Zest connects directly to your Shopify store, so your product details, images, pricing, and variants are always pulled straight from the source. This article walks you through how the import process works, how to keep your catalog organized, and how to get the most out of Zest for your corporate gifting program.
Overview: How Product Import Works
Shopify is the single source of truth for all product information in Zest. Zest does not have its own product editor — any changes to product titles, images, prices, descriptions, or variants must be made in Shopify and will sync to Zest automatically.
The import process is a two-step workflow:
Import products into Zest — This brings products into your Zest Products tab, where they become available for use across the platform.
Add products to a Concierge order.
Understanding this two-step process is the most important thing to know about managing your catalog in Zest.
Prerequisites: Product Requirements in Shopify
Before importing products into Zest, make sure each product meets the following requirements in Shopify:
Active status: The product must be set to Active in Shopify. Products in Draft status will not appear in Zest's import search.
Product title: Use a clean, customer-facing title — it will display to customers exactly as it appears in Shopify.
Images: Products used only for Concierge orders are more flexible, but images make order management easier.
Pricing: Set pricing on all variants. Products with no price can cause unexpected display behavior and are not considered best practice.
Native Shopify variants: Zest requires native Shopify variants. Products built using third-party bundle builder apps or custom variant selector apps may not import correctly. If you use a bundle app for your main store, consider creating separate Shopify products with native variants specifically for Zest.
Note: Your Shopify store must be connected to Zest before you can import any products. Once connected, Zest can access any Active product in your catalog regardless of which sales channels it is published to.
Step-by-Step: Importing Products Into Zest
You can import products in bulk from your connected Shopify store at any time.
In your Zest dashboard, navigate to the Products tab.
Click Import Products.
In the search window that appears, type at least 3 characters to search by:
Product name (title)
Shopify product tag (e.g., corporate-gift or zest)
Variant title or product handle
Select all the products you want to import.
Click Import.
All variants, images, prices, and descriptions for the selected products are pulled from Shopify automatically.
Tip: If you maintain a large catalog, tagging products in Shopify (e.g., with a zest or corporate-gift tag) makes it easy to quickly find and bulk-select the right items at import time. Tags are not required but are a helpful organizational tool.
Product search may require an exact match, including special characters. For example, searching ginger may not return ginger's — include the apostrophe if the product name contains one. When in doubt, copy the exact product title from Shopify.
Creating Zest-exclusive Products
You can offer products through Zest that are completely invisible on your public Shopify store — no separate system required.
The formula is: Active in Shopify, but not published to any sales channel.
Here's how to set it up:
In Shopify, create a new product with a complete title, description, images, pricing, and inventory settings.
Set the product Status to Active.
In the Sales channels section, deselect Online Store and all other channels. Do not publish the product anywhere.
Save the product in Shopify.
Return to Zest and import the product using the steps above.
The product will remain completely hidden from your public website and unsearchable via Google. Zest connects to your store through the Shopify Admin API, so it can access any Active product regardless of channel publication. Once imported, you can add it to any Concierge order.
Using Products in Concierge Orders
Products imported into Zest do not need to be added to a storefront to be used in Concierge orders. You can also import products on the fly while building a Concierge order — directly from your Shopify catalog.
Adding a product to a Concierge order
When creating a Concierge order, click Add product in the product selection area.
Search for the product by name, tag, or handle (minimum 3 characters). If a product isn't yet imported into Zest, click the Import a new product button next to Select a product.
Select the product and click Select.
The product is imported and added to the order immediately.
The product also becomes available in your Products tab for future use.
Note: Currently, you can add one product or variant at a time when building a Concierge order. You can import up to 5 products per import action in this flow.
Product Syncing: What Updates Automatically and What Doesn't
Zest listens to your Shopify store in real time. When you update an already-imported product in Shopify, those changes flow into Zest automatically — no manual re-import needed.
What syncs automatically?
For products already imported into Zest, the following update automatically when changed in Shopify:
Product title
Product description
Images
Pricing (including compare-at price)
Variant availability and inventory
New variants added to the product after initial import
Removed variants (marked unavailable in Zest automatically)
Product status changes (e.g., moving a product to Draft in Shopify affects its availability in Zest)
What does not sync automatically?
Brand-new Shopify products are not auto-imported into Zest. You must manually import new products using the steps in this article.
Zest-specific settings — such as shipping profiles, lead times, minimum order quantities, and blackout dates — are managed within Zest and are not affected by Shopify changes.
