5 min read

How to set up multiple Shopify stores with the same inventory (the easy way)

Published on

21 October 2024

Source: Pexels

Expanding your Shopify business by launching multiple stores, or cross-selling your products in other Shopify stores, can be a game-changer for growth. But with those opportunities comes one big hurdle: how do you keep your inventory consistent across all storefronts? When products sell in one store, you need your stock levels to instantly reflect those changes everywhere else—otherwise, you’re at risk of overselling or dealing with out-of-stock items that frustrate customers.

Managing inventory manually across multiple stores is not only time-consuming, but it also opens the door to costly mistakes. Luckily, there’s a much easier way to handle it. In this guide, we’ll show you how to seamlessly sync your inventory across multiple Shopify stores, so you can stay focused on growing your business without worrying about stock issues.

Can multiple Shopify stores share the same inventory?

Yes, multiple Shopify stores can absolutely share the same inventory. In fact, it’s pretty much essential for businesses selling the same products across different storefronts. However, Shopify doesn’t offer built-in functionality to sync inventory between stores, so you’ll need an app like Syncio to make it happen.

The good news? Setting up Syncio is quick and easy, and once it's in place, it will automatically sync inventory in real-time across all your connected stores.

Imagine this: you’ve got two Shopify stores—one for direct-to-consumer (D2C) sales and another for wholesale. Both stores sell the same products, but with different pricing and order quantities. Having separate storefronts lets you cater to different types of customers, but keeping track of inventory across both can quickly get complicated.

If a product sells out on one store or stock levels change, manually updating the inventory on both stores is not only time-consuming, but it also leaves room for error.

Now, let’s take it up a notch. What if you’re also selling your wholesale products on a partner retailer’s Shopify store? They’re featuring your products, but you’re still in charge of fulfillment. Every sale made on their store needs to reflect on your wholesale and D2C stores, so your stock levels stay accurate everywhere. Suddenly, you’re managing inventory across three different sites, and the complexity grows as you add more products or stores to the mix.

In situations like this, automatically syncing your inventory across all stores—your D2C site, wholesale store, and your partner’s store—makes sure everything stays up to date in real-time, no matter where a sale happens. Without automatic syncing, trying to juggle inventory and orders manually across multiple stores can quickly lead to mistakes, overselling, and stock shortages.

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How to sync inventory across multiple Shopify stores in 4 steps

Here’s how you can connect and sync inventory across multiple Shopify stores using the Syncio app. This method works for both Shopify Plus expansion stores (under the same account) and standalone Shopify stores (under separate accounts).

Step 1: Install Syncio on your Source Shopify store

The ‘Source Store’ is the one that contains the master product listings and inventory numbers.

  1. Install Syncio from the Shopify App Store
  2. When prompted to select your store type, choose ‘Source Store’ 

Step 2: Install Syncio on all additional Shopify stores

Each additional store you want to sync inventory with will be referred to as a ‘Destination Store’.

  1. Install Syncio on these stores following the same process as the Source Store.
  2. When prompted to select your store type, choose ‘Destination Store’ to designate these stores as ones that will receive inventory and product updates from the Source Store.

FYI: If you’re looking to sync with partner stores that you don’t own yourself, simply request the store owner to install Syncio on their store. Once they’ve installed, you’ll be able to connect with them using Syncio using the steps in this guide.

Step 3: Connect the stores via Syncio

Once Syncio is installed on all the stores, you need to connect them so they can sync inventory:

  1. In the Syncio Dashboard of your Source Store, go to the Stores tab.
  2. Copy the Unique Store Key for your Source Store.
  3. Open the Syncio Dashboard for each Destination Store, click Connect New Store, and paste the Source Store’s Unique Store Key.

This will connect all your Destination stores with your Source Store, allowing Syncio to sync products and inventory between them.

Step 4: Sync products and inventory

Once your stores are connected, you can sync products and inventory from your Source Store to the Destination Stores:

  1. In the Syncio Dashboard of the Destination Store, go to the Products tab.
  2. Choose the Source Store from the dropdown list to see available products.
  3. Select which products you want to sync by:
    • Selecting products in bulk using filters, or
    • Selecting individual products
  4. Click Sync

And that’s it! The stock levels for these products will now be kept in real-time sync. So whenever a sale happens in any store, Syncio will automatically update the stock levels on all connected stores. Read this article for a breakdown of exactly what events will trigger inventory updates.

