With the rollout of Shopify Horizon, the e-commerce landscape is in the midst of a fundamental shift. This isn't just an upgrade, it's a reinvention of how merchants across India and the globe will build, manage, and grow their online storefronts. From semantic storefronts to one-click AI customizations, Shopify Horizon introduces powerful capabilities designed for speed, personalization, and global expansion. Let’s not forget the core feature: ease of use.
At a glance, it looks chock-full of 150+ features, but what does it mean for e-commerce?
As India’s First Shopify Premier Partner, Marmeto goes beyond the surface. We decode what these feature-packed updates truly mean, not just from a tech perspective, but from a growth, performance, and real-world impact lens. This is our take on how Shopify Horizon is poised to reshape cross-border commerce, customer experience, and backend performance, and how merchants can leverage it through Marmeto’s custom solutions.
What is Shopify’s Horizon
Shopify Horizon is the latest evolution of Shopify’s commerce platform, introduced in Summer 2025 as a comprehensive upgrade focused on redefining global e-commerce experiences. Horizon brings together powerful new tools, AI-driven automation, and infrastructure-level enhancements designed to support high-growth brands and enterprise merchants across the world.
With performance, personalization, and cross-border selling at its core, Horizon sets the stage for the future of omnichannel commerce, offering merchants faster storefronts, smarter backends, and a more scalable ecosystem than ever before.
Key Highlights of Shopify’s Horizon
Shopify's Summer 2025 Horizon introduces a new theme system, offering merchants unparalleled design flexibility and AI-driven customization tools.
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10 Free Global-Ready Themes: Professionally designed Shopify themes for diverse industries and international markets.
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AI Theme & Block Generator: Auto-generate custom storefronts with Shopify’s AI based on business needs.
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Smarter Theme Editor: Hover previews, one-click edits, and faster layout control for global merchants.
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30+ Modular Content Blocks: Drag-and-drop blocks for easy storefront customization, no developer needed.
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Fast Store Setup Tools: Launch global Shopify stores faster with pre-built, plug-and-play theme layouts.
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Built-in Conversion Boosters: Use badges, banners, and alerts to improve sales across regions.
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Visual Product Storytelling Support: Showcase high-quality product visuals with global appeal and style flexibility.
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Fully Responsive Across Devices: Optimized mobile, tablet, and desktop performance for international shoppers.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
The Horizon theme update signals a turning point in how e-commerce brands can design, launch, and grow storefronts with precision and speed. The release of this feature empowers merchants to craft uniquely branded experiences without depending heavily on custom development.
For Marmeto, working closely with merchants across geographies, this evolution aligns with a growing demand for agility, visual storytelling, and performance-first design. Horizon’s flexibility isn’t just aesthetic, it’s strategic, enabling global brands to localize faster and deliver consistent, high-quality storefronts.
An advanced AI assistant designed to streamline e-commerce operations by automating tasks, providing actionable insights, and enhancing user interaction through natural language processing.
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Enhanced Reasoning Capabilities: Sidekick analyzes sales, inventory, and campaigns to suggest real-time business improvements for global merchants.
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Proactive Task Execution: Sidekick runs reports, segments users, and sets discounts automating workflows.
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Multilingual Support and Voice Interaction: Supports 20+ global languages and uses voice/text for seamless Shopify admin tasks across international markets.
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Integrated Visual Assistance: Provides step-by-step visual help to manage Shopify stores in any region with ease.
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Data-Driven Insights: Get insights on inventory and customer behavior with AI-backed analytics for cross-border commerce growth.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
Shopify Sidekick is a game-changer for how merchants engage with their online business operations. With Sidekick’s expanded reasoning, task execution, and multilingual capabilities, brands can now delegate complex decision-making and routine tasks to an AI co-pilot, dramatically reducing manual friction.
For Marmeto, which supports merchants across verticals, this unlocks a new standard of agility and precision. Merchants no longer have to toggle between tools or rely heavily on technical support. Sidekick becomes the always-on assistant that can filter orders, generate reports, and surface key insights, all in one intuitive interface. It’s not just about automating tasks, it’s about elevating the role of the merchant to focus more on strategic growth while Sidekick handles the rest.
