---
title: Open your first store
description: A step-by-step path from a business idea to a store that takes payments, written for people opening their first online store.
---

This guide is a single ordered path from a business idea to a store that can take money. It is written for people who have not sold anything online before, so it explains the e-commerce parts as it goes.

You need an idea and an email address to start. A registered business, a domain, and a Stripe account come later, at the steps where they are actually required.

Already selling on Shopify? Use [Connect Shopify](./start-here/connect-shopify) instead. This guide covers building a store from scratch.

## Three states, and why they are separate

A store passes through three states, and they do not happen at the same time. Knowing which one you are in prevents most of the confusion in this process.

| State | What it means | What it does not mean |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Preview** | Runner has built your storefront and you can look at it. | It is not public. |
| **Published** | The store has a public web address and anyone can visit it. | Payments are not enabled, so a customer cannot complete a purchase. |
| **Checkout ready** | Stripe is connected and an order can be paid for. | This is the point where the store is open for business. |

Publishing is step 7. Payments are step 9. A live store is not necessarily a working one.

## How to use this guide

Eleven steps in four groups.

| Group | Steps |
| --- | --- |
| **Build** | 1. Decide what to sell · 2. Build your storefront |
| **Set up** | 3. Store details · 4. Products · 5. Shipping · 6. Policies and trust |
| **Go live** | 7. Review and publish · 8. Custom domain (optional) · 9. Connect payments |
| **Grow** | 10. First visitors · 11. Weekly operations |

Work through them in order. Several later steps fail quietly if an earlier one is incomplete: shipping does not save without a stock location, products do not show prices without a market, and the domain step needs a successful publication first. Step 8 is the exception — it is optional, and you can do it any time after publishing.

Every step ends with something you can verify yourself. The **Launch checklist** at the end of this guide collects all of them in one place.

Runner does more than build the storefront. It can research what to sell, suggest products, write descriptions, create and update catalog records, and draft your policy pages. Each step below includes prompts you can copy into chat. If something is not working, describe it — Runner can read your store's current state and identify what is missing.

Skills give Runner a repeatable set of instructions for a type of work. Open **Control Center → Agent → Skills → Discover** and search for the task you are doing, such as `market research`, `product description`, `policy`, or `SEO`. See [Skills](./agent/skills).

**If a setup helper appears first.** New stores can open a guided setup that asks for store basics, shipping, a first product, payment, and visibility in one pass. It covers parts of steps 3, 4, 5, and 9 out of order. Complete what you can, select **Skip** on the rest, and use the steps below to finish the skipped items properly. See [Onboarding and General settings](./store-operations/onboarding-and-general-settings).

## Step 1 — Decide what to sell

The rest of the process is faster once this is settled. Plan on an afternoon.

You need three answers: what you sell, who buys it, and where it comes from. The third one shapes several later steps.

- **Hold your own stock.** You buy or make the products and ship each order yourself. Higher margin, more work, and money spent before your first sale.
- **Dropshipping.** A supplier holds the stock and ships each order on your behalf. Faster to start and no stock to buy, with thinner margins and less control over delivery times.

Runner supports both, and you can change later. See [Dropshipping](./store-operations/dropshipping).

**Ask Runner**

> I want to start a store but haven't decided what to sell. I'm interested in [topic]
> and can spend around [budget]. What's selling well, and what are the tradeoffs for
> each option?

> Should I dropship [product] or hold my own stock? This is my first store.

> Who buys [product]? What do they care about, and what price do they expect?

**You are done when** you can state what you sell, who buys it, and where it comes from. Keep that description — you paste it into chat in step 2.

**Skip for now:** a domain, a logo, and business registration. Each is cheaper to decide once the product is settled.

## Step 2 — Build your storefront

Runner builds the site. You describe the business and review what comes back. A first version usually takes under an hour.

**Entry path:** Workspace **Home** → **+ Store**

1. In your workspace, select **+ Store**, then **Build new**.
2. Enter the required details and continue. See [Create a Runner store](./start-here/create-runner-store).
3. In the project conversation, describe your business, your customers, the style you want, and the pages you need. The description from step 1 is a good starting point.
4. Answer any follow-up questions Runner asks. A request waiting for input does not progress until you answer.
5. When a preview is available, select **Storefront** and check the main pages on desktop and mobile. See [Preview your store](./storefront-and-publishing/preview-your-store).
6. Ask for changes in chat, or select an element directly in [Design Mode](./storefront-and-publishing/design-mode).

