Zest Storefronts are more than a corporate gifting tool — they're a flexible, self-service ordering platform you can configure for dozens of use cases without any engineering work. From wholesale portals to influencer gifting, a single Storefront setup can power entirely different customer experiences.
This guide walks through the most common non-standard Storefront use cases, with practical setup steps for each.
Before you start:
Your Shopify store should be connected and products imported into Zest.
Each use case may require creating a new Storefront from your Zest partner dashboard.
You do not need developer access to configure any of the features described below.
Wholesale and B2B Ordering Portals
Storefronts make it easy to create a self-service ordering portal for wholesale partners, hotel properties, retail accounts, or any B2B buyer — without building a separate Shopify site.
How it works: Set up a private Storefront with single-address shipping, custom pricing, and restricted email access. Your wholesale buyer can log in, place their bulk order, and the order flows directly into Shopify for fulfillment — just like any other order.
To set up a wholesale Storefront:
From your Zest dashboard, click Create Storefront and give it a descriptive name (for example, "Wholesale — Hotel Partners").
In Settings, enable Single-address shipping to route all orders to one destination.
Set up a storefront-level discount in the Pricing tab by entering a flat percent off or configure volume-based discounts for bulk orders.
In Visibility, disable Is public and add your buyer's email address(es) to Allowed customers to restrict access.
Add only the relevant products (for example, case packs or 12-packs). These can include Shopify products hidden from your main sales channels.
Share the Storefront URL directly with your wholesale partner.
Tips:
Each wholesale partner can have their own dedicated Storefront with custom pricing and product selection.
All orders are tagged in Shopify with
zest-storefront-[your-storefront-slug], making it easy to filter wholesale orders for reporting.Storefronts are a lightweight alternative to Shopify B2B, making them ideal for specific accounts or use cases, not a full wholesale platform replacement.
Note: Single-address shipping cannot be enabled on your main storefront and cannot be changed after orders have been placed.
Consumer Multiship Gifting via Storefronts
You do not have to limit storefronts to corporate buyers. Many brands use storefronts to let consumer shoppers send gifts to multiple addresses in a single order — something standard Shopify checkout cannot do on its own.
When this is especially useful:
Your brand is not on Shopify Plus (which would otherwise allow checkout extensions for multiship/multi-recipient flows) via the Zest Gift Notes app.
You want to extend holiday sales past standard shipping cutoffs using e-gift links.
You want a "Send to multiple addresses" experience linked from your product pages.
To set up a consumer-facing multi-recipient storefront:
Create a new storefront (or use your existing one) with Single-address shipping turned off (this enables multi-recipient mode).
Customize the branding, product selection, and any shipping discounts to suit your consumer audience.
Add a call-to-action link or button on your product detail pages — for example, "Ship to multiple addresses" or "Send as gifts" — pointing to your Storefront URL.
Buyers can upload a CSV of recipient addresses or enter recipients one at a time.
Tip: You can run consumer and corporate buyers through the same storefront, or create separate storefronts for each audience.
Employee Discount & Internal Programs
Storefronts make it simple to run an employee discount or internal gifting program — no promo codes, no IT setup required.
To set up an employee discount storefront:
Create a new storefront named something like "Employee Gifting."
In the Pricing tab, configure the discount percentage employees will receive.
In Visibility, disable Is public and add employee email addresses to Allowed customers.
Share the URL with employees. They log in with their email and place orders at the discounted rate.
For comp orders (gifts billed outside Zest):
In Settings, set Invoice mode to Invoice externally. This sets checkout to $0 — no payment is collected through Zest, and you bill or absorb costs on your end.
Tips:
Employee Storefronts double as a word-of-mouth tool — employees share gifts with friends and family, expanding brand reach organically.
For partner or internal send programs, external invoicing keeps the checkout experience seamless without requiring payment through the platform.
Influencer Gifting & Product Seeding
Streamline your influencer send program with a private storefront that empowers you to send products to influencers without needing to know an address.
To set up an influencer gifting Storefront:
Create a new private storefront named something like "Influencer Seeding" or "PR Sends."
In Settings, set Invoice mode to Invoice externally (this sets all orders to $0 — no payment collected).
Add the products you want to seed.
In Visibility, disable Is public — this storefront is for your internal team to use.
To send to a known list of influencers, upload a CSV of recipient data and place the order in bulk.
To let influencers choose their own address and select from a curated product lineup, generate an e-gift link and send it directly.
Why choose Zest Storefronts for influencer gifting?
All influencer orders are tagged in Shopify with your Storefront slug, making it easy to run spend reports by campaign or program.
E-gift links are especially useful for international sends or when you want to give recipients a product choice.
This workflow eliminates manual order entry and having to track down accurate physical addresses for each send, saving significant team time at scale.
Fundraiser and Nonprofit Campaigns
You can use storefronts to run school fundraisers, team fundraisers, or charity campaigns with no extra cost beyond your existing Zest plan.
How fundraising with Zest Storefronts works: Supporters purchase directly through the storefront at the fundraising price. Funds flow to you first. At the end of the campaign, you run a revenue report and pay the organization their agreed-upon share (for example, $2 per box sold if the fundraising price is $10).
