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Building A 6-Figure Shopify Store: A Detailed Guide 2024

August 21, 2024
Written and researched by experts at AvadaLearn more about our methodology

By Sam Nguyen

CEO Avada Commerce

Building a successful Shopify store that generates 6-figure is absolutely achievable, but it takes more than just setting up a website. From my experience working with many Shopify merchants, it requires a strategic approach, careful product selection, compelling listings, and effective marketing to attract and convert customers.

In this comprehensive guide, I’ll uncover the proven strategies and tactics that have helped countless entrepreneurs turn their Shopify dreams into reality. I’ll dive into real-life case studies and actionable steps so you can learn from their success and apply those lessons to your own journey.

What Is A 6-figure Shopify Store?

What is a 6-figure Shopify store?

A 6-figure Shopify store is an online business built on the Shopify platform that generates annual revenue between $100,000 and $999,999.

While the number of employees can vary depending the type of products sold and operational needs, and Shopify’s powerful automation features enable even small teams to manage and monitor the store effectively, a 6-figure store should have a team of at least 5-7 staff.

As an online business, a 6-figure Shopify store is not restricted by geographical boundaries and can operate from virtually anywhere with a reliable internet connection. However, to ensure efficient shipping and handling, particularly for physical products, a 6-figure Shopify store is likely to have a physical presence like a warehouse or fulfillment center.

What Advantages Does A Shopify 6-figure Store Have?

Achieving a 6-figure Shopify store is a major milestone that comes with a multitude of advantages:

  • Financial Stability and Freedom: The most obvious benefit is the substantial income generated, allowing for financial security and the freedom to invest in further growth, expand product offerings, or even explore new ventures.
  • Brand Recognition and Reputation: A 6-figure revenue stream often translates to increased brand awareness and recognition in the market. Customers tend to trust successful businesses, fostering loyalty and attracting new customers.
  • Opportunities for Expansion: The increased cash flow opens doors for expanding your business, such as exploring new markets, launching additional product lines, or investing in advanced marketing strategies.
  • Impact and Influence: With a successful business, you have the opportunity to give back to the community, support causes you believe in, and create a positive impact on the world.
  • Long-Term Sustainability: A 6-figure store demonstrates a sustainable business model, increasing your chances of long-term success in the competitive e-commerce landscape.

A Guide To Become A 6-Figure Success With Shopify

How To Become A 6-Figure Success With Shopify?

Build a Strong Foundation

Building a successful Shopify store starts with a solid foundation. Just like constructing a house, you need a strong base to ensure everything else stands firm.

  • Find something you’re passionate about and that has a decent market. Don’t forget to check out the competition and see where you can stand out.
  • Once you’ve got your niche, it’s all about sourcing products that people actually want to buy. You should look for items with good profit margins and that fit with your brand’s vibe. Remember, quality is key here – happy customers come back for more.
  • Speaking of your brand, make sure it’s memorable! Create a logo that pops, stick to a consistent look and feel, and tell a story that people can connect with.
  • Pick a Shopify theme that’s both beautiful and easy to use. Your store should be a breeze to navigate, and your product pages should make buying a no-brainer.

    Optimize Your Online Store 

    If you want to hit six figures with your Shopify store, it’s crucial to optimize it properly. This includes creating a user-friendly website design that is easy to navigate, responsive, and visually appealing. 

    • Improving your site speed, product images and descriptions can dramatically increase your conversion rates.  
    • Simplifying your checkout process is also crucial since it can significantly lower cart abandonment rates.
    • Ensuring your store is mobile-friendly is necessary since most shoppers use their mobile devices to browse and shop online. 
    • An optimized store also ensures your site is SEO-friendly to increase visibility in search engine results.

    Fortunately, Shopify provides merchants with exceptional features to customize their e-commerce website and manage it efficiently. 

    Leverage Branding and Marketing features 

    Building a strong brand identity and leveraging Shopify’s built-in marketing tools is vital to attracting and retaining customers. 

    Shopify offers a seamless experience for managing both in-store and online store channels, allowing for consistent branding across all touchpoints. Moreover, it supports promotional emails, which can be an effective and sustainable marketing method for any store owner. 

