Headless Commerce for Sub-Second Stores
Traditional monolithic platforms force you to choose between speed and features. Headless architecture gives you both. We build decoupled storefronts on Next.js, Shopify Hydrogen, and custom stacks that load in under 1 second and convert 40% better than template stores.
What is Headless Commerce?
Headless commerce separates your storefront (what customers see) from your backend (where products, orders, and inventory live). Instead of being locked into one platform's frontend, you build a custom frontend that talks to your commerce backend via APIs. This means your designers and developers aren't constrained by platform templates, your store loads dramatically faster because you control the rendering, and you can serve content through any channel — web, mobile app, smart displays, whatever comes next.
- Frontend freedom: use React, Next.js, Vue, or any framework
- API-first: connect best-of-breed services instead of one monolith
- Performance: static generation and edge rendering for sub-second loads
- Omnichannel: one backend serves web, mobile, POS, and emerging channels
Headless Commerce Capabilities
Modern commerce architecture that gives you speed, flexibility, and the freedom to build exactly what your customers need.
Custom Storefront Development
React and Next.js storefronts with server-side rendering, static generation, and edge caching. Shopify Hydrogen, Gatsby, or fully custom — pick the right tool for your traffic pattern.
Commerce API Layer
Connect to Shopify Storefront API, BigCommerce, Medusa.js, Saleor, or commercetools. We build a unified API layer so you can swap backends without rewriting your frontend.
Edge Deployment & CDN
Deploy on Vercel, Netlify, or Cloudflare Workers for sub-100ms response times globally. Your store loads fast in New York and Tokyo.
Content Management Integration
Sanity, Contentful, or Strapi for marketing content. Your marketing team updates banners, landing pages, and blog posts without touching code or waiting for deploys.
Headless Search & Discovery
Algolia, Typesense, or Elasticsearch for instant product search with typo tolerance, faceted filtering, and personalized results. Search that feels like Google, not a database query.
Progressive Web App (PWA)
Offline support, push notifications, and app-like experience without app store distribution. Reduce mobile bounce rates by 25%+ with instant loading and smooth interactions.
When Headless Commerce Makes Sense
Headless isn't for everyone. Here's where it delivers the biggest ROI.
High-Traffic DTC Brand
A beauty brand doing 500K monthly visitors was hitting Shopify's Liquid rendering limits during flash sales. We moved their frontend to Next.js with Shopify Storefront API. Page load dropped from 3.2s to 0.7s. Flash sale conversion went from 2.1% to 4.8% because the site didn't buckle under load.
Content-Driven Commerce
An outdoor gear company wanted editorial content (trail guides, gear reviews) tightly integrated with product pages. We built a headless stack with Sanity CMS for content and Shopify for commerce. Editorial pages drove 38% of total revenue through contextual product placement.
Omnichannel Retailer
A retailer with 40 physical locations needed one backend powering web, mobile app, and in-store kiosks. Headless architecture with a shared commerce API let them build three distinct frontends while maintaining one product catalog, one inventory system, and one order management flow.
International Expansion
A fashion brand expanding from the US to 12 European markets needed localized storefronts (language, currency, payment methods, shipping rules) without managing 12 separate stores. Headless architecture with locale-aware routing and per-market customization from a single codebase.
Headless Commerce Development Process
Building headless is different from traditional e-commerce. Here's our approach.
Architecture Design
Define the tech stack: frontend framework, commerce backend, CMS, search engine, and deployment platform. We map data flows, API contracts, and integration points before writing code.
API Layer & Backend Setup
Configure your commerce backend (Shopify, Medusa, commercetools), set up the API gateway, and build any custom middleware needed for data transformation or caching.
Frontend Development
Build the storefront with React/Next.js. Component library, product pages, collection pages, cart, checkout — all pulling data from APIs. Obsessive attention to Core Web Vitals.
CMS & Content Integration
Connect your headless CMS for marketing content. Build preview modes so your team can see changes before publishing. Set up webhooks for automatic revalidation.
Performance Optimization & Launch
Image optimization, code splitting, edge caching, prefetching. Test under load. Deploy to edge network. Lighthouse scores above 95 or we keep optimizing.
Ready to get started? Let's discuss your project.
Headless Commerce Pricing
Headless costs more upfront but pays for itself through better performance and lower long-term costs.
Headless Starter
For brands moving to headless for the first time. Next.js frontend with Shopify Storefront API or Medusa.js backend.
Custom pricing based on your requirements
- Next.js storefront (up to 15 page templates)
- Shopify Storefront API or Medusa.js integration
- Headless CMS setup (Sanity or Contentful)
- Edge deployment on Vercel or Netlify
- Core Web Vitals optimization
- 30-day post-launch support
Headless Growth
For brands that need advanced features: multi-market, personalization, advanced search, and complex integrations.
Custom pricing based on your requirements
- Custom design system and component library
- Multi-locale / multi-currency support
- Algolia or Typesense search integration
- Advanced caching & ISR strategy
- PWA capabilities
- CI/CD pipeline and preview environments
- 90-day post-launch support
Headless Enterprise
For large-scale operations with complex commerce logic, multiple frontends, and enterprise-grade infrastructure requirements.
Custom pricing based on your requirements
- Composable architecture with MACH principles
- Multiple frontend applications (web, app, kiosk)
- commercetools or custom commerce engine
- Enterprise search with personalization
- Custom middleware and API gateway
- Infrastructure as code & auto-scaling
- 12-month support retainer
Headless Commerce Questions Answered
Quick answers to the questions we hear most often.
Headless makes sense if you have high traffic (100K+ monthly visits), need custom UX that templates can't deliver, sell across multiple channels, or your current platform's performance is hurting conversions. If you're a small store doing under $500K/year with simple needs, a well-optimized Shopify theme is probably better value.
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Ready to Get Started with Headless Commerce?
Let's discuss your project and discover how we can help you achieve your business goals with our expert team.