--- title: How to Overcome the Challenges of an Order Management System for Shopify description: Learn the most common challenges of an Order Management System for Shopify and how to overcome them. image: https://www.hotwax.co/hubfs/How%20To%20Overcome%20Your%20Shopify%20Order%20Management%20System%20Issues-1.png --- [![HotWax Commerce](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/hotwax-logo.png?width=1924&height=609&name=hotwax-logo.png "HotWax Commerce")](https://www.hotwax.co/) [![HotWax Commerce](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/Common%20assets/Logos/HotWax/HWCLogoDarkMode.png?width=1924&height=609&name=HWCLogoDarkMode.png "HotWax Commerce")](https://www.hotwax.co/) ☰ - Product - Overview - [Omnichannel Order Management System](https://www.hotwax.co/product/omnichannel-order-management-system/) - [Omnichannel Order Management For Shopify](https://www.hotwax.co/product/omnichannel-order-management-system-for-shopify/) - [OMS Architecture](https://www.hotwax.co/product/technology/oms-architecture) - 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- - [mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https://www.hotwax.co/blog/how-to-overcome-issues-of-order-management-system-for-shopify&body=Check%20out%20https://www.hotwax.co/blog/how-to-overcome-issues-of-order-management-system-for-shopify&media=https://6357099.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/6357099/How%20To%20Overcome%20Your%20Shopify%20Order%20Management%20System%20Issues-1.png](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https://www.hotwax.co/blog/how-to-overcome-issues-of-order-management-system-for-shopify&body=Check%20out%20https://www.hotwax.co/blog/how-to-overcome-issues-of-order-management-system-for-shopify&media=https://6357099.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/6357099/How%20To%20Overcome%20Your%20Shopify%20Order%20Management%20System%20Issues-1.png) - - Many young brands choose Shopify to launch their businesses, and for good reason! Shopify enables entrepreneurs to quickly and affordably create an eCommerce storefront, helping them build a customer base and start fulfilling orders with ease. However, as these businesses grow and expand into new sales channels, they often face significant challenges—particularly when it comes to an Order Management System for Shopify. A standard Order Management System for Shopify often lacks the real-time inventory, order, and return management features that established businesses need to remain competitive. Without real-time visibility and availability across various channels and locations, brands struggle to efficiently fulfill orders and meet the increasing expectations of their customers. In this blog, we’ll explore the key challenges that Shopify merchants face with an Order Management System for Shopify and discuss strategies to overcome these obstacles, ensuring your commerce technology scales with your business. ## What are the challenges of Order Management for Shopify? ### 1. Customer Experience One thing is certain that brands must prioritize redesigning customer experiences to bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds while removing friction from the customer journey. As consumers increasingly expect seamless interactions across channels, delivering a sophisticated and unified experience has become non-negotiable. Unfortunately, Shopify’s standard toolkit falls short in providing retailers with the advanced capabilities required to meet these expectations. To stay competitive, brands need solutions that go beyond the basics, empowering them to create a truly connected and frictionless customer experience. ### 2. Lack of Inventory Synchronization and Backorder Management An Order Management System for Shopify that lacks real-time inventory visibility across both online and offline channels can create significant challenges for growing brands. Without synchronization, brands may take orders online only to cancel them later due to stock shortages. This lack of inventory visibility across multiple channels leads to frustrated customers and forces teams to rely on cumbersome, manual processes to maintain accurate inventory records. To compound the issue, Shopify does not offer functionality to track when products will be restocked. This means that when customers call in, your support team is unable to provide accurate delivery estimates. Furthermore, Shopify’s lack of backorder management leaves customer service representatives in the dark about the status of orders. They have no visibility into whether an order is being routed, picked, packed, or shipped—making it impossible to offer real-time updates to customers. ### 3. Return Management Challenges Returns are a natural and unavoidable part of the eCommerce