    These features let you reach out to your customer base and keep them engaged with your brand. By doing so, you can develop customer-focus programs to enhance Customer Lifetime Value, which will help you maintain strong customer relationships and boost revenue. 

    Besides SEO optimization, you may also want to consider advertising on social media platforms to drive new customers to your store and increase your sales.

    Implement Upselling and Cross-Selling Techniques

    Maximizing your store’s revenue often involves more than just selling products; it involves strategic techniques such as upselling and cross-selling. By suggesting higher-priced alternatives (upselling) or related products (cross-selling), you can increase your average order value significantly. 

    In today’s retail landscape, consumers expect to interact with brands across multiple platforms and touchpoints. Therefore, embracing an omnichannel strategy is crucial. Shopify enables you to sell not only through your online store but also through social media platforms, online marketplaces, and in-person.

    You can take your business to the next level by selling directly through Shopify POS with top-notch features suitable for all types of businesses to sell in a brick-and-mortar store, pop-up shop, or even a market stall. 

    Don’t limit your Shopify store to just one business model. Consider exploring new markets or different business types to expand your reach and diversify your income. This could include dropshipping or you could try collaborations with other brands or influencers, offering affiliate programs, and more. 

    Bring outstanding customer service

    To become a thriving six-figure business, brands must prioritize excellent customer service. Not only does this help to retain customers, but it also cultivates loyal customers who are more likely to spend money on your brand. 

    There are many ways to improve your customer service, such as offering personalized consultations based on customers’ shopping preferences or providing flexible payment options, etc.

    Shopify provides a seamless and hassle-free shopping experience for your customers, allowing them to easily browse through your products, place their orders, select their preferred shipping method, and pay securely with various payment options.

    Monitor your progress

    Lastly, tracking your progress using Shopify’s analytics tools is essential. Regularly review critical metrics such as sales, conversion rate, and customer acquisition cost to identify trends and areas for improvement. Use these insights to refine your strategies and set clear KPIs to reach your 6-figure goal.

    Remember, building a 6-figure Shopify store doesn’t happen overnight. It requires careful planning, continuous effort, and regular refinement of your strategies.

    6-figure Shopify stores: Real-life case studies

    MyCustomCandy

    MyCustomCandy

    MyCustomCandy is one of the examples of a successful six-figure store on Shopify. This store specializes in producing and shipping personalized candy hearts for influencers, celebrities, businesses, and customers worldwide. 

    Running an e-commerce store on an outdated platform can be quite overwhelming. The whole process of managing orders and operations becomes laborious and completely manual, with no automation or linkage. MyCustomCandy has to manually enter every customer’s address, and they can’t predict shipping costs accurately. Furthermore, they have to deal with manual operations that are prone to errors, especially in the areas of order placement, calculation, and customer support.

    Thanks to the integration of the Shopify App and customizations, MyCustomCandy has efficiently streamlined its business operations. Automating a significant portion of its processes, particularly order fulfillment, has allowed the store to focus on their core competencies.

    The automatic shipping services offered by the Shopify platform have proven to be a huge advantage for MyCustomCandy. With just a click, the shipping label and associated costs for each order are processed automatically, saving time and effort.

    MyCustomCandy’s online store has achieved remarkable success with six figures in sales. Additionally, they wasted no time in launching a B2B business. One of the reasons for their success is their unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction.  Another reason is the use of Shopify to build their online store to streamline the workflow, automate management, and trim labor and costs. 

    Shopify has helped minimize the risks associated with manual business operations, giving MyCustomCandy’s owner more time and effort to focus on product development and strategic business adjustments.

    Read the full story of My Custom Candy here: Cashing in on Custom: Lessons from a 6-Figure Seasonal Candy Brand

    Greenery Unlimited

    Greenery Unlimited

    In 2016, Greenery Unlimited innovative approach to providing greenery to customers via the Internet has garnered them a reputation for being a trailblazer in the industry.

    In order to achieve its goals in the commercial realm, Greenery Unlimited is currently facing two significant challenges. Firstly, the content management system in place is overly complex and difficult to navigate, which is hindering productivity. Secondly, the 3PL provider is not delivering a consistent level of service, which is causing unnecessary delays and additional expenses.

