Growing Fusion Boutique in DSM with the Help of Shopify

As a small business owner in Greater Des Moines (DSM), I already had an online site, but as many business owners in the region and across the world found out during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were limitations to what it could do. Enter Shopify, an e-commerce platform that drives sales and organizes your products in a simple, yet visually-pleasing way that increases visibility. My women’s clothing, accessory and gift store, Fusion Boutique, implemented Shopify as our point-of-sale platform in early 2021, with it going live in April. We’re already benefiting from its user-friendly format and numerous features.

Implementing Shopify

We began the process of implementing Shopify in January of 2021, after realizing a change was needed back in April of 2020. Needing to be better equipped and looking for something different, I looked at what other e-commerce brands were using and kept seeing Shopify, a platform I had looked at five years prior. The platform stood out as the best option based on its needs for in-store, where Fusion Boutique sees the most sales, and online, which we want to continue to grow.

The process for implementing Shopify took about three months. With the help of a Shopify partner that assisted with data migration — the process of running old point-of-sale while transferring items over to Shopify and making sure inventory was correct in the platform — and our local partner, In2ItSocial, who helped streamline the Shopify integration process, Fusion Boutique is up and running with its new point-of-sale platform.

Working with a Local Partner

In2ItSocial assisted with everything from branding and graphics to photoshoots and website edits. The fact that we had already been working together for nearly 10 years gave us someone we trusted to help us bring our story to life and put another set of eyes on our content. There was something about meeting up at a coffee shop to discuss the integration and create content that was invaluable, and I highly recommend working with a local partner when you can. While meeting virtually can be convenient and save time, I appreciated being able to share ideas face-to-face as we went through the integration process.

Learning to Use Shopify

One of the other great things about Shopify for business owners is its easy-to-learn platform, including Shopify Admin, which assists with inputting inventory, sizes and images that automatically go online. Shopify Admin has made it easy for the entire Fusion Boutique staff to learn the platform! There are also many apps within Shopify that offer a lot of opportunity to amp up your customers’ online experience in the Shopify App Store, for options like SEO, barcodes and affiliates, that are easily added to Shopify Admin and linked to the point-of-sale platform.

Telling Our Story with Photos

In order to tell your business’ story, one of the most important things you can do is make sure your shop images are top-notch. By working with In2ItSocial, we were able to collaborate and use high-quality photos to create a dynamic, yet simplistic theme consistent with our brand messaging.

The best thing about the Shopify is that you can use it to grow your business because it meets you where you are. Whether you are a new business that just needs a basic Shopify package or you are ready for something that will keep up with your increasing growth, Shopify offers something for every type of business owner.

When I was looking into a new point-of-sale platform five years ago, I considered integrating Shopify. Now, having used Shopify for a little over a month, I wish I could go back and choose Shopify then. Looking ahead, knowing that you can upgrade Shopify as your business grows and that the company is on top of selling on social platforms, Shopify might just end up being the last point-of-sale we make the switch to.

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