Shopify's Handshake marketplace is no longer part of Shopify's current wholesale offering, while the separate Shopify Plus Wholesale Channel was retired on April 30, 2024, leaving thousands of B2B sellers seeking new solutions. The good news: Shopify replaced it with native B2B features built into multiple Shopify plans, and net terms solutions like Resolve Pay can fill the gaps that native features leave behind.
Shopify acquired Handshake in 2019. Handshake had originally operated as a B2B sales and ordering platform. After acquisition, Shopify transformed Handshake into a supplier discovery marketplace rather than maintaining it as a dedicated wholesale portal for individual suppliers.
This shift left many B2B sellers without their primary ordering channel. Businesses that relied on Handshake for mobile rep ordering for field sales teams, customer-specific pricing with negotiated rates, streamlined wholesale checkout separate from DTC operations, and order management with buyer account features now face two primary paths forward: using Shopify's native B2B features or integrating specialized B2B payment solutions that add financing, credit assessment, and automated collections.
Shopify introduced B2B-specific features designed to support wholesale functionality. Company profiles serve as the foundation, allowing merchants to create business accounts with multiple locations and contacts, assign tax exemption certificates and VAT information, track order history and purchase patterns per company, and enable self-serve account management for buyers.
Each company can have multiple buyer contacts with individual login credentials, mirroring the multi-user access that wholesale accounts require.
Price lists enable customer-specific pricing without maintaining separate stores. You can create percentage-based discounts for wholesale customers, fixed wholesale prices, or volume-based pricing tiers. Catalogs control which products each company sees, allowing you to organize wholesale-specific product collections.
Shopify's native system allows assigning Net 15, 30, 60, or 90 payment terms to company profiles. Buyers see their terms at checkout and receive invoices rather than immediate payment requests. However, merchants still need policies and processes for establishing and reviewing credit limits and approving orders against available credit.
Operational considerations for native payment terms:
This approach works best for businesses with existing credit departments, established collections processes, and sufficient cash reserves to manage payment cycles.
Setup requirements:
Estimated timeline: The exact implementation depends on the merchant's Shopify setup, financial systems, checkout requirements, and integration scope.
This approach suits businesses that want to offer competitive terms while accessing earlier payment and credit risk management. Platforms like Resolve Pay integrate directly with Shopify to handle the financial complexity.
How it works:
Estimated timeline: The exact implementation depends on the merchant's Shopify setup, financial systems, checkout requirements, and integration scope.
Navigate to Settings in your Shopify admin and enable the B2B features available on your plan. This unlocks company profile features and wholesale-specific checkout options according to Shopify's B2B documentation.
Go to Customers and create a new company for each wholesale account. Add company name and billing address, tax ID and exemption certificates, primary contact information, and default payment terms (Net 30, 60, 90).
Under Products, create wholesale pricing structures. Best practice: use percentage-based discounts rather than fixed prices. When retail prices change, wholesale prices update automatically.
Within each company profile, set the payment terms. Remember: merchants still need policies and processes for establishing and reviewing credit limits and approving orders against available credit.
Confirm your invoice creation, payment instructions, and accounting synchronization. Ensure invoices include payment terms, due dates, and bank details for proper B2B transaction documentation.
Sign up at Resolve Pay with your business information and banking details. Account approval timing depends on verification requirements.
Add Resolve Pay from the Shopify App Store or through a direct integration link. Connect your Resolve merchant account in app settings.
Set conditions for when net terms appear at checkout. Options include customer tags to show only to B2B-tagged customers, minimum order values, and product types.
Place a test order as a B2B buyer to verify the credit application process. Check your merchant dashboard to confirm the workflow operates as expected.
The fundamental difference between native Shopify B2B and third-party net terms platforms comes down to risk management and cash flow timing.
Merchants perform their own credit evaluation on wholesale accounts, decide credit limits based on their risk policies, manage their own payment cycles and working capital, handle all collections and payment reminders, and assume credit risk on extended payment terms. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, effective credit management requires clear policies, regular monitoring, and structured collection procedures.