Editing product details (title, price, images) directly in Zest is not currently supported. Shopify is the source of truth for all product content.
Note on sync timing: Most updates appear in Zest within minutes via webhooks. In some cases, particularly when reactivating a product that was previously in Draft status, there may be a short delay before changes are fully reflected in Zest.
Tip for seasonal products: If you regularly swap between active and seasonal versions of a product, consider keeping both versions imported in Zest to minimize sync delays when toggling between them in Shopify.
Managing Products: Archiving, Unarchiving, and Seasonal Changes
Archiving a product
Archiving a product in Zest hides it from default product searches in Concierge and keeps your working catalog clean. The product is not deleted — it is preserved in an archived view and can be restored at any time.
To archive a product:
Navigate to the Products tab,
Find the product.
Select Archive.
Unarchiving a product
To restore an archived product:
In the Products tab, enable the Include archived filter.
Find the product and select Unarchive.
Important: If a product was archived because it was deleted in Shopify, attempting to unarchive it will fail. Zest checks with Shopify that the product still exists before restoring it. You will need to recreate the product in Shopify first.
What happens when you delete a product in Shopify?
When a product is deleted in Shopify, Zest automatically archives it. It will no longer appear in your active product list.
What happens when a product moves to Draft in Shopify?
If a product's status changes to Draft in Shopify, Zest updates its availability but does not automatically archive it. The product remains in your Zest catalog in an unavailable state. To remove it from Concierge search, archive it manually in Zest.
Tip: If you can't find a product you know was previously imported, check the archived products view. It may have been auto-archived because the product was deleted in Shopify, or manually archived by a team member.
Best Practices: Catalog Curation and Product Count Recommendations
A focused, curated product selection leads to better gifting outcomes. Here are our recommendations:
Import more than you show. You can import a larger number of products into Zest for Concierge order flexibility.
Use Shopify tags for organization. Tagging products with identifiers like
zestorcorporate-giftmakes bulk importing faster and easier to manage over time.Use clean, customer-facing product titles. Product names display directly to customers, so make sure they are polished and free of internal codes or shorthand.
Avoid $0 pricing. Products without a set price are not recommended and can cause unexpected display behavior in some contexts.
Mark non-physical products correctly. Products that do not require physical shipping should be marked as non-physical in Shopify. Zest uses this setting to determine how a product is handled in gifting workflows. Physical products that are accidentally marked as non-physical will not work correctly for physical gifting.
Troubleshooting: Common Issues and Fixes
My product isn't showing up in import search
Check the product status in Shopify. The product must be set to Active. Draft products will not appear in Zest's import search.
Try the exact product name. Search may require an exact match, including special characters like apostrophes. Copy the exact title from Shopify if needed.
Search by tag instead. If name search is not working, try a Shopify tag applied to the product.
I imported a product, but it shows as unavailable
The product may be in Draft status in Shopify. Check and update its status to Active in Shopify — Zest will sync the change automatically.
You may have imported a Draft version by mistake. If two products with the same name exist in Shopify (one Active, one Draft), it is possible to accidentally import the Draft version. Compare inventory quantities between Zest and Shopify to identify which version was imported. Archive the incorrect version in Zest and re-import the Active one.
A product I know I imported can't be found
Check the archived products view. In the Products tab, enable the Include archived filter. The product may have been auto-archived because the original Shopify product was deleted, or manually archived by a team member.
My import is failing unexpectedly
Check Shopify's status page. Import failures can sometimes be caused by Shopify API outages. If imports fail without a clear reason, check Shopify's status page and retry after any issues resolve.
Products disappearing from search results during import. This can occasionally happen during high-traffic import sessions. Wait a few minutes, log out and back in, and try again. Enable the Include archived filter to check if the product was auto-archived.
My product has variants that aren't showing correctly
Check for third-party variant apps. Zest requires native Shopify variants. Products built using third-party bundle builder or variant selector apps may not import correctly. Create a separate Shopify product with native variants for use in Zest.
Duplicate SKU numbers can cause import conflicts. If an archived product and a new product share the same SKU, this can confuse the import system. Archive the old product and create a new one with a unique SKU. Contact Zest support if you need further help resolving the conflict.
I switched to a different Shopify store
When you disconnect one Shopify store and connect a new one, product data does not carry over. All existing products must be manually archived, then re-imported from the new Shopify instance.
I can't search for products by SKU in the Products tab
Product search in the Products tab works by product title. SKU search is not currently supported in this view. Use product name or Shopify tags instead for the most reliable results.