FYI: You can also choose to sync product attributes like descriptions, pricing, and images using the Product Settings add-on. This will ensure that product updates made in the Source Store are pushed to all connected stores (alongside the stock updates).

Connected inventory across Shopify Plus expansion stores

If you’re using Shopify Plus, you have the option to create expansion stores—separate storefronts that operate under the same Shopify account. These are often used for different regions (e.g., a US store and a UK store) or different customer segments (e.g., B2B and B2C).

With Syncio, you can easily share and sync inventory across all your expansion stores. For example, if your US store makes a sale, Syncio will automatically update the stock levels in your UK store, ensuring that your global inventory is always up-to-date. This is especially useful if you run multiple regional stores with the same product catalog, allowing you to centralize your inventory management and avoid stock discrepancies.

Connected inventory across standalone Shopify stores

If you run completely separate Shopify stores (i.e., under different accounts) or share products with partner stores that you don’t own, Syncio can also keep inventory in sync across those stores. This setup is common for businesses that use regular Shopify accounts to manage independent brands, run wholesale and retail stores under separate accounts or 

For instance, let’s say you manage two distinct brands, each with its own Shopify store, but both sell some of the same products. By syncing inventory with Syncio, any sale or stock update on one brand’s store will automatically reflect on the other. This makes it easier to keep stock levels accurate without manually updating multiple stores, saving time and reducing the risk of overselling.

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Best practices for sharing inventory across stores

Syncing inventory across multiple Shopify stores isn't just about automating updates; it’s about ensuring that your system works smoothly and efficiently. Here are some practical, genuinely helpful tips to make the most of Syncio:

1. Unique SKUs for each product

To avoid confusion when syncing inventory, ensure that every product in your store has a unique SKU. Syncio uses SKUs to identify and sync products, so this is crucial for maintaining accuracy. If two products share the same SKU, Syncio may struggle to sync them properly. However, Syncio can also auto generate unique SKUs when importing to a Destination Store, provided they don't exist on any products.

Apart from SKUs, you can customize any attribute of the product once it’s been transferred from the Source store. For example, if you have different pricing, product bundles, or promotions tailored to specific regions or customer segments, all while maintaining a single, connected inventory.

2. Handling stockouts

To avoid missing out on sales when a product runs out of stock, make sure to use a back-in-stock notification app like Notify! or Back In Stock so interested customers can be notified when the item is available again.

Make sure to also configure Syncio’s Synced Stock Buffer feature if needed, which will allow you to hold any number of stock as a reserve to protect against oversell across multiple stores.

3. Sync product attributes for better control

Syncio allows you to sync more than just inventory. If you frequently update product descriptions, prices, or images in your Source Store, make sure to enable product attribute syncing through the Product Settings add-on. This ensures that any changes you make in one store are automatically reflected in all other connected stores, saving you from having to make manual updates across each store.

4. Automatically forward orders for centralized fulfillment

When managing multiple stores, automating order management is crucial for streamlining operations and avoiding fulfillment errors. With Syncio’s Orders add-on, you can sync orders containing synced products from your Destination Stores to your Source Store for easy fulfillment. Orders will appear in the Syncio Orders Tab, where you can manually push them or set up automatic pushing.

Once the Source Store fulfills an order, Syncio will update the Destination Store with the fulfillment status and tracking info, keeping your customers informed. This allows for seamless, centralized fulfillment without manual effort, ensuring accurate inventory and order tracking across stores.

5. Plan for peak sales periods

When managing inventory across multiple stores, it's important to plan ahead for peak sales periods such as Black Friday, holiday seasons, or special promotions. Ensure you have enough stock on hand to meet increased demand across all stores, and consider setting up automatic low-stock alerts so you can quickly reorder products before they run out. Proper forecasting and preparation during these high-traffic times will help you avoid stockouts and keep your customers happy, no matter which store they shop from.

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Wrapping up 

Managing inventory across multiple Shopify stores can be challenging, but with the right approach and tools, it becomes much more manageable. Syncing inventory in real-time helps you avoid common issues like overselling or stock discrepancies, ensuring smooth operations across all your stores.

By following best practices—such as keeping stock levels consistent, syncing product attributes where needed, and automating order fulfillment—you’ll save time and reduce the risk of errors. Whether you’re managing expansion stores, wholesale and retail sites, or collaborating with other retailers, staying on top of inventory is key to delivering a reliable and efficient shopping experience for your customers.