buying process. In fact, studies show that eCommerce businesses typically experience a 20-30% return rate, and customers now expect refunds almost immediately. With [91% of shoppers](https://www.powerreviews.com/power-of-reviews-2023/) reviewing a website’s return policy before making a purchase, having a smooth and efficient returns process is essential. However, Shopify’s return management system only offers basic functionality, relying on manual workflows, inefficient tracking, and poor record-keeping. As a result, customers can be left waiting up to 10-15 days to receive their refunds. Shopify’s [nominal support for refunds and exchanges](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/sell-in-person/shopify-pos/order-management/complete-refund-orders) means that when a customer contacts your team to request a return, the process is far from seamless. Your team has to manually look up the order, validate the return policy, create a return ticket, and generate a shipping label. Once the returned item arrives at the warehouse, the refund process can finally begin, but if the item is undamaged, your team must manually restock it in Shopify for resale. As your business grows and the volume of returns increases, these processes can take up hundreds of hours, negatively impacting customer relationships and eating into profit margins. ### 4. High Delivery Costs and Lack of Fast Delivery While Shopify allows for inventory management across multiple locations, [it doesn’t offer the ability to select the nearest warehouse](https://community.shopify.com/c/payments-shipping-and/how-can-i-manage-multi-warehouse-inventory-and-shipments/td-p/503605) to fulfill an order based on the customer’s shipping address. As a result, customers are burdened with high shipping costs and longer delivery times. While this delivery model may have sufficed in the past, it no longer meets the demands of today’s “want-it-now” retail environment. If your business isn’t leveraging a sophisticated Order Management System for Shopify to optimize fulfillment, you risk losing valuable sales to competitors who are already ahead in the race for faster, more cost-effective delivery. ### 5. Email Me When Available When products go out of stock, brands want to capture the customer’s interest and notify them as soon as the item becomes available again. Shopify offers the ability to add a form to the product details page, allowing customers to sign up for email notifications when out-of-stock items are restocked. However, this process remains largely manual and inefficient. Without real-time inventory visibility, brands must constantly monitor stock levels, often missing the opportunity to fulfill sales quickly. This time-consuming process is prone to human error and frequently results in lost sales, as customers become frustrated with the wait. ### 6. Manual Fulfillment For businesses handling only a handful of orders a day, Shopify is a great starting point. Brands can print each order, use it as a packing slip, and generate shipping labels one at a time—an ideal process for a young brand just getting off the ground. However, as your business grows and you begin fulfilling hundreds or even thousands of orders a day, this manual process quickly becomes time-consuming and prone to errors. It’s not uncommon for larger Shopify brands to mistakenly ship the wrong item to a customer, leading to poor customer experiences and extended delivery timelines. Once you've established a solid customer base and expanded across multiple sales channels, it’s crucial to invest in a more sophisticated Order Management System for Shopify. This will help eliminate manual errors, streamline the fulfillment process, and ensure a seamless experience for your customers. ## How Can Retailers Overcome the Challenges of Order Management System for Shopify It’s clear that real-time inventory visibility and availability across multiple sales channels are essential for delivering the seamless shopping experience your customers expect. But is there a way to achieve this without completely overhauling your system? Fortunately, the answer is yes! In fact, there are two approaches you can take to transform your order management. ### 1. Shopify Apps The Shopify ecosystem offers a wide range of apps that can help address the challenges outlined in this blog. While these apps can provide short-term solutions, it's important to be aware of the potential drawbacks. Integrating too many apps can add complexity to your store, creating new challenges in itself. Many apps can conflict with Shopify themes or the platform’s core functions, and most focus on just one or two features. While these can enhance the shopping experience, they often struggle to support broader business operations. Additionally, [many