Headless e-commerce solutions for DTC

Is headless right for your business

As an entrepreneur running an e-commerce DTC brand, you're always looking for ways to improve your customer experience while also streamlining your operations. One option that's been gaining popularity in recent years is headless e-commerce. But what exactly is it, and is it worth the investment for your business?

Put simply, headless e-commerce is a way of separating the front-end and back-end of your e-commerce platform. Traditionally, these two components are tightly integrated, meaning that any changes made to the front-end would require changes to the back-end as well. With a headless approach, however, the front-end is decoupled from the back-end, allowing you to make changes to the customer-facing side of your website without disrupting the underlying infrastructure.

So what are the advantages of this approach? First and foremost, headless e-commerce provides a level of flexibility that traditional platforms simply can't match. By separating the front-end and back-end, you can easily swap out different components to create a custom solution that's tailored to your specific needs. This means you can experiment with new features and functionality without worrying about breaking the entire system.

Additionally, headless e-commerce allows you to deliver a faster, more responsive customer experience. Because the front-end is separate from the back-end, you can optimize the customer-facing side of your website for speed and performance, without worrying about how it will impact the underlying infrastructure.

However, there are also some downsides to consider. The biggest disadvantage is that headless e-commerce can be expensive and time-consuming to implement. Unless you have a large in-house development team with expertise in this area, you'll likely need to hire outside consultants or a development agency to help you build and maintain the platform.

Furthermore, while headless e-commerce provides flexibility, it also requires a level of technical know-how that not all business owners possess. If you're not comfortable with programming languages like JavaScript and APIs, you may struggle to make the most of this approach.

So, is headless e-commerce worth it for your business? As with any decision, the answer depends on your specific circumstances. If you have a large in-house development team with expertise in this area, and you're looking for a highly customizable solution that can deliver a premium customer experience, then headless e-commerce may be a good fit. However, if you're working with limited resources or don't have the technical know-how, it may be better to stick with a more traditional platform.

Ultimately, as an entrepreneur, your goal is to create a business that delivers value to your customers while also supporting your own growth and success. Whether you choose to pursue headless e-commerce or stick with a more traditional platform, the key is to stay focused on what matters most: providing a great customer experience and building a business that's built to last.

The state of e-commerce in 2024

Online shopping is up 18.62%. And rising.

The big boxes keep raising the bar. Small businesses must keep up.

The government imposed shutdowns are impacting those that can't do business seamlessly online.

This is the new normal. Shoppers buying patterns have changed. Do you have what it takes to stay ahead?

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What is Flex?

  • Is Flex a custom store?

    No, but it can be modified to be what you need.

    You don't need custom, unless you are in 0.1% of our customers. (Trust us... We have been building custom, one-offs for the past decade.)

    While it isn't custom, it can be customized in any aspect, at any level - from colors to workflows, to dashboards, to loyalty programs. Have questions - just ask.

  • Can I customize the checkout?

    Yes.

  • Is this a headless e-commerce solution?

    It can be.

    We think that is the right solution for some, but not all businesses. But we can open the Flex API on your store and act as one without restrictions.

  • What are the long-term costs?

    Infrastructure and maintenance.

    Both combined are less than platform costs, in most cases.

  • How is it priced?

    At numbers that make sense to leave platforms.

    Fixed base package. Fixed add-on features. Project based design, customizations, and imports.

  • Do I have to run my store on your platform?

    Flex isn't a platform. You can run it anywhere.

    For the nerds, we are an e-commerce framework to build stores quickly that can be customized infinitely.

  • Is this a platform?

    No.

    We find platforms restrictive for customers desiring this tier of store. If you are coming to us you don't want artificial rules holding you back.

  • Do I have to pay for it all up front?

    No.

    But it is more cost effective. We offer pay over time options. You do have to pay for all custom design and development up front. You can get the source code after your payment plan is complete.

  • Can this store be shut down?

    We make resilient stores that can be live anywhere. We can set you up with a site that fails over to another cloud (infrastucture) so we can make it difficult for those that wish to cancel you.

    You won't get shut down buy us because you own it. If you do get taken down, we can get you back up quick!

  • Do you offer discounts?

    Yes, for non-profits. And for our development cohorts.

    We do these cohorts on occasion to improve sections of our codebase. You get a store with a discount and we get to improve our code! Contact us to find out more.

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