![Storefront preview](https://ixft9x6szo.ufs.sh/f/Cc8uxBgAYTzgymaWrcB38OLrMsdNW2nkuew17FYjt6iTyfxz)

Specific requests get better results than general ones. See [Write effective requests](./work-with-runner/write-effective-requests).

**Ask Runner**

> Build a store selling [what] to [who]. The style should be [style]. I need a home
> page, product pages, an about page, and a contact page.

> Suggest three visual directions for a [product type] store and explain who each one
> appeals to.

> Make the hero section shorter and move the product grid higher on the page.

**You are done when** the preview loads and your main pages open correctly on both desktop and mobile.

**Skip for now:** fine visual details. The storefront changes again once real products are in it.

**If a request fails or stops,** send a smaller, corrected request rather than the same one again. See [Track task states and Details](./work-with-runner/task-states-and-details) and [Troubleshoot preview and publishing](./storefront-and-publishing/troubleshoot-preview-and-publishing).

## Step 3 — Set up your store details

Your store's public identity and where it sells. About 10 minutes, and several later steps depend on it.

**Entry path:** **Workspace → choose a store → Store Operations → General**

1. Open **Store Operations → General**.
2. Enter the store name, a contact email, and your business address. The store name is limited to 30 characters, and the contact email must be a valid address.
3. Under **Markets**, add the countries you sell to and set the currency.
4. Under **Stock Locations**, add the address orders ship from. A home address is valid.
5. Select **Save** and wait for the saved state.

![Store Operations General settings](https://ixft9x6szo.ufs.sh/f/Cc8uxBgAYTzggOtwwOIC4NbwvYeKD2nM5xTZ76dBjp0auiyP)

Full detail: [Onboarding and General settings](./store-operations/onboarding-and-general-settings).

**Ask Runner**

> I'm selling to [countries]. What market and currency settings should I use?

**You are done when** General is saved with a store name, a valid contact email, at least one market, and a stock location.

**Worth knowing**

- Currency is set per market, not per product. A product priced in a currency outside your saved markets shows a warning and can fail to display a price on the storefront.
- Store visibility is separate from publishing. **Visible to customers** controls whether the storefront shows the store. It does not put your storefront code online — that is step 7.
- This is a good moment to start Stripe. Payments are step 9, but Stripe's review of your details can take time, so starting now means the wait happens in the background instead of on launch day.

## Step 4 — Add your products

You need at least one complete, sellable product. How long this takes depends entirely on how you source.

**Entry path:** **Workspace → choose a store → Store Operations → Products**

Three routes, and you can mix them.

| Route | Use it when | Where |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Create manually** | You have your own products | **Products → Add** |
| **Dropshipping** | A supplier holds stock and ships for you | **Store Operations → Dropshipping** |
| **CSV import** | You already have a catalog in a spreadsheet | **Products → Import** |

An empty catalog shows **Add First Product** instead of **Add** and **Import**.

A complete product needs a name and description, a price in a currency that matches a saved market, at least one image, inventory, and **Published** status. A **Draft** product does not appear to customers. Physical goods also need weight and dimensions, because shipping and fulfillment depend on them.

![Store Operations product list](https://ixft9x6szo.ufs.sh/f/Cc8uxBgAYTzgs5LaDvuaCeknAQbNKhZGRFM2xc5vsoiLrS9q)

Detail: [Products](./store-operations/products) · [Dropshipping](./store-operations/dropshipping) · [Import products](./store-operations/import-products) · [Inventory and variants](./store-operations/inventory-and-variants)

**Ask Runner.** You do not have to fill these forms in yourself. Runner can create and update products, inventory, and images from chat, and can help you choose what to launch with.

> Which of these should I launch with? [list] — consider margin and how hard each one
> is to ship.

> Write a product description for [product]. Customers care most about [what matters].

> Set inventory for [product] to 50 and mark the blue variant out of stock.

> Check my catalog and tell me which products are missing images, prices, or inventory.

