Shopify: How Orders Work (Ribbn vs Shopify)

Overview

When you move your online sales from Ribbn to Shopify, the split is simple:

Ribbn stays the source of truth for in-store operations, inventory, and product data.
Shopify becomes the online storefront and the system where online orders are managed.

This page focuses on how **orders and responsibilities** work once you’re running **in-store via Ribbn** and **online via Shopify**.

Ribbn vs Shopify: the rule of thumb

Responsibilities (high-level)

All product management is done in Ribbn
All order management is done in Shopify

What that means day-to-day

Create and update products in Ribbn
When an item is ready to sell online, sync/publish it to Shopify
After an item is synced, updates made in Ribbn will update in Shopify automatically (for already-synced items)

How online orders work after migration

Where online orders live (and where they don’t)

Online orders are created and managed in Shopify
Ribbn can still show Shopify order history, because Shopify orders are mapped into Ribbn
Those mapped orders are view-only in Ribbn (visible, but not manageable there)

If you’re trying to *edit, fulfill, refund, or manage* an **online order**, do it in **Shopify**, not Ribbn.

Online returns

Online returns are handled in Shopify

How in-store operations work after migration

In-store sales, returns, and operations

All in-store sales and returns continue to run through Ribbn/Stripe
In-store order management remains in Ribbn, as it worked before

Inventory syncing: what happens when something sells in-store?

The “sold in-store → removed online” flow

When a product is changed to a Sold-state in Ribbn:

Shopify inventory quantity decreases automatically
When Shopify inventory reaches 0 (immediately for unique items):
- the product status in Shopify is set to Draft
The item is automatically removed from online sale

This ensures items don’t remain purchasable online after they sell in-store.

Product syncing & the `availableOnline` tag

How you publish/sync products to Shopify

When a product is ready to sell online, you:

Manually sync it from Ribbn to Shopify with one click
Optionally select multiple products and sync in bulk

Does `availableOnline` still publish items automatically?

No—Shopify does not use availableOnline as a publishing trigger.

availableOnline is now mainly for internal product management/visibility inside Ribbn
You still need to manually sync items to Shopify

Using `availableOnline` during your first migration

You can use availableOnline as a practical way to identify what should be migrated first, and it’s recommended to:

Sync in batches (by collection, product group, etc.)
Keep the migration controlled and easier to verify

What data transfers to Shopify when you publish items?

Synced fields (what Shopify receives)

When you select products in Ribbn and click “Publish item(s) on Shopify”, Shopify receives product data including media.

Core product data

Title
Product description
Media (images)
Price

Meta Fields (Ribbn data carried into Shopify)

The following Ribbn fields carry over and appear as Meta Fields in Shopify:

Primary Segment (e.g. Woman)
Product Category (e.g. Bags)
Product Type (e.g. Shoulder Bag)
Product Style (e.g. Tote)
Standard Size
Label Size
Brand
Color
Condition
Original Price
Commission
Seller Name
Ribbn Seller ID
Ribbn Inventory Location(s)
Ribbn Tags (e.g. doneEditing, availableOnline, Designers, carousel, etc.)
RFID
Status (e.g. SOLD)
Product Class (e.g. UNIQUE)
URL (internal Ribbn reference)
Ribbn ID

What you build in Shopify vs what comes from Ribbn

You can build collections in Shopify and use these Meta Fields to search/filter products.
Your taxonomy carries over and appears as Meta Fields (you do not rebuild it from scratch).

Shopify storefront setup (what you’ll recreate in Shopify)

Theme/design

You will create a new Shopify design using a theme (foundation), then add your images/text/content.

Ribbn recommends the Horizon theme
Shopify free themes are available here:

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https://themes.shopify.com/collections/free-themes?surface_detail=navbar-collections&surface_inter_position=1&surface_intra_position=3&surface_type=nav

Navigation styling comes with the theme
You must build your menu items and structure yourself

Collections

Collections do not transfer from Ribbn to Shopify
You must create them in Shopify (you can still follow Ribbn’s taxonomy to guide structure)

Payments & Stripe fees (avoiding double-charging)

Will you pay Stripe fees twice?

No.

After migration:

Ribbn transaction fees apply to in-store purchases
Shopify transaction fees apply to online purchases
Shopify online orders connect to Shopify’s Stripe setup
You will not be charged twice

Suggested migration timeline

How long it takes

The total time depends mostly on how long you spend building your Shopify storefront (design/content).

Suggested approach:

Build the theme layout gradually (evenings/quieter moments)
Ribbn can review your setup and support questions
For the actual product migration + domain switch, plan for one full day to do it carefully

Quick reference table

Topic	Ribbn	Shopify
Product creation & updates	✅ Yes (source of truth)	❌ No (receives synced data)
Online product publishing	✅ Initiated from Ribbn (manual sync)	✅ Receives published products
In-store sales & returns	✅ Yes (Ribbn/Stripe)	❌ No
Online orders (fulfillment/refunds/returns)	⚠️ Visible (mapped) but not manageable	✅ Yes (manage here)
Collections & navigation	❌ Not transferred	✅ Must be created in Shopify
Taxonomy	✅ Maintained in Ribbn	✅ Available as Meta Fields

Ribbn Support Hub:

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https://help.ribbn.ai/?hsLang=en

Shopify App (Ribbn help page):

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https://help.ribbn.ai/shopify-app?hsLang=en

More details: “How orders work between Ribbn and Shopify”:

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https://help.ribbn.ai/how-orders-work-between-ribbn-and-shopify?hsLang=en