Shopify: The story behind the world’s biggest e-commerce platform

Shopify: The story behind the world’s biggest e-commerce platform
Micky Weis
Micky Weis

15 years of experience in online marketing. Former CMO at, among others, Firtal Web A/S. Blogger about marketing and the things I’ve experienced along the way. Follow me on LinkedIn for daily updates.

In this article it’s all about the largest e-commerce platform, Shopify

In my opinion, Shopify has had an exciting journey in its more than 15 years as an international e-commerce platform, carrying an incredibly important mission that has enabled countless online store owners to run their businesses with all the necessary tools.

Let’s dive into the history behind Shopify and look at the developments that laid the foundation for the massive growth the platform has experienced over recent decades.

Back to 2006

Shopify had its humble beginnings back in 2006 in Ottawa, Canada, where the mission was to create a navigable open-source commerce platform for online shops.

The founders of the e-commerce platform—Tobias Lütke, Daniel Weinand, and Scott Lake—were in a situation where their own snowboard gear webshop needed an upgrade.

At that time, there were no usable e-commerce solutions that gave store owners full control over their online shops. So, with a background in programming, it became the snowboard enthusiasts’ task to develop the platform they themselves wanted to use.

Applications for webshops

The platform quickly grew, and in 2009 Shopify developed a programming interface known as an API. The goal was to allow users to create useful applications for Shopify, which could later be sold as complementary apps through their own webshop.

Today, there is a wide range of applications ready to use, as well as templates for store owners who want to program specific features for their shop.

Among these apps, you’ll find everything from marketing tools to themes and specific setup features for the store.

Greater accessibility

In 2010, Shopify finally became available on Apple’s App Store following high demand from users.

The goal was to make the e-commerce platform as accessible as possible so that store owners could always stay updated on their shop’s progress.

In 2013, Shopify took it a step further and introduced its own payment system—much to the delight of many store owners, who could now manage even more e-commerce solutions in one place.

By 2017, Shopify was officially integrated with Amazon, enabling Shopify store owners to sell their products through Amazon.

Shopify today

Fast forward to today, and the e-commerce platform has experienced remarkable growth.

Currently, more than 1.7 million businesses in over 175 countries use Shopify, showing just how far the platform has come since its launch in 2006.

In 2021, the e-commerce platform also introduced the ability for store owners to incorporate Augmented Reality (AR) into their shops.

For many online stores, AR has proven to be a unique way to showcase products and make them feel more tangible to customers.

Imagine setting up your phone camera in your living room and visualizing your dream piece of furniture before buying it.

To me, this initiative shows that Shopify is doing its best to stay in tune with modern trends and remain one of the world’s leading e-commerce platforms.

Do you have any experience with Shopify? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!

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