By Deborah Mary Sophia
(Reuters) -Heather Perry made a daring bet before last year’s VakantieMeers: switch all e-commerce operations of her family business, Klatch Coffee, to Shopify Te Shopify.
The 42-year-old CEO of Small Business from southern California was attracted by the artificial intelligence-based services from the Canadian company that automate routine tasks, such as generating discounts and product descriptions, the improved adjustment tools and a broader suite of apps.
“The company runs all over again during the holidays? I can’t even imagine it,” Perry, who migrated to Shopify in July, told Reuters.
“Shopify enables us to make really fast changes. To be honest, I can’t imagine that I would do it manually.” She refused to call the platform she was before she made the shift.
Perry is one of the hundreds of traders in North -America who have been migrated for Shopify to build online stores and manage retail companies, according to data from internet analysis company Buildwith and Reuters interviews with a dozen sellers.
The AI suite of the company, “Shopify Magic”, reforms the e-commerce landscape by equipping small companies with automation tools, once exclusively for retail giants, so that growth in a challenging retail environment is fueled.
Shopify generates income largely from subscription costs and cuts on transactions on the platform. Turnover is expected to increase 27.3% – the fastest growth in six quarters – when the company reports its holiday quarters results on Tuesday, according to data drawn up by LSEG.
The growth is also faster than that of the industry. The global e-commerce turnover is estimated to rise to $ 6.091 trillion in 2024, according to emarketer predictions. For comparison: according to LSEEG, the income of Shopify is expected to rise by 24.6% in the same period.
The move also puts Shopify on a firmer foot after a post-strandemic delay. Turnover had risen more than 90% for four straight quarters during the COVID-19 Lockdowns while home-bound consumers flowed to online shopping. The growth sputtered as the limitations relaxed.
Now the number of stores climbs again. Built data shows that the number of stores registered on Shopify in the quarter of July-September has increased by 20%, a crucial period of planning for companies.
Shopify attracts “a large number of sellers” at a pace that approaches the growth rates of Covid era, said Ken Wong, an analyst at Oppenheimer.
‘Game-Changer’
The company’s subscription plans vary from $ 39 per month for a basic package of up to $ 2,000 for the Enterprise-oriented Shopify Plus. All plans are supplied with some “Shopify Magic” functions that automate tasks, such as generating images, writing product descriptions, following sales and setting discounts.