Introduces significant enhancements to its retail and point-of-sale (POS) systems, aiming to streamline in-person sales and inventory management for merchants.
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Redesigned Shopify POS (Version 10: Faster POS with smart search and flexible checkout for retail stores worldwide.
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Custom Branding for POS Displays: Add logos, colors, and media to screens for branded in-store retail experiences.
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Store Credit Integration: Enable payments and returns via store credit within POS across global locations.
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Centralized Payment Settings with Device-Level Control: Control payment options per device for multi-store retail across countries.
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Expanded Logistics Partnerships: Connect with varied logistics partners via Shopify Fulfillment Network.
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New Carrier Options in Canada and Europe: Faster fulfillment methods for different geographies.
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Carrier Preferences in Settings: Choose shipping carriers and services by region for optimized global logistics.
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Enhanced Returns Processing: Update tax and sales reports only after return confirmation for better accuracy.
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Print API for POS: Print invoices, receipts, and slips directly from POS to boost retail efficiency.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a strategic leap forward for omnichannel commerce. With the redesigned POS system, custom-branded displays, and real-time store credit integration, merchants can now deliver a seamless, brand-consistent experience from online to offline.
For Marmeto, which supports large retail clients with complex operational needs, the centralized payment controls and expanded fulfillment partnerships unlock a new layer of efficiency in multi-location inventory and logistics management. It’s a retail ecosystem that finally talks to itself, smarter, faster, and tailored to how modern consumers move between physical and digital storefronts.
Introduces significant enhancements to the checkout experience, aiming to streamline the purchasing process and improve conversion rates for merchants worldwide.
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Enhanced One-Page Checkout Experience: While one-page checkout is now standard, Horizon elevates it with section-based customization, checkout UI extensions, and deeper control over layout, logic, and branding.
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Enhanced Customization Options: Fully customizable checkout branding, colors, fonts, layout for consistent brand presence worldwide.
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Improved Mobile Checkout: Optimized mobile checkout delivers fast, smooth transactions on smartphones and tablets globally.
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Advanced Payment Option: Supports digital wallets and BNPL, catering to regional and global customer payment preferences.
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Streamlined Guest Checkout: Frictionless guest checkout enables quicker transactions without mandatory account creation.
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Integrated Fraud Protection: Built-in fraud detection ensures secure transactions for merchants across international storefronts.
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Localized Checkout Experiences: Multi-language and currency support enables region-specific checkouts across the globe.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a decisive evolution in reducing friction at the most critical point of conversion. With the move to a one-page checkout, deeper customization, and localized experiences, merchants can now offer faster, more brand-aligned purchase journeys tailored to global buyers.
For Marmeto, this isn’t just a UX upgrade, it’s a performance lever. By simplifying the mobile experience, enabling guest checkouts, and integrating broader payment methods, Shopify has handed merchants the tools to remove drop-off triggers and close sales more confidently. It's a checkout experience that now works harder so merchants don’t have to.
Introduces significant enhancements to its global commerce features, aiming to streamline international operations and improve localized shopping experiences for merchants worldwide.
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Shopify Catalog Integration: Get global product discovery via AI-powered listings across platforms.
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Knowledge Base App: Auto-generate multilingual FAQs tailored to regional policies for global customer support.
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Storefront Model Context Protocol (MCP): Build AI shopping agents for real-time product help and personalized purchase journeys.
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Markets and Catalogs API Updates: Manage retail, B2B, and international catalogs with better global market segmentation.
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Localized Checkout Experiences: Offer region-specific checkout in local language and currency to boost international sales.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a foundational leap toward borderless commerce. With the rollout of tools like the Shopify Catalog for AI-powered product discovery, enhanced Markets and Catalogs APIs, and AI-readable FAQs via the Knowledge Base app, merchants now have unprecedented control over how their products are presented, discovered, and understood across geographies.
For Marmeto, this aligns perfectly with the needs of merchants navigating complex, multi-region operations. It’s no longer just about selling internationally, it’s about doing it intelligently with localization baked into the core infrastructure.
Introduces significant enhancements to its marketing features, focusing on AI integration and streamlined automation to empower merchants in their promotional efforts.
