---
title: "How to Set Up Wholesale & B2B on Shopify (2026) — Complete Guide"
description: "Step-by-step guide to setting up wholesale and B2B sales on Shopify. Learn wholesale pricing, customer portals, minimum order quantities, and how to manage retail and wholesale from one store."
url: https://easyappsecom.com/guides/how-to-set-up-shopify-wholesale.html
date: 2026-03-20
---

# How to Set Up Wholesale & B2B on Shopify (2026) — Complete Guide

EasyApps Ecommerce

Last updated: March 2026

How to Set Up Wholesale and B2B Sales on Shopify (2026)

By Jack Smith Updated March 19, 2026 19 min read

Adding a wholesale channel to your Shopify store can dramatically increase revenue without proportionally increasing marketing costs. While direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales require you to acquire each individual customer, a single wholesale account with a boutique, retailer, or distributor can generate the equivalent of hundreds of individual orders. Wholesale accounts also provide predictable, recurring revenue — retailers reorder regularly once they know your products sell. Shopify makes it increasingly easy to manage both retail and wholesale operations from a single store. This guide covers every method of selling wholesale on Shopify, from simple discount codes to full B2B portals, helping you choose the right approach and set it up step by step.

Quick Answer: For basic wholesale on standard Shopify plans, install a wholesale app (Wholesale Club or Bold Custom Pricing) to offer customer-specific tiered pricing. Set wholesale discounts at 30-50% off retail with minimum order quantities of $250-500. Create a wholesale application page, manually approve accounts, and tag wholesale customers for automatic pricing. For larger wholesale operations, consider Shopify Plus with built-in B2B features. Start by reaching out to local boutiques and listing on wholesale marketplaces like Faire.

Why Wholesale Is a Game-Changing Revenue Channel

Wholesale offers three major advantages over DTC alone. First, order volume — a single wholesale order is typically 10-100x larger than a consumer order. A boutique ordering 50 units of your product at once generates more revenue than 50 individual customers, with a single transaction, one shipping label, and one customer relationship to manage. This operational efficiency is what makes wholesale margins work despite the lower per-unit price.

Second, brand exposure — every retailer that carries your products exposes your brand to their customer base. A boutique with 1,000 monthly visitors is effectively advertising your products to those customers at no cost to you. The retailer handles the marketing, the customer experience, and the sale. You handle the manufacturing and wholesale fulfillment. This exposure often drives DTC sales as well — customers who discover your products in stores frequently search for your brand online.

Third, revenue predictability — wholesale accounts reorder on predictable schedules. A retailer that orders 50 units monthly becomes a reliable revenue stream. This predictability helps with inventory planning, cash flow management, and production scheduling. Many product businesses find that a mix of 60% DTC and 40% wholesale provides the ideal balance of high DTC margins and reliable wholesale volume.

Wholesale Methods Available on Shopify

Method 1: Wholesale apps (recommended for most stores). Apps like Wholesale Club, Bold Custom Pricing, and Wholesale Gorilla add wholesale functionality to your existing Shopify store. Customers tagged as "wholesale" automatically see discounted pricing when logged in, while regular visitors see retail prices. This is the most popular approach because it requires one store, one inventory system, and one admin to manage.

Method 2: Shopify B2B (Shopify Plus only). Shopify Plus includes native B2B features: company accounts with multiple buyers, customer-specific price lists, payment terms (net 30, net 60), and a separate wholesale catalog. This is the most professional solution but requires the $2,300/month Plus plan. Worth it for stores doing significant wholesale volume ($100K+/month) that need sophisticated B2B features.

Method 3: Separate wholesale store. Create a second Shopify store on a subdomain (wholesale.yourstore.com) dedicated exclusively to wholesale customers. This provides complete separation of wholesale and retail experiences but requires managing two stores, two inventories (or syncing them), and two admin dashboards. Best for stores that want a completely different wholesale catalog or pricing structure.

Method 4: Simple discount codes. The simplest approach: create a wholesale discount code (e.g., WHOLESALE40 for 40% off) and share it only with approved wholesale customers. This requires no apps or setup but lacks features like customer-specific pricing, minimum order enforcement, and wholesale analytics. Only suitable for very small wholesale operations (under 10 accounts).

Setting Wholesale Pricing and Discount Tiers

Wholesale pricing must balance three factors: attractiveness to retailers (they need enough margin to mark up and profit), your own profitability (you must maintain healthy margins), and market norms (competitors set expectations). The standard wholesale formula: wholesale price = retail price x 0.5-0.7 (meaning 30-50% off retail). If your product retails for $100, your wholesale price should be $50-70. The exact discount depends on your cost of goods and the competitive landscape.

Implement tiered pricing to incentivize larger orders: Tier 1 (10-49 units): 30% off retail. Tier 2 (50-99 units): 40% off retail. Tier 3 (100+ units): 50% off retail. Tiered pricing rewards high-volume buyers while maintaining better margins on smaller orders. Some stores also offer introductory pricing — an additional 5-10% discount on the first order to incentivize new retailers to try their products with a larger initial order.

Calculate your margins at each price tier before offering wholesale pricing. Your cost of goods sold (COGS) divided by the wholesale price gives your wholesale margin. If your COGS is $20 and your wholesale price is $50 (50% off $100 retail), your wholesale gross margin is 60%. If your wholesale price is $60 (40% off retail), your margin is 67%. Ensure that even your deepest wholesale discount tier maintains at least 20-30% gross margin to cover operational costs and profit.

Step-by-Step: Setting Up Wholesale on Your Shopify Store

Step 1: Install a wholesale app. Go to the Shopify App Store and install Wholesale Club, Bold Custom Pricing, or your chosen wholesale app. Follow the setup wizard to configure your wholesale customer tag (customers tagged with this tag will see wholesale pricing), discount tiers, and minimum order settings.

Step 2: Configure wholesale pricing. In your app settings, set up your discount tiers: percentage off retail by customer tier (Bronze, Silver, Gold wholesale accounts). Alternatively, set specific wholesale prices per product if your discounts vary by product. Test the pricing by creating a test customer account, tagging it as wholesale, logging in, and verifying prices display correctly on product pages, collection pages, and in the cart.

Step 3: Create a wholesale application page. Build a page on your site (e.g., /pages/wholesale) where retailers can apply for a wholesale account. Collect: business name, tax ID/resale certificate, website, social media, physical store location(s), product categories they carry, and estimated monthly order volume. Review applications manually and approve legitimate retailers. Link this page in your footer navigation.

Step 4: Set up wholesale payment terms. Most wholesale accounts expect payment terms (net 30 or net 60) rather than immediate payment. On Shopify Plus, payment terms are built in. On standard Shopify, use draft orders with manual invoicing, or a payment terms app. For new wholesale accounts, require payment upfront for the first 2-3 orders before extending net terms to reduce risk.

Step 5: Create wholesale-specific shipping. Set up shipping rates appropriate for wholesale orders (larger, heavier packages). Consider offering free shipping above a certain order value to incentivize larger orders. Wholesale shipping should be separate from retail shipping rates — use a shipping app or Shopify shipping profiles to assign different rates to wholesale-tagged customers.

Setting Min...