You sell to a distributor by the pallet and to a customer by the bag. A Shopify theme handles neither well.
Custom Shopify development for a Stockton business runs $25,000 to $110,000 over 2 to 6 months. You build beyond a theme when you sell the same Central Valley product two ways: wholesale by the pallet or case to distributors, and direct to consumers by the bag. Off-the-shelf themes and template stores handle a simple DTC catalog. They fall apart on case-break pricing, wholesale tiers, freight on heavy ag products, and the cold-chain reality of shipping food.
Your Shopify theme looks fine selling a bag of almonds or a box of cherries to a consumer. Then a distributor wants to order 40 cases at a tiered wholesale price with net-30 terms, and the theme has no idea what to do. You end up running wholesale through email and spreadsheets while Shopify handles only the retail slice, which is the smaller half of your business.
Then there is the physical reality of selling Central Valley food. Heavy products mean real freight math, not flat-rate shipping. Perishables mean cold-chain and ship-day rules. A template store assumes a lightweight, shelf-stable product going to one consumer, which is the opposite of a pallet of produce headed to a regional grocer.
- You sell both wholesale by the case or pallet and direct to consumers
- Wholesale runs on email and spreadsheets because the theme cannot price it
- Flat-rate shipping is losing money on heavy ag products
- Perishable ship-day rules need enforcing and the theme has no concept of them
- You sell a simple, shelf-stable product direct to consumers only
- Standard flat or carrier-calculated shipping covers your products
- You have no wholesale tier or net-terms requirement
- A well-built theme with a few apps meets your needs
- One storefront serving both wholesale-by-the-pallet and DTC-by-the-bag with correct pricing for each
- Tiered wholesale pricing and net terms for distributors, off the spreadsheet and into the store
- Real freight math for heavy ag products instead of flat rates that lose money
- Cold-chain and ship-day rules enforced so perishables ship safely
- Orders flowing into your inventory management system and ERP without re-keying
- Custom Shopify work costs more than buying a theme, justified by the wholesale and freight complexity
- Shopify Plus and B2B features may be needed, raising the platform cost
- App and theme updates can break custom code, so you take on ongoing maintenance
- If you are purely simple DTC, a good theme genuinely is enough and custom is overkill
Shopify pricing in Stockton: the real numbers
| Project scope | Typical cost | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Custom theme with basic wholesale gating | $25k to $45k | 2 to 3 months |
| Dual B2B and DTC store with freight rules | $45k to $75k | 3 to 4 months |
| Full build with ERP sync and cold-chain logic | $75k to $110k | 4 to 6 months |
The features that matter for Stockton
Stockton shopify: the full scope
The engagements Stockton teams bring us most often:
Exactly what you get
One Shopify storefront that serves both halves of your business. Distributors log in to tiered case-break pricing with net terms; consumers shop the retail catalog; the cart prices each correctly. Freight calculates from real weight and zone for heavy ag products, and cold-chain rules enforce ship-day cutoffs so perishables ship safely. Orders sync into your inventory management system and ERP, so wholesale stops living in email. The seasonal catalog reflects what is actually in harvest right now.
How to choose a developer in Stockton
Hire a team that has built real B2B-plus-DTC Shopify stores, not just retail themes. The right partner can walk through a wholesale order with net terms, a freight calculation on a heavy pallet, and a cold-chain ship rule without blinking. Make them show a past store that handled wholesale tiers. A theme-only shop will leave your wholesale business stuck in spreadsheets. Ask how the store syncs to your ERP and inventory management system so orders flow without re-keying.
From kickoff to launch: the schedule
- !They only know retail themes. Ask how they would price a 40-case wholesale order with net-30 terms
- !No freight experience for heavy products. Ask how they handle weight and zone-based rates
- !They ignore cold-chain. Ask how the store enforces ship-day cutoffs for perishables
- !No ERP sync plan. Ask how a wholesale order reaches your inventory system without re-keying
- !They quote before seeing your wholesale workflow. Ask them to review it first
Most Stockton teams pricing shopify end up comparing notes on wordpress, pos, project management too; the systems share one data spine.
Rohan advises mid-market and enterprise teams on ERP, CRM and custom software, and has led delivery on dozens of business-software builds.
Writes for Digital Heroes, shipping business software for 2,000+ brands across 55+ countries since 2017.
Frequently asked questions
Can Shopify handle both wholesale and retail?
Yes, with custom work or Shopify B2B features. A login-gated wholesale experience with tiered case pricing and net terms can run alongside your retail catalog on one store. The cart prices each buyer correctly, which is exactly what a stock theme cannot do.
How does freight work for heavy ag products?
Custom shipping logic calculates rates from real weight and destination zone instead of a flat rate that loses money on a heavy pallet. For Central Valley products that ship by weight, this is usually a core reason to go beyond a theme.
How long does it take?
Two to six months. A custom theme with basic wholesale gating lands near 2 to 3 months. A full dual storefront with freight rules, cold-chain logic, and ERP sync runs 4 to 6.
Will orders reach my ERP?
They should. Order and inventory sync into your ERP and inventory management system is usually core scope, so a wholesale order placed online becomes a record in your system without anyone re-keying it from an email.