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AI-Powered Marketing Automation Templates: Use AI-driven templates to quickly create and customize global marketing campaigns.
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Universal Discount System: Apply one discount across products, shipping, and orders for a seamless customer experience.
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Updated ShopifyQL Segment Editing: Advanced segment editor with shortcuts improves precision targeting for global audience marketing.
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Geographic Retail Segmentation: Create location-based customer segments for personalized campaigns by region or country.
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Enhanced Marketing Automation Templates: Access pre-built workflows for faster campaign launches tailored to common marketing goals.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a powerful leap toward intelligent, low-lift campaign execution for merchants worldwide. With AI-powered automation templates, geographic segmentation, and unified discounting, brands can now deliver highly targeted promotions without the usual backend complexity.
For Marmeto, supporting data-driven marketing enablement across merchants, these features unlock faster iteration, smarter personalization, and better ROI tracking, all from within the Shopify ecosystem. It’s not just about creating campaigns; it’s about doing it with speed, precision, and minimal effort.
Introduces significant enhancements to the Shop App, focusing on AI integration and personalized user experiences to empower merchants and engage customers more effectively.
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AI Shopping Agents Integration: List products for discovery via AI agents to boost global reach.
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Shopify Catalog Access: Publish products in a unified catalog to improve visibility across search and AI tools.
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Knowledge Base App: Auto-generate AI-friendly FAQs for faster, accurate global customer support.
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Enhanced Personalization: Deliver region-specific product suggestions using AI-driven customer behavior analysis.
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Streamlined Checkout Process: Simplify mobile checkouts for faster global transactions and higher conversion rates.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This release is a definitive step toward redefining how consumers discover and engage with brands. With the integration of AI shopping agents, centralized catalog visibility, and deeply personalized recommendations, the app evolves from a transactional space into a discovery-first platform.
For Marmeto, this opens new doors for merchants aiming to build lasting customer relationships through relevance and ease. By making product discovery conversational and enabling smarter, faster checkouts, the Shop App now acts as a high-performance touchpoint in a merchant’s omnichannel strategy, meeting customers where they are and how they want to shop.
Introduces significant enhancements to its B2B commerce capabilities, aiming to streamline wholesale operations and improve the buying experience for business customers worldwide.
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NetSuite ERP Integration: Sync Shopify with NetSuite for orders, payment terms, and company data, globally.
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Expanded B2B App Compatibility: Access more B2B-friendly apps and collaborative buying tools in India and worldwide.
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Markets and Catalogs API Updates: Support B2B, retail, and international catalogs with advanced market segmentation APIs.
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Customizable Payment Terms: Offer region-specific, flexible B2B payment terms across global and domestic markets.
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Personalized Storefronts: Build B2B storefronts with location-specific pricing, catalogs, and custom purchase rules.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a defining moment for wholesale e-commerce evolution. With seamless NetSuite ERP integration, customizable payment terms, and personalized storefront capabilities, merchants can now run robust, enterprise-grade B2B operations directly within Shopify.
For Marmeto, often partnering with brands navigating complex B2B setups, this means fewer workarounds and more native solutions. It enables businesses to deliver tailored, scalable experiences for distributors, resellers, and institutional buyers without sacrificing performance or control. Horizon’s B2B tools shift the narrative from patchwork workflows to purpose-built commerce infrastructure.
Introduces significant enhancements to its shipping capabilities, aiming to streamline fulfillment processes and improve the delivery experience for merchants and customers worldwide.
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Expanded Third-Party Logistics Partnerships: Expanded features to work with top fulfillment partners like across global Shopify markets.
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In-Admin Reporting Enhancements: Track real-time shipping data, inventory, and delivery metrics in your Shopify dashboard.
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Prepaid Shipping Labels: Buy prepaid shipping labels directly via Shopify to speed up global order dispatch.
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Delivery Duty Paid (DDP) Shipping Options: Offer international buyers DDP shipping with clear tax, duty costs upfront at checkout.
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AI-Driven Tariff Guidance: Use Shopify’s AI tool to estimate tariffs for cross-border product shipping.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a decisive upgrade for global fulfillment operations. The expansion of third-party logistics integrations, in-admin reporting, and prepaid label support now empowers merchants to streamline backend workflows without external systems.
