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B2B Setup Guide โ€” Enable Native Shopify B2B on Vertex

This guide walks you through turning on Shopify's native B2B so Vertex can show volume pricing, MOQ rules, NET payment terms, tax-exempt badges, the multi-location ship-to switcher, B2B catalogs, the sales rep contact card, and every other B2B feature out of the box.

No companion apps. No monthly subscription. No third-party scripts. Every B2B element you see in Vertex comes straight from Shopify's own B2B system โ€” companies, catalogs, price lists, payment terms โ€” all native, all included.

B2B is opt-in

If you skip this guide entirely, Vertex still runs as a polished B2C industrial supply theme. Every B2B element auto-hides when no company buyer is signed in. You can enable B2B later without re-installing the theme.

Why native B2B (and not an app)โ€‹

Most "B2B Shopify themes" lean on a stack of paid apps โ€” wholesale pricing apps, account-locking apps, NET-terms apps, quote-management apps. Each one adds a monthly fee, an extra block in your theme, a render-blocking script, and a vendor you have to renegotiate with every year.

Vertex takes the opposite approach. Shopify shipped a full native B2B feature set in 2023 (Companies, Catalogs, Volume pricing, Quantity rules, Payment terms, Tax exemption). Vertex was built from day one to render those native features beautifully โ€” no wrappers, no app dependencies.

What you'd pay for with appsWhat Vertex does with native B2B
Wholesale pricing app ($29โ€“99/mo)Shopify Catalog price lists โ€” free, native
Volume discount app ($19โ€“49/mo)Catalog volume tiers โ€” free, native
Net-terms app ($29โ€“79/mo)Company-level payment terms โ€” free, native
Quote-management app ($19โ€“59/mo)Built-in Request a Quote page in Vertex
Wholesale-lock app ($14โ€“39/mo)Hide prices until customer logs in theme setting โ€” built into Vertex
Multi-location app ($29โ€“99/mo)Company locations โ€” free, native
Estimated annual savings$1,800โ€“$4,800/year per store

Prerequisitesโ€‹

Before you start, confirm:

  • Your Shopify plan supports native B2B. That means Shopify Plus, OR Shopify Advanced with the B2B add-on enabled. Native B2B is not available on Basic or Starter plans.
  • You have admin access to Settings, Customers, Products, and Themes.
  • Vertex is installed and published (or installed as a preview theme). See the installation guide.
  • New customer accounts are enabled. B2B requires the new accounts (passwordless), not the legacy classic accounts.
Not on Plus or Advanced?

If you're on a lower plan, you can still install Vertex and run it as a B2C-only industrial supply theme today. When your plan upgrades, every B2B feature documented below activates with zero theme work. Just come back to this page.

Shopify admin: Settings โ†’ Plan (Vertex Industrial Demo)

What you'll set upโ€‹

StepWhere in adminWhy
1. Enable B2B in ShopifySettings โ–ธ Customer accounts โ–ธ B2B โ–ธ ManageUnlocks Companies and Catalogs
2. Create your first companyCustomers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ Add companyThe buyer organisation record
3. Add company locationsCompany page โ–ธ LocationsDrives the multi-location ship-to switcher
4. Add buyer accountsCompany page โ–ธ CustomersAssigns the buyer role
5. Create a B2B catalogProducts โ–ธ Catalogs โ–ธ Add catalogHolds B2B prices and quantity rules
6. Add a price list with volume tiersCatalog page โ–ธ Price listDrives the PDP volume pricing table
7. Assign the catalog to the companyCatalog page โ–ธ CustomersConnects pricing to buyers
8. Set payment terms (NET-30 etc.)Company page โ–ธ Payment termsDrives the NET terms badge
9. (Optional) Mark company tax-exemptCompany page โ–ธ Tax settingsDrives the tax-exempt badge
10. (Optional) Fill in sales rep detailsCustomers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ [company] โ–ธ MetafieldsDrives the sales rep contact card
11. Test as a signed-in buyerStorefront in incognitoVerify every B2B element renders

Step 1 โ€” Enable B2B in Shopifyโ€‹

  1. Open the Shopify admin and click Settings (bottom-left).
  2. In the left sidebar, click Customer accounts.
  3. Confirm that New customer accounts is selected. B2B will not work with legacy classic customer accounts.
  4. Scroll to the B2B section.
  5. Click Manage.
  6. Click Enable B2B.
  7. Confirm the prompt.