    Greenery Unlimited switched to Shopify for a more sustainable business. They also use Shopify POS in their Brooklyn storefront, allowing them to quickly reorder items and avoid stock shortages.

    What really helps Greenery Unlimited is the Shopify Fulfillment App. This app provides real-time data on inventory levels and customer orders, allowing Greenery Unlimited to respond proactively to any issues and avoid stock shortages. As a result, they have been able to impress customers with their speedy port-to-port delivery and increase customer retention.

    Additionally, the transparent upfront implementation costs have allowed Greenery Unlimited to plan more accurately and offer reasonable prices to their customers. All in all, their use of Shopify technology has been a major factor in their success.

    By utilizing the Shopify Fulfillment Network, they have been able to offer their customers a top-notch shipping service within three days of purchase, ensuring customer satisfaction and loyalty while maintaining a consistent supply of goods and preventing the issue of being out of stock. 

    By making these strategic decisions, Greenery Unlimited has positioned itself for continued growth and reached 6 figures in revenue.

    Read the full story of Greenery Unlimited here: Greenery Unlimited Blooms Into a 6-Figure Business With Shopify Fulfillment Network

    Renewedmacs.com

    Renewedmacs.com

    RenewedMacs.com is a reliable brand providing customers with a secure and dependable platform to sell and purchase refurbished Apple products. 

    The biggest problem for Renewedmacs.com is the ability to control the customer experience and talk to the customer on the older ecommerce platforms used by this commerce is increasingly limited. They can’t even contact them directly via email, which makes them can not turn one-time customers into long-term ones.

    Thanks to Shopify Customer Relationship Management, they can easily communicate with their customers and reach them with marketing campaigns like discount codes, giveaways, loyalty programs, etc. At the same time, the fact that Shopify allows stores to communicate with their customers will also limit encountering issues with fraud in this line of business.

    Renewedmacs.com built its brand on eBay and thrived thanks to Shopify. They know how to make the right choices when needed and are 100% focused on establishing customer relationships and providing them with the best experience.

    Besides, what makes Renewedmacs.com really successful as a 6-figure store on Shopify is that they focus on building their brand very well and building multi-channel as soon as possible.

    Read the full story of RenewedMacs.com here: From eBay to Shopify: This Tech Reseller Achieves 6 Figure Monthly Sales

    6 figure Shopify stores: FAQs

    Yes. It is possible to achieve six-figure sales on Shopify without physical inventory. Here are some strategies you should consider: dropshipping, print-on-demand, selling digital products, affiliate marketing, and subscription services.
    The timeline for building a 6-figure Shopify store can vary greatly depending on various factors such as your industry, business model, marketing efforts, and the products or services you’re selling. Some entrepreneurs might reach this milestone within a year, while others might take several years.
    It’s important to remember that building a successful e-commerce business is not a race, but a journey. Consistent efforts in improving your store, providing excellent customer service, and optimizing your marketing strategies will eventually lead to a 6-figure business. Patience, resilience, and adaptability are key traits for success in this journey.
    Here are some tactics to draw new customers to your Shopify store:
    • Make your website more user-friendly and visually appealing.
    • Boost your search engine optimization to increase your visibility online.
    • Produce meaningful content that adds value for your customers.
    • Use social media platforms to reach a wider audience, and cultivate an email list for direct, personalized communication.
    • Team up with influencers whose followers match your target audience, and consider investing in paid advertising for broader reach.
    • Offer rewards for customer referrals and work collaboratively with other brands to expand your market presence. 
    Ensure you deliver top-notch customer service.
    Make sure you adapt your strategies to suit your target audience and consistently review and adjust them based on the data you gather and the feedback you receive.

    Bottom Line

    Building a 6-figure store on Shopify is the dream of many people. However, by applying the practical tips and making the most of Shopify’s features, you will see that it is not impossible.


    Sam Nguyen is the CEO and founder of Avada Commerce, an e-commerce solution provider headquartered in Singapore. He is an expert on the Shopify e-commerce platform for online stores and retail point-of-sale systems. Sam loves talking about e-commerce and he aims to help over a million online businesses grow and thrive.