For brands Marmeto works with, features like Delivery Duty Paid (DDP) options and AI-driven tariff guidance are game-changers, offering transparency and predictability in cross-border logistics. These updates reduce friction not just for the merchant but also for the customer, allowing brands to promise faster, clearer, and more reliable deliveries across markets.
Introduces significant enhancements to its operations capabilities, aiming to streamline business management and improve efficiency for merchants worldwide.
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Multi-Entity Management: Manage multiple legal entities from one Shopify admin across 30+ global regions.
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Streamlined Reporting: Track online and offline sales worldwide from a single dashboard with simplified global reporting.
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Domestic Card Processing: Accept local payments in native currencies without foreign exchange fees across global Shopify stores.
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Multiple Domestic Payout Currencies: Receive payouts in local currencies to regional bank accounts, reducing conversion overhead globally.
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Customer Location Recognition: Auto-detect shopper location to serve region-specific content and experiences worldwide.
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a major infrastructure win for global merchants managing complex multi-entity setups. The ability to handle multiple legal entities from a single Shopify admin while transacting in local currencies and receiving payouts in domestic accounts marks a turning point in simplifying international commerce.
For Marmeto’s merchants, this eliminates the fragmentation of maintaining separate storefronts for different geographies. It consolidates reporting, centralizes control, and reduces operational overhead, all while enhancing localization. Horizon’s operational upgrades bring the backend sophistication global businesses have long needed, right into the core of Shopify.
Introduces significant enhancements to its developer platform, aiming to streamline app development and improve the overall efficiency for developers worldwide.
Next-Gen Developer Platform
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Centralized Shopify Dev Dashboard for faster global app workflows
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Shopify CLI now supports AI-generated code for apps
Auto-sync metafields across Shopify Plus and international stores -
Unified dev stack built to reduce friction for cross-border commerce teams
Modern Tooling Enhancements
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Instantly preview Shopify apps with no live deployment
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Faster localhost development with no tunnel or firewall issues
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Real-time edits streamline productivity for global Shopify developers
Unified Development Stores
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Test Shopify apps on any plan, including Shopify Plus
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In-context merchant preview without code deployment
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Simulates real-time global store behavior for accurate testing
Declarative Custom Data Definitions
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Manage Shopify custom data using easy TOML files
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Replace complex APIs with one-command data provisioning
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Faster deployment for global storefront personalization
Unified UI Components with Polaris
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Shopify Polaris now ships UI components via CDN
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Custom elements work with any dev framework worldwide
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Maintain consistent UX across Admin, Checkout, and Account views
Marmeto’s take on what this means for e-commerce:
This is a foundational upgrade that reshapes how scalable, custom e-commerce solutions are built. The reengineered dev platform with unified dashboards, instant app previews, declarative data, and enhanced Polaris UI components enables Marmeto’s team to go from ideation to execution with unprecedented speed and accuracy.
For merchants Marmeto works with, this means reduced deployment time, fewer integration roadblocks, and cleaner, more maintainable code. Horizon gives developers not just tools but an infrastructure that empowers rapid innovation, making it easier to build experiences that align with the unique needs of global merchants.
The Road Ahead: Marmeto x Horizon
As Shopify Horizon redefines the e-commerce blueprint with over 150 global-first features, the road ahead isn’t just about adoption, it’s about intelligent application. At Marmeto, we don’t just build for the now. We architect for what's next.
From reimagined checkouts to streamlined B2B operations to smarter global shipping, Horizon is powerful, but it’s Marmeto’s strategic lens, development depth, and cross-border experience that unlock its real potential for enterprise brands.
As India’s First Shopify Premier Partner, we stand at the intersection of platform evolution and merchant ambition.
Whether you're a fast-scaling D2C brand in India or a global powerhouse expanding into new markets, the future of commerce is composable, customizable, and cross-channel, and Marmeto is ready to take you there.
This is not just the next chapter in Shopify innovation.
It’s a new era of global e-commerce performance, powered by Horizon, taken on head-first by Marmeto.