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Created February 22, 2026 01:09
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Kartchners Shopify migration plan
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SHOPIFY_MIGRATION_PLAN.md

Shopify Migration Plan for Kartchner’s

Last updated: 2026-02-22 Owner: Hunter

Goals

  • Move from Eleventy + Snipcart to a full Shopify storefront.
  • Keep brand feel, simplify ops, reduce build/deploy fragility.
  • Preserve SEO and avoid order-flow downtime during launch.

Non-Goals (for v1)

  • No headless architecture.
  • No heavy app stack unless clearly required.
  • No major design redesign before go-live.

Phase 0 — Discovery & Constraints (1–2 days)

Deliverables

  • Current feature inventory (must-have vs nice-to-have).
  • URL inventory + SEO pages list.
  • Current checkout/shipping/business rules documented.

Checklist

  • Export current product/catalog data model from repo/CMS.
  • List all custom behaviors (e.g. dry ice add-on behavior).
  • List all current content pages and critical routes.
  • List integrations: analytics, email, reviews, etc.

Phase 1 — Shopify Foundation (1 day)

Deliverables

  • Store created and reachable.
  • Basic commerce settings configured.

Checklist

  • Create Shopify store (dev/trial).
  • Set currency, tax regions, shipping zones/rates.
  • Configure payments (test mode first).
  • Configure staff accounts and access controls.
  • Set up notification email and basic policies.

Phase 2 — Data Model + Catalog Migration (2–4 days)

Deliverables

  • Products/collections loaded in Shopify.
  • Images hosted on Shopify CDN.

Checklist

  • Map current product fields → Shopify fields (title, handle, description, vendor, type, tags, options, variants, inventory, images).
  • Define collection strategy (manual/automated).
  • Build importer script/CSV pipeline from current source.
  • Import products in staging and verify:
    • Variants
    • Pricing
    • Inventory
    • Images
  • Validate checkout item data for 10–20 representative SKUs.

Phase 3 — Theme Development (local workflow) (3–7 days)

Deliverables

  • Theme matching current UX and brand.
  • Local dev workflow documented.

Local workflow

  • Use Shopify CLI:
    • shopify theme dev (preview)
    • shopify theme pull/push
  • Keep theme in Git.

Checklist

  • Start from Dawn (or selected base theme).
  • Recreate key templates:
    • Home
    • Collection
    • Product
    • Contact
    • Shipping/info pages
  • Rebuild cart interactions and announcements.
  • Implement dry-ice/add-on logic (app/function/theme JS path decided).
  • Mobile QA on top 10 templates.

Phase 4 — Integrations, SEO, Analytics (1–2 days)

Deliverables

  • Tracking, metadata, and redirects ready for launch.

Checklist

  • Analytics (Fathom/GA/etc) installed.
  • Meta title/description parity for core pages.
  • OpenGraph/Twitter cards verified.
  • 301 redirect map from old URLs to Shopify routes.
  • Sitemap + robots sanity check.
  • Email deliverability (SPF/DKIM/DMARC) verified if needed.

Phase 5 — QA + Parallel Run (2–5 days)

Deliverables

  • Launch readiness signoff.

Test matrix

  • Product add/remove/update quantity.
  • Shipping quotes (local + shipped cases).
  • Taxes (where applicable).
  • Discount code behavior.
  • Checkout + confirmation emails.
  • Refund/cancel flow.
  • Contact form submissions.
  • Core Lighthouse/perf sanity pass.

Phase 6 — Cutover (low-risk launch)

Deliverables

  • Shopify live on primary domain.
  • Monitoring + rollback window.

Checklist

  • Launch window scheduled.
  • DNS/domain switch prepared.
  • Old site kept available for rollback window.
  • Post-launch checks complete:
    • Orders
    • Payments
    • Shipping labels/rates
    • Analytics events
    • Search crawlability

Risk Register

  1. Catalog mismatch

    • Mitigation: sample-based validation before full import.

  2. Checkout behavior drift (dry ice/add-ons)

    • Mitigation: implement + test scripted/business-rule equivalent before launch.

  3. SEO loss

    • Mitigation: strict 301 map + metadata parity + Search Console checks.

  4. Theme app bloat/performance regressions

    • Mitigation: minimal app policy; measure before adding.

Immediate Next Actions (this week)

  • Create Shopify dev store.
  • Export current products to a migration-friendly format.
  • Build field mapping doc (source → Shopify).
  • Choose base theme (likely Dawn).
  • Start local theme repo and CLI workflow.

Notes

  • This plan assumes full Shopify storefront (not headless).
  • If requirements outgrow theme limits later, a phased move to headless can be evaluated after stable launch.
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