apps can slow down your store](https://community.shopify.com/c/shopify-apps/does-multiple-apps-slow-down-the-website/td-p/2389349), negatively impacting performance. ### 2. Pre-integrated Distributed Order Management System A more robust solution to enhance your shopping experience is to partner with an enterprise-grade order management system that integrates seamlessly with your Shopify platform. The best-in-class [Order Management System for Shopify](https://www.hotwax.co/product/omnichannel-order-management-system-for-shopify/) comes with built-in features that solve all the challenges discussed in this blog—without the headaches of managing multiple vendors or risking slowdowns to your store. This approach allows you to scale efficiently, improve operations, and deliver a top-tier customer experience. #### Features of Pre-integrated Distributed Order Management System with Shopify - Real-time inventory visibility across the supply chain - Online order routing based on proximity and inventory availability - In-store and warehouse fulfillment tools for picking, packing, and shipment - Store inventory management - Buy-Online Pick-Up In-Store tools for in-store pickup - Endless aisle - Return management - Order Splitting - Backorders and pre-orders - ERP integration #### Features of Pre-integrated Distributed Order Management System with Shopify - Increase the customer lifetime value - Reduce delivery time and cost - Increase store traffic and conversions - Save the sale - Increase average order value - Save on integration costs \*     \*     \*  Shopify is an excellent platform for quickly launching and growing your eCommerce business. However, as your brand scales, you’ll need a [Distributed Order Management System (DOMS)](https://www.hotwax.co/blog/what-is-distributed-order-management-system-and-why-do-retailers-need-it) to tackle the growing challenges that come with managing orders on Shopify, as discussed in this blog. If you’re looking to streamline and enhance your order management processes, schedule a session with the [HotWax Commerce team of experts](https://www.hotwax.co/connect) to learn how our platform seamlessly integrates with Shopify, complementing your existing business operations and drives growth. ## Related Blogs ### [![Why Top Retail Brands Migrated to Shopify and Shopify Plus in 2025](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/Blogs/why-top-retail-brands-migrated-to-shopify-and-shopify-plus-in-2025/why-top-retail-brands-migrated-to-shopify-and-shopify-plus-in-2025-.jpg?width=400&name=why-top-retail-brands-migrated-to-shopify-and-shopify-plus-in-2025-.jpg) Shopify Why Top Retail Brands Migrated to Shopify and Shopify Plus in 2025](https://www.hotwax.co/blog/why-top-retail-brands-migrated-to-shopify-and-shopify-plus-in-2025) ### [![Challenges of Integrating Shopify POS Exchanges v2](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/challenges-of-integrating-shopify-pos-exchanges-v2.png?width=400&name=challenges-of-integrating-shopify-pos-exchanges-v2.png) Shopify Challenges of Integrating Shopify POS Exchanges v2](https://www.hotwax.co/blog/challenges-of-integrating-shopify-pos-exchanges-v2-with-netsuite-erp) ### [![Shopify POS vs Loop POS: Best POS System for Retail Returns](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/Shopify%20POS%20vs%20Loop%20POS-1.jpg?width=400&name=Shopify%20POS%20vs%20Loop%20POS-1.jpg) Shopify Shopify POS vs Loop POS: Best POS System for Retail Returns](https://www.hotwax.co/blog/shopify-pos-vs-loop-pos-best-pos-system-for-retail-returns) ### [![What Is Shopify Exchange v2 and Why Was It Introduced?](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/What%20is%20Shopify%20exchange%20V2%3F.jpg?width=400&name=What%20is%20Shopify%20exchange%20V2%3F.jpg) Shopify What Is Shopify Exchange v2 and Why Was It Introduced?](https://www.hotwax.co/blog/what-is-shopify-exchange-v2-and-why-is-it-introduced) ### [![What is Omnichannel Returns Management? How to Guide: Shopify x Loop Returns x HotWax x NetSuite](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/What%20is%20Omnichannel%20Returns%20Management.jpg?width=400&name=What%20is%20Omnichannel%20Returns%20Management.jpg) Shopify What is Omnichannel Returns Management? How to Guide: Shopify x Loop Returns x HotWax x NetSuite](https://www.hotwax.co/blog/what-is-omnichannel-returns-management) ### [![What is Omnichannel Fulfillment? How to Guide: Shopify x HotWax x NetSuite](https://www.hotwax.co/hs-fs/hubfs/What%20is%20Omnichannel%20Fulfillment%3F%20How%20to%20Guide%20Shopify%20x%20HotWax%20x%20NetSuite.jpg?width=400&name=What%20is%20Omnichannel%20Fulfillment%3F%20How%20to%20Guide%20Shopify%20x%20HotWax%20x%20NetSuite.jpg) Shopify What is Omnichannel Fulfillment? 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