Click path: Settings โ–ธ Customer accounts โ–ธ B2B โ–ธ Manage โ–ธ Enable B2B

Settings โ†’ Customer accounts with B2B section

Once enabled, two new admin items appear:

  • Companies under Customers in the main nav
  • Catalogs under Products in the main nav
Activation can take a few minutes

On Shopify Advanced with the B2B add-on, the Companies and Catalogs nav items can take 2โ€“5 minutes to appear after enabling. If you don't see them right away, refresh the admin page.

Step 2 โ€” Create your first companyโ€‹

A company represents one buyer organisation โ€” the legal entity that places orders, holds payment terms, and contains one or more shipping locations.

  1. From the admin sidebar, go to Customers โ–ธ Companies.
  2. Click Add company (top right).
  3. Fill out the Company details:
    • Company name โ€” the legal or trading name of the buyer organisation. Example: Northgate Facilities LLC.
    • External ID (optional) โ€” your internal account number, if you keep one.
    • Note (optional) โ€” internal notes for your team.
  4. Fill out the Main contact โ€” this is the primary buyer's name and email. They will sign in with this email.
  5. Click Save.

Click path: Customers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ Add company โ–ธ Save

Shopify automatically creates the company plus its first location.

Shopify admin Companies list

Step 3 โ€” Add company locationsโ€‹

Each location is one ship-to address belonging to the company. If your buyer's organisation has multiple regional offices, warehouses, or stores, add each as a separate location. The buyer can switch between them on the storefront using Vertex's ship-to location switcher in the amber B2B greeting bar.

  1. From the company page, scroll to the Locations section.
  2. Click Add location.
  3. Fill in:
    • Location name โ€” e.g. Cleveland Distribution Center.
    • Shipping address โ€” full street address.
    • Billing address โ€” same as shipping by default; toggle to enter a separate billing address.
  4. Save.
  5. Repeat for each additional location.

Click path: Company page โ–ธ Locations โ–ธ Add location โ–ธ Save

One location is enough to start

A single-location company is fine. The ship-to switcher only appears in Vertex when the buyer has 2 or more locations. With 1 location, the buyer's default ship-to is used silently.

When the buyer switches between locations using Vertex's switcher (desktop greeting bar or mobile drawer), Shopify keeps their cart and updates the ship-to address, tax context, and price-list scope automatically.

Step 4 โ€” Add buyer accounts (assign roles)โ€‹

Every customer who should sign in as a B2B buyer for this company needs to be linked to one of its locations.

  1. From the company page, scroll to Customers (or click the Customers tab).
  2. Click Add customer.
  3. Search for an existing customer by email, or click Create new customer to add one inline.
  4. Pick the location they belong to (one of the locations you created in step 3).
  5. Pick the role:
    • Location admin โ€” can manage the location's address book, see other buyers at the same location, and place orders. Best for the buyer's procurement lead.
    • Ordering only โ€” can place orders only. Best for individual buyers who shouldn't modify the company profile.
  6. Click Save.

Click path: Company page โ–ธ Customers โ–ธ Add customer โ–ธ pick location โ–ธ pick role โ–ธ Save

That buyer can now sign in with their normal customer login and Vertex will recognise them as a B2B buyer. The amber greeting bar appears with the company name, the assigned catalog applies, the B2B-aware account dashboard renders, and the rep card shows in the header (if filled in).

Step 5 โ€” Create a B2B catalogโ€‹

A catalog is Shopify's container for everything B2B-specific about pricing โ€” which products are visible to the company, what prices they pay, what volume tiers apply, and what quantity rules (MOQ, max, increment) enforce on each variant.

  1. From the admin sidebar, go to Products โ–ธ Catalogs.
  2. Click Add catalog (top right).
  3. Pick B2B catalog (not Markets catalog).
  4. Fill in:
    • Catalog name โ€” internal label. Example: Contract Tier B โ€” Distributors.
    • Products โ€” pick which products this catalog exposes. You can include the whole store, a smart collection, or a hand-picked list.
  5. Click Save.

Click path: Products โ–ธ Catalogs โ–ธ Add catalog โ–ธ B2B catalog โ–ธ Save

Shopify admin Catalogs list

Step 6 โ€” Add a price list with volume tiersโ€‹

Now attach a price list to the catalog. This defines the actual B2B prices buyers pay โ€” including volume tiers that drive the volume pricing table on the product page.

  1. From the catalog page, click Add price list (or Price list โ–ธ Manage).
  2. Pick a strategy:
    • Percentage discount off all products โ€” e.g., 15% off retail across the entire catalog.
    • Fixed prices per product/variant โ€” explicit B2B prices, ignoring the retail price.
    • Mixed โ€” percentage default, with overrides for specific products.
  3. For volume pricing tiers, edit each product or variant and add quantity break rows. Example for a 12-pack item:
QuantityPrice per unit
1+$14.50
12+$13.80 (5% off)
48+$13.05 (10% off)
144+$12.32 (15% off)

These tiers render as the Volume pricing table directly above the Add to cart button on the product page, and as a tier indicator on each line in the cart and the bulk-order page.

