Shopify just launched their Winter ’25 Edition, showcasing all of their latest product updates to help make e-commerce business owners’ and Shopify developers jobs (and lives) easier.
Shopify dubbed Winter ’25 “The Boring Edition” given their focus on existing feature improvement rather than new features, as we saw in Summer Editions ’24. Rounding out the "boring" theme is a basic HTML-lookalike landing page reminiscent of early internet websites - very cute.
So what’s new in the update? Let’s take a look:
Shopify Editions Winter ’25 Marketing Updates
Shopify is fleshing out their email marketing system in the Winter ’25 Edition to become more competitive against email giants like Klaviyo. Here’s what’s new in email:
- Custom UTM parameters are now available for Shopify Email campaigns.
- Shopify Email spend and ROI metrics are now built into the marketing analytics dashboard.
- Shopify Email campaigns featuring specific products can now be sent right from the product details page. (Side note: These are the kinds of fully native email marketing features we want to see more of!)
- Automated email marketing templates are now powered by Shopify Flow and are available in the template library.
- New location-based filters in customer segments allow email marketers to create personalized marketing campaigns that reach nearby customers.
Shopify Email still has a long way to go before it overtakes Klaviyo in capabilities, but these updates take it a step in the right direction.
This update also contained some (dare we say, exciting?) updates and integrations for PPC paid advertising:
- Shop Campaigns are now available on all plans in US and Canada. Shop Campaigns are a low-lift and risk-free paid ad option, with opportunities to scale on Google and Meta.
- Shop Campaigns can be expanded to Google Shopping with a single click, for US and Canada merchants only.
- Google Ads campaigns can now use Shopify customer segments.
Improving The B2B Wholesale Experience
For businesses who sell B2B, Shopify is upgrading the wholesale customer experience and making the selling process easier for retailers. Among the new changes are:
- Password-free customer logins that streamline account access while maintaining security, for Plus merchants only.
- Upgraded draft orders that allow retailers can lock product prices and offer bundles.
- B2B customer returns initiated directly through the customer’s account, for Plus merchants only.
- Reports tailored to focus entirely on B2B orders and customers while excluding DTC, for Plus merchants only.
Providing wholesale customers with a streamlined experience has always been something of a challenge in B2B e-commerce, which these improvements aim to address.
Better Checkout Experience
Following the theme of customer-focused quality of life improvements, Shopify has added a number of optimizations to their checkout experience. These include:
- Up to 50% faster cart loading times.
- Previously only a Shopify Plus feature, Checkout Blocks are now universally available for customized thank you pages.
- Integrated AI chat applications within the checkout process for support, upsells, and more.
In-Store POS Upgrades
Physical retail continues to grow post-COVID, as evidenced by Shopify POS’s 31% year-over-year growth during Black Friday 2024. For businesses with physical locations, Shopify introduced several improvements to its POS system. Here’s what’s changed:
- Bundles are supported directly through POS, allowing retailers to offer more complex product combinations in-store.
- A new split-screen interface keeps search results visible alongside the cart, streamlining the selling process for owners and employees behind the till.
- Metafields are now integrated into POS, allowing retailers to capture customer data more effectively.
Partner With A Shopify Developer
Shopify Editions Winter ’25 marks another step in Shopify’s continual evolution and advancement. They may already have cemented their position at the top of the e-commerce platform pyramid, but their latest updates and improvements show they're far from resting on their laurels.
If you’re a Shopify business owner looking to partner with Shopify experts for paid ads, web development, or email marketing, get in touch with us! Our team has collective decades of Shopify experience and we’d love to share it with you and your business. Check out our services and case studies to learn about our work.