
{%- endif -%}
{%- if section.settings.menu_type_desktop == 'mega' -%}
  
  
{%- endif -%}
{%- if section.settings.enable_country_selector or section.settings.enable_language_selector -%}
  {{ 'component-localization-form.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag: preload: true }}
{%- endif -%}

{%- if settings.cart_type == "drawer" -%}
  {{ 'component-cart-drawer.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag }}
  {{ 'component-cart.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag }}
  {{ 'component-totals.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag }}
  {{ 'component-price.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag }}
  {{ 'component-discounts.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag }}
  {{ 'component-loading-overlay.css' | asset_url | stylesheet_tag }}
{%- endif -%}

{%- style -%}
  .header {
    padding-top: {{ section.settings.padding_top | times: 0.5 | round: 0 }}px;
    padding-bottom: {{ section.settings.padding_bottom | times: 0.5 | round: 0 }}px;
  }

  .section-header {
    position: sticky; /* This is for fixing a Safari z-index issue. PR #2147 */
    margin-bottom: {{ section.settings.margin_bottom | times: 0.75 | round: 0 }}px;
  }

  @media screen and (min-width: 750px) {
    .section-header {
      margin-bottom: {{ section.settings.margin_bottom }}px;
    }
  }

  @media screen and (min-width: 990px) {
    .header {
      padding-top: {{ section.settings.padding_top }}px;
      padding-bottom: {{ section.settings.padding_bottom }}px;
    }
  }
{%- endstyle -%}

{%- if settings.cart_type == "drawer" -%}
  
{%- endif -%}
{%- if section.settings.enable_country_selector or section.settings.enable_language_selector -%}
  
{%- endif -%}

{%- liquid
  for block in section.blocks
    if block.type == '@app'
      assign has_app_block = true
    endif
  endfor
-%}

<{% if section.settings.sticky_header_type != 'none' %}sticky-header data-sticky-type="{{ section.settings.sticky_header_type }}"{% else %}div{% endif %} class="header-wrapper color-{{ section.settings.color_scheme }} gradient{% if section.settings.show_line_separator %} header-wrapper--border-bottom{% endif %}">
  

{%- if settings.cart_type == "notification" -%}
  {%- render 'cart-notification', color_scheme: section.settings.color_scheme, desktop_menu_type: section.settings.menu_type_desktop -%}
{%- endif -%}

{% javascript %}
  class StickyHeader extends HTMLElement {
    constructor() {
      super();
    }

    connectedCallback() {
      this.header = document.querySelector('.section-header');
      this.headerIsAlwaysSticky = this.getAttribute('data-sticky-type') === 'always' || this.getAttribute('data-sticky-type') === 'reduce-logo-size';
      this.headerBounds = {};

      this.setHeaderHeight();

      window.matchMedia('(max-width: 990px)').addEventListener('change', this.setHeaderHeight.bind(this));

      if (this.headerIsAlwaysSticky) {
        this.header.classList.add('shopify-section-header-sticky');
      };

      this.currentScrollTop = 0;
      this.preventReveal = false;
      this.predictiveSearch = this.querySelector('predictive-search');

      this.onScrollHandler = this.onScroll.bind(this);
      this.hideHeaderOnScrollUp = () => this.preventReveal = true;

      this.addEventListener('preventHeaderReveal', this.hideHeaderOnScrollUp);
      window.addEventListener('scroll', this.onScrollHandler, false);

      this.createObserver();
    }

    setHeaderHeight() {
      document.documentElement.style.setProperty('--header-height', `${this.header.offsetHeight}px`);
    }

    disconnectedCallback() {
      this.removeEventListener('preventHeaderReveal', this.hideHeaderOnScrollUp);
      window.removeEventListener('scroll', this.onScrollHandler);
    }

    createObserver() {
      let observer = new IntersectionObserver((entries, observer) => {
        this.headerBounds = entries[0].intersectionRect;
        observer.disconnect();
      });

      observer.observe(this.header);
    }

    onScroll() {
      const scrollTop = window.pageYOffset || document.documentElement.scrollTop;

      if (this.predictiveSearch && this.predictiveSearch.isOpen) return;

      if (scrollTop > this.currentScrollTop && scrollTop > this.headerBounds.bottom) {
        this.header.classList.add('scrolled-past-header');
        if (this.preventHide) return;
        requestAnimationFrame(this.hide.bind(this));
      } else if (scrollTop < this.currentScrollTop && scrollTop > this.headerBounds.bottom) {
        this.header.classList.add('scrolled-past-header');
        if (!this.preventReveal) {
          requestAnimationFrame(this.reveal.bind(this));
        } else {
          window.clearTimeout(this.isScrolling);

          this.isScrolling = setTimeout(() => {
            this.preventReveal = false;
          }, 66);

          requestAnimationFrame(this.hide.bind(this));
        }
      } else if (scrollTop <= this.headerBounds.top) {
        this.header.classList.remove('scrolled-past-header');
        requestAnimationFrame(this.reset.bind(this));
      }

      this.currentScrollTop = scrollTop;
    }

    hide() {
      if (this.headerIsAlwaysSticky) return;
      this.header.classList.add('shopify-section-header-hidden', 'shopify-section-header-sticky');
      this.closeMenuDisclosure();
      this.closeSearchModal();
    }

    reveal() {
      if (this.headerIsAlwaysSticky) return;
      this.header.classList.add('shopify-section-header-sticky', 'animate');
      this.header.classList.remove('shopify-section-header-hidden');
    }

    reset() {
      if (this.headerIsAlwaysSticky) return;
      this.header.classList.remove('shopify-section-header-hidden', 'shopify-section-header-sticky', 'animate');
    }

    closeMenuDisclosure() {
      this.disclosures = this.disclosures || this.header.querySelectorAll('header-menu');
      this.disclosures.forEach(disclosure => disclosure.close());
    }

    closeSearchModal() {
      this.searchModal = this.searchModal || this.header.querySelector('details-modal');
      this.searchModal.close(false);
    }
  }

  customElements.define('sticky-header', StickyHeader);
{% endjavascript %}

{%- if request.page_type == 'index' -%}
  {% assign potential_action_target = request.origin | append: routes.search_url | append: "?q={search_term_string}" %}
  