  1. For quantity rules, set per product or variant:

    • Minimum โ€” MOQ (e.g., 12).
    • Maximum โ€” cap per order (e.g., 1,440).
    • Increment โ€” case-pack step (e.g., 12).

    Vertex enforces these on the product page quantity stepper, on every cart line, and on the bulk-order page. Invalid quantities disable Add to cart and show inline messaging like "Order in increments of 12. Try 24 or 36."

  2. Save.

Volume pricing is per-catalog

A common gotcha: volume pricing must be set inside the catalog's price list. Setting volume pricing on the product itself in Products โ–ธ Pricing will NOT carry into B2B. Always edit volume tiers from the catalog page.

Step 7 โ€” Assign the catalog to the companyโ€‹

The catalog now exists but isn't yet wired to your buyers. Assign it.

  1. From the catalog page, scroll to Customers.
  2. Click Add customers.
  3. Search for the company you created in step 2.
  4. Click Add.
  5. Save.

Click path: Catalog page โ–ธ Customers โ–ธ Add customers โ–ธ pick company โ–ธ Add

Now any buyer signed in as that company sees:

  • Only products included in the catalog (others are hidden from listings).
  • Catalog prices (not retail prices).
  • Volume tiers and quantity rules enforced everywhere.

Step 8 โ€” Set payment terms (NET-30 / NET-60 / NET-90)โ€‹

If the company has deferred-payment terms โ€” NET-30, NET-60, NET-90, fixed date, etc. โ€” set them at the company level. Vertex auto-detects this and shows a NET terms badge in the amber greeting bar and at the cart.

  1. Go back to the company page (Customers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ [company]).
  2. Scroll to Payment terms.
  3. Click Set up payment terms.
  4. Pick the template:
    • Receipt โ€” payment due on order placement (default for retail).
    • Net 7 / 15 / 30 / 45 / 60 / 90 โ€” payment due N days after invoice.
    • Fixed date โ€” payment due on a specific calendar date.
  5. Save.

Click path: Company page โ–ธ Payment terms โ–ธ Set up payment terms โ–ธ pick template โ–ธ Save

Shopify will now allow this company to check out without an immediate card charge. The buyer (and your AR team) sees the NET term clearly at every step.

Want a NET-terms badge in the chrome?

The NET-terms badge Vertex shows in the greeting bar and on the account screens is driven by the vertex.payment_terms company metafield โ€” set it to "NET 30" (or custom wording like "NET 30 โ€” Pay by invoice") under Customers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ [company] โ–ธ Metafields. It's separate from the checkout payment terms you set above, so set both. See the Metafield setup guide.

Step 9 โ€” (Optional) Mark the company tax-exemptโ€‹

If the company is tax-exempt โ€” resellers with a resale certificate, government buyers, qualifying non-profits โ€” toggle off tax charging at the company level. Vertex shows a Tax exempt badge on the product page, cart, and account dashboard.

  1. From the company page, scroll to Tax settings.
  2. Toggle Charge taxes to off.
  3. (Recommended) Upload the buyer's tax-exemption certificate as a Note attachment.
  4. Save.

Click path: Company page โ–ธ Tax settings โ–ธ Charge taxes: off โ–ธ Save

Shopify skips tax calculation on every order placed by this company. Vertex also displays the badge so the buyer can see at a glance that they're correctly exempt.

Step 10 โ€” (Optional) Fill in sales rep detailsโ€‹

If you assign a named sales rep or account manager to each company, Vertex can render a sales rep pill in the desktop header and a full rep card at the bottom of the mobile drawer, with click-to-email and click-to-call links.

The rep is set per company as metafields. Open Customers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ [company] โ–ธ Metafields and fill in:

  • vertex.rep_name โ€” e.g. Sarah Chen
  • vertex.rep_email โ€” e.g. [email protected]
  • vertex.rep_phone โ€” e.g. +1-555-0142

Save. The rep details now show automatically when a buyer from that company is signed in. See the Metafield setup guide for defining the fields once under Settings โ–ธ Custom data.

Sales rep card auto-hides

If you leave the rep settings blank, the rep pill simply doesn't render โ€” no error, no broken layout, no placeholder. The card just isn't there.

