Frequently Asked Questions

Handshake is the handpicked wholesale marketplace for one-of-a-kind brands, brought to you by Shopify. We wanted to build a vibrant community for passionate business owners. A place where brands and retailers could discover each other, connect, and trade online.

We’re supporting the US market for now. But in the future, we hope to expand to more regions globally.

It's free to use for both retailers and brands. No fees, no commissions.

We carefully handpick unique brands with unique stories to tell. Quality is in the detail, after all.

Handshake is built by Shopify, giving brands the power to manage their Handshake profile and products from their Shopify store platform.

To get your brand featured on Handshake, submit your application by installing the Handshake channel on your store. After that, someone from our team will be in touch to say hello.

For now we're only supporting wholesale within the US, but we have plans to expand to other countries and regions.

We welcome applications from businesses who meet the following criteria: - Your business is established in the United States - You have an active store on Shopify, with a history of orders - You own the brand your products carry – we don't allow you to list products you're reselling from other businesses - Your products comply with Handshake Product Guidelines - You have a direct payment provider enabled on your store - Your product images comply with our Photography Guidelines - You sell in one of the categories listed on Handshake

There are laws surrounding hemp and hemp-derived products that might apply to your business. If you’re a US merchant and you want to sell hemp and hemp-derived products that contain CBD, on Handshake by Shopify, then first you’ll need to review and submit the Attestation for the Sale of Hemp and Hemp-derived Products.

That's OK! Handshake doesn't require exclusivity. We're here to complement your sales strategy, and give you extra exposure to generate sales.

Our team of curators starts reviewing your application and checking out your store. We'll be back in touch within 10-14 business days to let you know if your application is approved.

Handshake is continuing to develop and grow. If the nature of your business changes in the future, and you feel you do meet our brand criteria, you’re welcome to reapply.

Handshake is an open marketplace where every registered retailer can place orders with any brand. You do have full control over who carries your products though, and if you feel strongly that a retailer isn’t a good fit for your brand, you can choose to cancel an order.

Access and manage your Handshake profile, products, and orders from your Shopify admin. Log in to your Shopify store and head to Sales Channels > Handshake.

Whenever you like. You have full control of all of your products, their descriptions, pricing, and availability.

We're working on plans to make this available.

We'll notify you by email every time you get a new order. It'll arrive as a new order email from Shopify, just like it does with any other type of order. Find all your Handshake orders in Orders in your Shopify admin. To filter so you’re only seeing your Handshake orders, select More filters > Sales channel, and check Handshake.

No, one of the criteria for retailers buying on Handshake is that they don't resell your products on third party marketplaces, including Amazon, eBay, Etsy or others. If you notice that this is happening, report it to support straightaway.

If you want to take a break from Handshake for a while, simply unpublish your Handshake profile from within your Handshake sales channel. It'll mean your profile is hidden from Handshake.com but all of your settings will be saved. You can publish again at any time. To stop selling on Handshake altogether, remove it as a sales channel from your Shopify admin.

Follow the instructions to reset your password.

No. Enjoy zero fees and zero commissions on your sales.

Handshake supports direct payment providers (not external payment providers), so your customer completes their payment on the Handshake checkout, using a credit card.

Immediately. Payments are instantaneous upon a retailer completing checkout with their credit card.

All orders on Handshake are tax-free as standard. It's brands' sole responsibility to obtain all tax exemption documents required by law to support tax-free purchases. After a retailer places an order, and before the order is fulfilled, you can add custom charges, such as taxes, for the retailer to approve and pay. See our step-by-step guide to charging custom tax.

No, you set your own shipping policy and rates for your Handshake orders. For help with this, see Setting up shipping rates with Handshake.

Yes. In your Shopify admin, go to Handshake > Preferences and add as much detail as you can about your returns process and refund policy, in the Shipping and Returns section. Retailers will see a clickable Shipping & Returns link on your brand profile, and under every product description. Returns are at your sole discretion, and not handled by Handshake.

First you need to sign up as a retailer. You’ll need to be a US based business, as we’re only supporting the US market right now. Handshake is built by and integrated with Shopify, so if we see that your email isn’t linked to a Shopify ID, we’ll help you create one. You won't need to open a store on Shopify, and it’s 100% free to get a Shopify ID to use with Handshake. To complete your Handshake application, you'll need to have this information about your business to hand: - Store name - Legal business name (if different from store name) - Reseller ID (also known as reseller permit, resale certificate, or sales tax ID) - US business address - Contact details

We welcome retailers who meet the following requirements: - Is US based - Has an established online store, brick and mortar store, pop-up store, or booth which is open and ready for business in the US - Has a valid reseller ID (known as Sales Tax ID, Reseller Permit, or Resale Certificate in some US states), or a valid reason for not having one - Doesn't sell on third party marketplaces, including Amazon, Etsy, and eBay - The products you sell in your store comply with our Handshake Terms of Service It's important that when you sign up you provide accurate information. Missing business information, or details we can't verify, can be reasons that we decide to disable Handshake accounts.

For now we're only supporting wholesale within the US, but we have plans to expand to other countries and regions.

No, we welcome brick and mortar, online stores, and pop-up stores.

Yes, retailers must have a reseller ID in order to buy on Handshake. We ask for it during your application. This is known by a few different names depending on which US state you're in – reseller permit, resale certificate, or sales tax ID are some of the most common. Your state tax department can advise on the documents you need to do business, as requirements do vary from state to state. Your reseller ID tells us that you're licensed to sell to others, and can buy wholesale products without paying sales tax, because you pass the tax onto your customers. Most wholesalers will ask to see a reseller ID before they’ll sell goods to you. This is because they’re legally obliged to check whether you’re able to collect sales tax from your customers, the end users.

Brands set order minimums to tell you the minimum dollar amount they require you to spend with them in a single order, to buy their products. Brands choose these minimum order values themselves. We've built minimum order filters to help you discover products within your ideal price range.

When you're logged into your Handshake account, you'll find the green 'Contact brand' button on any product page, or any brand's profile page. Once you've written and sent your message, the brand will reply to you directly, by email.

Follow the instructions to reset your password.

If your Handshake account is disabled, when you try to sign in you’ll get an error message. In some cases, you’ll receive an email too, telling you that your account is disabled. There are several reasons why this can happen: - You didn’t meet our retailer criteria - You violated our Terms of Service - Suspicious activity was detected on your account If you believe your account has been disabled by mistake, and you want to request reinstatement, contact support.

Handshake accepts payment by credit card, using a secure payment processing system chosen by the brand.

No, we don't see or store your credit card information at any point in your transaction. Everything is handled through your chosen brand's secure payment provider, including card validation. Handshake is simply told whether to approve or decline the payment.

Every brand sets their own cancelation policy, so it's best to get in touch with them directly if you have any issues with an order you've placed.

We'll send you a series of email notifications to let you know the status of your order – including when it's confirmed, if it's updated, when it ships (plus tracking code if available), and when it's out for delivery. We'll also notify you by email of cancelations or refunds. See all of your Handshake orders when you're logged in to Handshake.com, by clicking Account > Orders.

Check with your brand. They set their own shipping policies.

Not at the moment. But get in touch with the brand directly, either before or after placing your order, to ask about and agree on the shipping and fulfilment terms.

Not right now. We're only supporting wholesale within the US, but we have plans to expand to other countries and regions.

If you have any problems with your order, get in touch with the brand you bought from. They each have their own policies around returns and refunds, so they'll be able to help you.