Name the record and the exact result you want, and authorize destructive changes explicitly.

**You are done when** at least one product is **Published**, priced in a saved market currency, has an image and inventory, and appears on the storefront preview.

**Worth knowing**

- Inventory only persists once a stock location is saved. That is part of step 3 — add one there if you skipped it.
- Dropshipping products can behave differently from manually managed ones for cost and inventory. Confirm a destination, a usable shipping method, and a retail price for every variant before adding an item.
- CSV import needs Runner's current template. `handle` and `title` are required, and variant rows need `sku` and option values.

## Step 5 — Set up shipping

Runner needs to know where orders ship from and what you charge to deliver them. About 15 minutes.

Order matters here. Shipping does not save without the stock location and market you saved in step 3.

**Entry path:** **Store Operations → General → Shipping**

1. Open **Store Operations → General**.
2. Confirm the **Stock Location** you saved in step 3 is still in place. This is the address orders ship from.
3. Confirm at least one country is saved under **Markets**.
4. Go to **Shipping** and select **Add**.
5. Give the option a name customers will recognize, such as the delivery speed or method.
6. Choose the destination country under **Ship to**, then open **Shipping cost**. A flat rate is the simplest option. Enter `0` for delivery to display as free.
7. Select **Save** in the dialog, then **Save** on the page, and wait for the saved state.

For price-based bands and the other rate types, see [Shipping](./store-operations/shipping). If a carrier or supplier handles delivery, you may also need a connection under **Apps** — see [Shippo](./apps-and-integrations/shippo-shipping), [CJ Dropshipping](./apps-and-integrations/cj-dropshipping), or [4PX fulfillment](./apps-and-integrations/4px-fulfillment).

**Ask Runner**

> I ship from [place] to [countries]. What shipping options should I set up?

> Is free shipping worth offering on a [price] product, or should I charge for it?

**You are done when** a delivery option with a price appears at checkout. Add a product to the cart and check there, not on the settings page.

**Worth knowing**

- A store with no valid shipping option looks normal everywhere except checkout, where the customer cannot complete the order. This is a common reason a finished-looking store takes no sales.
- Shipping options use the stock location saved in General. There is no separate **Ship from** selector on each row.
- Saving fails without a default market region. Save Markets before Shipping.
- Digital products, bookings, and supplier-fulfilled items can follow different rules.

## Step 6 — Make it legal and trustworthy

These are the pages that tell customers who you are and what happens if something goes wrong. Runner can draft all of them. Your job is to check that they match how you actually operate.

Most stores need a refund and return policy, a shipping policy with realistic delivery times, a privacy policy, terms of service, contact information, and an about page.

**Ask Runner**

> Draft a refund and return policy. I sell [what], ship from [where], and want a
> [number]-day return window.

> Draft privacy policy and terms of service pages and add them to the storefront footer.

> Write an about page based on what I've told you about my business.

Then review the drafts:

1. Read each page and correct anything that does not match your actual terms — the return window, who pays return shipping, and how long delivery really takes.
2. Confirm the pages render on the storefront and are linked in the footer. See [Edit content, pages, and media](./storefront-and-publishing/edit-content-pages-and-media).
3. Check the contact address matches the contact email you saved in step 3.

**You are done when** each policy page opens from the storefront footer and reflects your real terms.

**Worth knowing.** Drafts are a starting point, not legal advice. Tax registration, consumer-protection rules, and required disclosures depend on where you operate and what you sell. Check with a local professional before launch if you are unsure.

Product reviews are a separate trust signal, configured in General. Enabling reviews does not add missing review components to an older storefront — ask Runner to add the capability, then publish that change. See [Reviews and advanced admin](./store-operations/reviews-and-advanced-admin).

## Step 7 — Review and publish

Publishing puts your store online at a public address. The checks take a few minutes. Fixing what they find can take longer.

**Entry path:** **Workspace → select a store → Storefront → Publish**

1. Work through the [publication readiness checklist](./storefront-and-publishing/prepare-to-publish) first.
2. Open **Storefront** and select the publication button. It reads **Publish**, **Publish Changes**, or **Republish** depending on the store's state.
3. Read **Confirm Deployment** and wait for the build check to finish.
4. Resolve every warning shown, or acknowledge it deliberately.
5. Select **Confirm** only after the check succeeds.