Step 11 โ€” Test the buyer experienceโ€‹

Open your storefront in an incognito window (so you're not signed in as the merchant) and sign in as the buyer you added in step 4. Run through this verify checklist:

  • Amber B2B greeting bar appears above the header, showing the company name, NET terms badge (e.g., NET 30), and โ€” if applicable โ€” the Tax exempt badge.
  • Ship-to switcher renders in the greeting bar (desktop) and mobile drawer if the company has 2+ locations.
  • Sales rep pill appears in the desktop header (if you filled in the rep metafields).
  • Product page shows a volume pricing table above Add to cart with the tiers you configured in step 6.
  • Product page quantity stepper enforces MOQ and increment โ€” try entering a quantity below MOQ and confirm Add to cart disables with an inline message.
  • Cart shows the NET-30 badge in the order summary.
  • Bulk-order page โ€” paste-to-cart respects quantity rules and catalog scoping.
  • Account dashboard shows company info, payment terms, quick reorder, and the rep card.
  • Catalog scoping โ€” try visiting a product NOT in the catalog by URL. It should 404 or hide.

B2B PDP: greeting bar + volume tiers + REP pill

Common gotchas and fixesโ€‹

If something isn't rendering, work through this list.

"The amber greeting bar isn't showing"โ€‹

  • Storefront mode is set to B2C-only. Open Customize โ–ธ Theme settings โ–ธ B2B โ–ธ Storefront mode. Switch to Hybrid (recommended) or B2B-only. See the Storefront modes guide.
  • Buyer isn't actually B2B. Open the buyer's customer record in admin and confirm they're linked to a company. If not, redo step 4.
  • Page was cached. Hard-refresh (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + R).

"Volume pricing table isn't rendering on the product page"โ€‹

  • No catalog assigned to the company. Redo step 7.
  • Volume tiers set on the product, not in the catalog. Volume pricing is per-catalog, not per-product. Edit tiers from the catalog page.
  • Product isn't in the catalog. Confirm the product is included in the catalog's product list.
  • Prices are hidden for guests. The volume table follows the same gate as prices โ€” if Theme settings โ–ธ B2B โ–ธ Hide prices until customer logs in is on, the table is suppressed until the buyer signs in. (There is no separate "show volume pricing table" toggle โ€” the table appears automatically whenever the variant has volume tiers.)

"MOQ isn't enforcing"โ€‹

  • Quantity rule not set. Catalog โ–ธ pick the variant โ–ธ set Minimum / Maximum / Increment. Save.
  • Browser cache. Hard-refresh after editing the rule.

"NET-30 badge isn't showing"โ€‹

  • Payment terms not set on the company. Redo step 8.
  • Buyer not signed in. The badge only shows for signed-in B2B buyers โ€” that's by design.

"Rep pill isn't rendering in the header"โ€‹

  • Rep metafields are empty. Open Customers โ–ธ Companies โ–ธ [company] โ–ธ Metafields and fill in vertex.rep_name plus at least one of vertex.rep_email or vertex.rep_phone.
  • Window width is below 1170px. The pill collapses to the mobile drawer's account section on smaller screens โ€” open the drawer and scroll to the bottom.

"Tax exemption badge isn't showing"โ€‹

  • Company Charge taxes is still on. Redo step 9.

"Buyer can see retail prices instead of catalog prices"โ€‹

  • Catalog isn't assigned to the company. Redo step 7.
  • The catalog's price list is empty. Catalog โ–ธ Price list โ–ธ Manage. Add prices.

Where each B2B feature shows upโ€‹

Once configured, here's where each B2B feature surfaces in Vertex:

FeatureWhere it rendersHow it's controlled
Amber B2B greeting barAbove the main header (desktop + mobile drawer)Auto (shows for signed-in B2B buyers; hidden in B2C-only mode)
Company name + badgesInside the greeting barAuto
Ship-to location switcherGreeting bar (desktop) + drawer (mobile)Auto (shows when the company has 2+ locations)
Sales rep pillDesktop header + mobile drawer footerAuto (when vertex.rep_* company metafields are filled)
Volume pricing tableProduct page, above Add to cartAuto (when the variant has volume tiers; gated by Hide prices until customer logs in)
Quantity rule enforcementProduct page stepper + cart line + bulk-order pageAuto
NET-terms badgeGreeting bar + cart summary + account dashboardvertex.payment_terms company metafield
Tax-exempt badgeGreeting bar + cart summary + account dashboardAuto (native company tax status)
Bulk-order page/pages/bulk-orderAuto
Request a Quote page/pages/rfqAuto
B2B-aware account dashboard/accountAuto
Catalog scoping (only catalog products visible)Collections, search, product pageNative Shopify

For per-setting documentation, see the Theme settings reference.

What's nextโ€‹