{%- endif -%}

{% schema %}
{
  "name": "t:sections.header.name",
  "class": "section-header",
  "max_blocks": 3,
  "settings": [
    {
      "type": "select",
      "id": "logo_position",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "top-left",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.logo_position.options__2.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "top-center",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.logo_position.options__3.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "middle-left",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.logo_position.options__1.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "middle-center",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.logo_position.options__4.label"
        }
      ],
      "default": "middle-left",
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.logo_position.label",
      "info": "t:sections.header.settings.logo_help.content"
    },
    {
      "type": "link_list",
      "id": "menu",
      "default": "main-menu",
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.menu.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "select",
      "id": "menu_type_desktop",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "dropdown",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.menu_type_desktop.options__1.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "mega",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.menu_type_desktop.options__2.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "drawer",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.menu_type_desktop.options__3.label"
        }
      ],
      "default": "dropdown",
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.menu_type_desktop.label",
      "info": "t:sections.header.settings.menu_type_desktop.info"
    },
    {
      "type": "select",
      "id": "sticky_header_type",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "none",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.sticky_header_type.options__1.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "on-scroll-up",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.sticky_header_type.options__2.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "always",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.sticky_header_type.options__3.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "reduce-logo-size",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.sticky_header_type.options__4.label"
        }
      ],
      "default": "on-scroll-up",
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.sticky_header_type.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "checkbox",
      "id": "show_line_separator",
      "default": true,
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.show_line_separator.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "select",
      "id": "color_scheme",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "accent-1",
          "label": "t:sections.all.colors.accent_1.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "accent-2",
          "label": "t:sections.all.colors.accent_2.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "background-1",
          "label": "t:sections.all.colors.background_1.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "background-2",
          "label": "t:sections.all.colors.background_2.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "inverse",
          "label": "t:sections.all.colors.inverse.label"
        }
      ],
      "default": "background-1",
      "label": "t:sections.all.colors.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "header",
      "content": "t:sections.header.settings.header__3.content",
      "info": "t:sections.header.settings.header__4.info"
    },
    {
      "type": "checkbox",
      "id": "enable_country_selector",
      "default": false,
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.enable_country_selector.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "header",
      "content": "t:sections.header.settings.header__5.content",
      "info": "t:sections.header.settings.header__6.info"
    },
    {
      "type": "checkbox",
      "id": "enable_language_selector",
      "default": false,
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.enable_language_selector.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "header",
      "content": "t:sections.header.settings.mobile_layout.content"
    },
    {
      "type": "select",
      "id": "mobile_logo_position",
      "options": [
        {
          "value": "center",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.mobile_logo_position.options__1.label"
        },
        {
          "value": "left",
          "label": "t:sections.header.settings.mobile_logo_position.options__2.label"
        }
      ],
      "default": "center",
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.mobile_logo_position.label"
    },
    {
      "type": "header",
      "content": "t:sections.all.spacing"
    },
    {
      "type": "range",
      "id": "margin_bottom",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 100,
      "step": 4,
      "unit": "px",
      "label": "t:sections.header.settings.margin_bottom.label",
      "default": 0
    },
    {
      "type": "header",
      "content": "t:sections.all.padding.section_padding_heading"
    },
    {
      "type": "range",
      "id": "padding_top",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 36,
      "step": 4,
      "unit": "px",
      "label": "t:sections.all.padding.padding_top",
      "default": 20
    },
    {
      "type": "range",
      "id": "padding_bottom",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 36,
      "step": 4,
      "unit": "px",
      "label": "t:sections.all.padding.padding_bottom",
      "default": 20
    }
  ],
  "blocks": [
    {
      "type": "@app"
    }
  ]
}
{% endschema %}

{% assign menu_handle = ‘main-menu’ %}

{% if customer %}

{% if customer.tags contains ‘wholesale’ %}

{% assign menu_handle = ‘main-menu-wholesale’ %}

{% endif %}

{% endif %}

{% include ‘site-nav’, linklist: menu_handle %}

2

Your theme is using the value of ‘menu’ from your header’s settings. In your for header’s for loops, consider using the values of your hard-coded menus instead.

3

Did you ever find a solution?

4

Hi AlexGalt,

I completely understand your frustration—customizing navigation based on customer tags can be tricky, especially when dealing with code in the Dawn theme. I had a similar challenge when I wanted to show different menus to wholesale customers, and I found a solution that might work for you.

Instead of manually editing the header.liquid file (which can be time-consuming and error-prone), I started using Navvy. It’s a Shopify app specifically designed to handle dynamic navigation based on customer tags. With this app, you can:

  • Easily create separate menus for wholesale customers without touching any code.

  • Assign different navigation items based on customer tags (like wholesale).

  • Avoid the hassle of theme updates breaking your custom code.

It’s been a game-changer for my store, and it might save you a lot of time and headaches too. You can check it out here: https://apps.shopify.com/member-menu.

Let me know if you have any questions— I can recommend some ways i used to overcome it