![Runner publishing controls and checks](https://ixft9x6szo.ufs.sh/f/Cc8uxBgAYTzgT7ZAYgD7lIPXqUA4xQWKLGpygc8jMtzfNJri)

Detail: [Publish and republish](./storefront-and-publishing/publish-and-republish).

**Ask Runner**

> Check whether my store is ready to publish and list anything still missing.

> The publish check is blocked on [item]. What should I do?

**You are done when** the store's public URL opens in a private browser window.

**Worth knowing.** Two things surprise people at this step. Your store is public but cannot take payments yet — that is step 9, and it is the step that opens the store for business. And later changes are not live until you publish again: saving a Design Mode edit, restoring a version, or seeing a correct preview does not update the public store on its own.

Store Operations changes behave differently. Products, prices, inventory, and shipping apply without republishing.

**If a check blocks you,** use the action shown on the item — **Open Store Operations**, **Fix with AI**, or **Retry check**. If it persists, see [Troubleshoot publishing, checkout, and apps](./help-and-reference/troubleshoot-publishing-checkout-apps) and [Troubleshoot storefront builds](./help-and-reference/troubleshoot-storefront-builds).

## Step 8 — Connect a custom domain (optional)

**This step is optional.** Your store already works at the address Runner gave it when you published. A custom domain is about branding, not function. Skipping it does not block payments or anything after it, and you can come back at any time.

Setup takes about 10 minutes, followed by a wait for DNS to propagate. The store needs a successful publication first, and access depends on your plan.

**Entry path:** **Storefront** → published-site menu → **Domain Settings**. On mobile, or when that menu is hidden, use workspace **Settings → Shop: _store name_ → Domain**.

1. Open **Domain Settings** through either entry path above.
2. Either buy a domain through Runner, or add one you already own.
3. If you are adding your own, copy the DNS records Runner shows into your domain provider's settings.
4. Wait for verification. The domain row shows a warning until the records resolve.

![Runner domain settings](https://ixft9x6szo.ufs.sh/f/Cc8uxBgAYTzgYGF1bf76kHwFTWJcAfZ3G7eO08Mhysu1iQRg)

Detail: [Connect a custom domain](./storefront-and-publishing/custom-domains).

**You are done when** your domain opens the store — or when you have decided to come back to this later.

**Worth knowing**

- **Domain added successfully** confirms the domain is attached to your store, not that DNS is working. Those are checked separately, and DNS changes can take several hours.
- Buying or renewing a domain starts an external payment flow. Review the details before continuing.
- If you are launching soon, connect payments first. A store on the default address that takes money is worth more than a branded one that does not.

## Step 9 — Connect payments

This is the step that opens the store for business. Everything before it was setup.

Your store can already be live and look finished. Until this step is done, a customer who tries to buy something cannot complete the purchase.

**Entry path:** **Project → Apps → Store Apps → Stripe**. After publishing, Runner can also show **Connect Stripe** in the store handoff, which opens the same setup.

Stripe collects business details, identity information, and bank details for payouts. Have these ready, and use a browser that allows the Stripe window to open.

1. Open **Apps → Store Apps → Stripe** and select **Connect**.
2. Complete Stripe's setup in the new window.
3. Return to Runner and confirm the connection shows as enabled.

| State | What it means |
| --- | --- |
| **Connecting...** | Runner is preparing the account or setup link. Wait for a result. |
| **Pending review** | Stripe is reviewing your details. This is Stripe's process, not an error in Runner, and it can take time to clear. |
| **Stripe actions required** | Something specific is outstanding. Open it to see what is **Due now**, **Due later**, or **In review**. |
| **Reconnect** or **Continue Onboarding** | An account exists but is not finished. Selecting it resumes the same account. |

Detail: [Connect Stripe for payments](./apps-and-integrations/stripe-payments).

Then test it end to end: open your store on a phone, place a real order, pay with a real card, and refund it from [Orders](./store-operations/orders).

**Ask Runner**

> Stripe is showing [state]. What does it mean and what should I do next?

> A customer says checkout isn't working. What should I check?