To set up a fundraiser storefront:
Create a new storefront and name it after the organization or campaign (for example, "Lincoln Elementary Fundraiser").
Set product prices at the fundraising rate.
In Visibility, keep the storefront private and share the link directly, or make it public for open access.
Share the storefront link with the organization to distribute to supporters.
At the end of the campaign, pull a Shopify orders report filtered by the tag
zest-storefront-[your-slug]to calculate total sales.Calculate and pay the organization their agreed markup.
Note: Zest does not currently support a three-tier fundraiser model (for example, organization → individual rep → rep's buyers). For that structure, each rep would compile their own recipient list as a CSV for upload, or you would process a single bulk order on behalf of the group. This use case is a partial fit for current functionality.
Event-specific Storefronts (Weddings, Conferences, Tastings)
Whether you're supplying gifts for a wedding, a corporate conference, or a post-tasting follow-up, single-address event storefronts let you spin up a targeted experience quickly complete with custom branding, product selections, and pricing for each occasion.
For bulk event orders (one shipping address):
Create a new storefront and enable Single-address shipping in Settings — this is designed for large orders shipping to one venue.
Add the products appropriate for this event type.
Set event-specific pricing or discounts in the Pricing tab.
Customize branding (logo, colors) to match the event or client.
Share the Storefront link with your event coordinator or client.
For post-event follow-up storefronts (for example, after a tasting or brand experience):
Create a storefront featuring the specific products attendees experienced.
Optionally apply a shipping discount as an attendee perk.
Set minimum order quantities if you want to encourage group or bulk purchasing.
Include the storefront link in your post-event follow-up email.
Tip: Event storefronts can be organized by category (weddings, baby showers, corporate conferences) with distinct branding and product selections.
Structuring Multiple Storefronts for Different Use Cases
Zest lets you create as many storefronts as you need, each configured independently with its own products, pricing, branding, and access rules.
A recommended starting structure:
Main / Consumer multiship: Multiship shipping, standard pricing, public access.
Bulk / Event orders: Single-address shipping, standard or discounted pricing, public or private.
Wholesale partner: Single-address shipping, custom discount, private (email allowlist).
Employee / Internal: Multiship shipping, employee discount, private (email allowlist).
Influencer / PR sends: Multiship shipping, $0 via invoice externally, private (internal team only).
Tips:
Use descriptive storefront slugs — they become Shopify order tags (
zest-storefront-[slug]) and are your primary attribution tool for tracking orders by program or audience.Products hidden from your main Shopify sales channels can still be added to specific Storefronts, giving you precise control over what each audience sees.
You can create separate storefronts for different wholesale partners, membership tiers, retail locations, or event categories — each with its own rules.
Consider a gifting landing page: If you have multiple storefronts for different buyer types (for example, one for multiship gifting and one for bulk orders), a simple landing page linking to each option with a short description helps sales teams and buyers find the right experience quickly.
Tips for Quick Storefront Setup
Before you begin, make sure:
Your Shopify store is connected to Zest.
Your Stripe account is set up (for storefronts where payment is collected).
The products you want to feature have been imported into Zest.
Setup steps:
Click Create Storefront in your partner dashboard and enter a name and URL slug.
In Settings, configure shipping mode (single-address or multi-recipient), invoice mode, and order quantity limits.
In Pricing, set up any discounts or volume tiers.
In the Products tab, add the products for this Storefront.
In Branding, upload your logo and customize colors and cover image.
In Visibility, choose public or private access; add allowed email addresses if private.
Place a test order to verify the experience end to end.
Share the Storefront URL with your intended audience.
Additional Zest Storefront use cases:
Services as products: If you offer an in-person service (for example, a tasting event slot), you may be able to create a Shopify product SKU for it and add it to a storefront. Make sure to set the correct Shopify tax code for services.
Age-restricted products (wine/alcohol): An age gate requiring gifters to confirm they are 21+ may be available as an optional setting. Wine compliance involves complex state-specific rules; brands using third-party fulfillment should separately verify merchant-of-record implications.
Customer loyalty or free gift selection: You can create a private Storefront with low pricing (for example, $1) and restrict access by email. However, Zest does not currently prevent a customer from placing multiple orders, so this approach relies on trust. The platform is not designed as a loyalty or rewards tool.
Bill-and-hold programs: For bill-and-hold, the customer prepays for custom packaging via Zest Concierge. A branded storefront can show inventory availability, and custom card SKUs can be added as line items to trigger the fulfillment team's workflow.
QR code product sampling: Prospects scan a QR code, enter their shipping address, and choose a ship date — great for perishables or time-sensitive sends. This works well as a B2B lead generation strategy at events, replacing physical sample hand-offs.
In-store associate-facilitated orders: A dedicated Storefront for retail staff lets associates process multi-recipient orders alongside customers, with the retail team credited for the sale. This is distinct from QR code flows, which are fully self-service.
Concierge as phone order entry: For customer service teams handling phone orders, concierge can serve as the order entry tool. The agent creates a project, adds the customer, selects products and shipping details, and generates an invoice for payment.