Non-recourse means the financing provider can cover qualifying credit risk on approved transactions. Resolve Pay's non-recourse invoice advancement can cover qualifying buyer credit-default risk on approved, valid, and undisputed transactions, subject to the merchant agreement. Platforms offering non-recourse terms typically provide business credit assessment through AI-supported workflows, earlier payment options for eligible merchants subject to approval and verification, structured collection workflows with automated reminders, and credit-default risk coverage on qualifying transactions according to program terms.
This approach proves particularly valuable when managing larger wholesale accounts or expanding into new B2B markets where customer credit history may be limited.
Both Shopify native B2B and third-party platforms require accounting integration for proper invoice management and reconciliation.
Common integrations include:
Resolve Pay offers native integrations with major accounting platforms, automatically syncing payment status and reducing manual reconciliation.
For larger operations, ERP integration matters more than basic accounting sync. Key capabilities to evaluate include real-time vs. batch synchronization, two-way data flow (orders out, inventory in), custom field mapping for complex product data, and webhook support for automated workflows.
Merchants implementing B2B payment terms on Shopify frequently encounter operational challenges:
While Shopify's native B2B features handle basic wholesale needs, Resolve Pay addresses the financial challenges that make or break B2B operations.
Instead of managing extended payment cycles, eligible merchants may request earlier payment on approved invoices, subject to approval, verification, and program terms. This transforms net terms from a working capital burden into a sales advantage: you offer competitive terms while maintaining healthier cash flow.
Resolve Pay's non-recourse invoice advancement can cover qualifying buyer credit-default risk under the merchant agreement. Covered buyer credit-default risk is handled according to the merchant agreement after the transaction satisfies applicable approval, validity, and verification requirements. Resolve Pay assesses business buyers through AI-supported credit workflows using available business information, behavioral signals, verification, and credit expertise.
Resolve Pay supports automated reminders and structured collection workflows, reducing manual receivables work. The systematic approach preserves customer relationships while freeing your team from time-consuming follow-up tasks.
Resolve Pay works with Shopify merchants across industries to support their B2B growth. Archipelago used Resolve Pay while expanding its wholesale business. The platform's integration with Shopify, QuickBooks, NetSuite, Xero, and other accounting systems automates reconciliation and reduces administrative overhead.
Unlike complex ERP implementations, Resolve Pay's Shopify app installs through the standard app marketplace. The exact implementation depends on the merchant's Shopify setup, financial systems, checkout requirements, and integration scope, but the platform is designed to work within existing Shopify B2B configurations.
For Shopify merchants serious about B2B growth, Resolve Pay delivers financing that can improve cash flow, credit risk management on qualifying transactions, and automation that scales with your business. Learn more about how Resolve Pay supports credit-to-cash automation.
Shopify replaced Handshake with native B2B features that include company profiles with multiple buyers per account, customer-specific price lists and catalogs, payment term assignment (Net 15/30/60/90), quantity rules and volume discounts, and self-serve buyer portals. Shopify's current documentation states that B2B features are available on Basic, Grow, Advanced, and Shopify Plus plans, although feature availability differs by plan.
Shopify's current B2B documentation states that B2B features are available on Basic, Grow, Advanced, and Shopify Plus, although feature availability differs by plan. You can also integrate third-party platforms like Resolve Pay on supported Shopify plans to offer financed net terms with credit assessment, invoice advancement, and automated collections.
The exact implementation depends on the merchant's Shopify setup, financial systems, checkout requirements, and integration scope. Native B2B setup includes company profile creation, price list configuration, checkout customization, and accounting integration. Third-party net terms management platforms handle credit decisioning and payment processing independently of your Shopify B2B configuration.
Shopify's native B2B features assign payment terms to company profiles but merchants still need policies and processes for establishing and reviewing credit limits and approving orders against available credit. Enforcing credit limits may require custom development using Shopify Functions or integrating a third-party platform that includes credit management functionality.
With native Shopify B2B, merchants manage their own credit risk on extended payment terms and handle collections directly. With non-recourse financing platforms like Resolve Pay, covered buyer credit-default risk is handled according to the merchant agreement after the transaction satisfies applicable approval, validity, and verification requirements. The business credit check process helps assess buyer creditworthiness before extending terms.
This post is to be used for informational purposes only and does not constitute formal legal, business, or tax advice. Each person should consult his or her own attorney, business advisor, or tax advisor with respect to matters referenced in this post. Resolve assumes no liability for actions taken in reliance upon the information contained herein.