**You are done when** you have placed and refunded a real order on your own store. Nothing else confirms that payments, shipping, and the catalog all work together.

**Worth knowing.** A live store URL is not proof that payments are available. The storefront can be published while checkout is still paused or under review. See [Live store and checkout](./storefront-and-publishing/live-store-and-checkout).

## Step 10 — Get your first visitors

Nobody arrives on their own. Start with the work that costs nothing, and do not spend on ads until step 9 is confirmed.

- **Search.** Product titles and descriptions carry most of the weight for a new store. See [SEO overview](./analytics-and-seo/seo-overview) and [Search performance](./analytics-and-seo/search-performance).
- **Analytics.** Confirm visits are being recorded before you judge anything. See [Analytics overview](./analytics-and-seo/analytics-overview).
- **AI visibility.** How your store appears when people ask AI assistants for recommendations. See [AI visibility](./analytics-and-seo/ai-visibility).
- **Creative.** Images and ad variations from [Creative Studio](./automate-test-and-create/creative-studio), and campaigns through [Runner Ads](./automate-test-and-create/runner-ads).

**Ask Runner**

> Improve the SEO titles and descriptions on my product pages.

> Create three ad creatives for [product] aimed at [audience].

> My store has been live a week with no sales. What should I check first?

**You are done when** analytics shows sessions from people other than you.

**Worth knowing.** Low traffic and low conversion are different problems with different fixes. Check traffic first — conversion cannot be diagnosed on ten visits. See [Traffic and conversion](./analytics-and-seo/traffic-and-conversion). If analytics shows nothing at all, confirm the store is published and the data source is connected before changing anything else. See [Troubleshoot data and publication](./analytics-and-seo/troubleshoot-data-and-publication).

## Step 11 — Run your store weekly

A short routine keeps the store healthy once orders start arriving.

1. Check [Orders](./store-operations/orders) and fulfil anything outstanding.
2. Answer customer messages and handle returns. See [Customers](./store-operations/customers).
3. Check stock levels in [Inventory and variants](./store-operations/inventory-and-variants).
4. Look at [Analytics](./analytics-and-seo/analytics-overview) for what changed since last week.

When you have enough traffic, test changes instead of guessing at them with [Experiments](./automate-test-and-create/experiments), hand repeated work to [Automations](./automate-test-and-create/automations), and run [Promotions](./store-operations/promotions) for specific products or periods.

**Ask Runner**

> Summarize this week's orders and flag anything that needs attention.

> Which products sold best this month, and which aren't moving?

**Worth knowing.** Storefront changes need publishing again before customers see them. Store Operations changes apply without republishing. Before authorizing a destructive or order-lifecycle action from chat, ask Runner to inspect the current state first, then authorize the exact effect you want.

## Launch checklist

Each item is something you can verify yourself. If you can confirm all eight required items, your store is open for business.

**Required**

- [ ] You can say what you sell, who buys it, and where it comes from. (Step 1)
- [ ] The storefront preview loads, and your main pages work on desktop and mobile. (Step 2)
- [ ] General is saved with a store name, a valid contact email, at least one market, and a stock location. (Step 3)
- [ ] At least one product is Published, priced in a saved market currency, with an image and inventory. (Step 4)
- [ ] A delivery option with a price appears at checkout when you add a product to the cart. (Step 5)
- [ ] Your policy pages open from the storefront footer and match your real terms. (Step 6)
- [ ] The public store URL opens in a private browser window. (Step 7)
- [ ] You have placed and refunded a real order on your own store. (Step 9)

**Optional, at any point after publishing**

- [ ] Your custom domain opens the store. (Step 8)

**After launch**

- [ ] Analytics shows sessions from people other than you. (Step 10)
- [ ] You have a weekly routine for orders, stock, and customers. (Step 11)

If an item will not confirm, describe what you are seeing in chat.

> Check my store against the launch checklist and tell me what's still incomplete.

## Related guides

- [Get started with Runner](./start-here)
- [Chat with Runner](./work-with-runner/chat-with-runner)
- [Store Operations](./store-operations)
- [Apps and integrations](./apps-and-integrations)
- [Help and reference](./help-and-reference)
- [Glossary](./help-and-reference/glossary)