Shopify Entrepreneur Weekly

Welcome back! Big waves about tariffs this week. We’re skipping the recap this time since, luckily, it’ll probably be old news by the time you get this newsletter. Focus on what you can control, stay true to your vision, and keep moving forward 🚀

Here’s what’s new:

• The latest updates from Shopify and the world of ecommerce.

• What are other merchants doing to deal with the tariffs?

• Hire a human, but only if you can prove AI can't do it – that's Shopify's new policy.

• 2 brand-new premium Shopify themes.

• Bringing dire wolves back to life!

• Let’s dive in!

Ecommerce news and updates

Shopify has extended the deprecation deadline for Shopify Scripts from August 28, 2025, to June 30, 2026. Shopify Functions is being improved to support custom logic for discounts, shipping, and payments. Use the Shopify Scripts customizations report to plan your migration, as existing Scripts will remain functional until the new deadline, but early migration is encouraged.

Starting April 10, 2025, you can grant Shop channel access to your discount codes via the Sales channel access section. From May 2025, Shop will begin showcasing these codes on product pages and in the app's new discounts section for select customers. Enable Shop access now to prepare for this feature launch.

Google now uses businesses' email newsletters to display marketing content like promotions, new arrivals, and sales across Search, Shopping, and Maps. By subscribing to a business's email list or adding [email protected], Google pulls key details automatically—like product info, social links, and brand content—saving merchants time. Businesses are automatically enrolled but can opt out through Merchant Center.

Shopify has leased 31,000 sq. ft. of office space in Bellevue, Washington, subleasing from Google. This move taps into Seattle’s tech talent pool, home to over 100 engineering centers, including Amazon, Zoom, and OpenAI. Combined with its Nasdaq stock listing and new US address, Shopify appears to be shifting closer to a US presence.

Amazon's AI shopping assistant, Rufus, is projected to drive over $700 million in operating profits this year by boosting consumer spending through product recommendations. According to an internal document, the company uses a "downstream impact" metric to track this spending increase. Amazon plans to expand Rufus globally and enhance its AI capabilities to improve service further.

What are other merchants doing to deal with the tariffs?

Wondering how other merchants are offsetting the impact of tariffs? Sudden cost hikes, squeezed margins, and no easy fixes. But instead of just absorbing the hit, you can get proactive.

Here’s a thread of actionable solutions (and a few you might steal):

• Shifting production to Mexico (zero tariffs, faster lead times)

• Front-loading inventory to blend costs before hikes hit

• Redesigning packaging to slash shipping fees without sacrificing CX

• Diversifying suppliers to Vietnam & Thailand for long-term resilience

…plus 11 more plays 👇

Overheard on the socials

An internal memo from Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke has surfaced, sharing his thoughts on AI and how the company plans to approach it moving forward.

Here are the main takeaways:

1. A subtle but huge reframe: “Hire an AI before you hire a human.” Teams must justify new hires by proving AI can’t do it first.

2. AI is now a baseline expectation at Shopify. Hiring filters will probably favor AI-fluent candidates—not just here, but everywhere.

3. AI agents are now treated like teammates, not tools. They’re collaborators, not just autocomplete.

4. Prompting is now a core skill. Top performers will be top prompters. Bad prompting = bad output = bad performance.

5. AI usage is now measured. Interesting how?

6. AI-first prototyping is the new standard. Shipping speed will probably 10x—even at a $100B company like Shopify.

7. Org charts blur. Headcount planning now includes bots, not just bodies.

8. AI literacy is the new coding literacy. Prompting, contextualizing, and evaluating AI output is now mandatory.

9. AI is now a core layer in the software stack. Not a plugin. Not an add-on. AI sits beside infra, backend, frontend, and design. The best teams will treat it like infrastructure.

10. Tobi’s memo screams one thing: More impact per person. 

Shopify is ahead of the curve on this, but I have a feeling it’ll impact most major companies in the next 12-24 months.

It could turn out to be a good thing. Or maybe not so much. Time will tell!

What do you think about it?

New themes alert

Volume by Staylime – $290 USD 💵

An advanced, highly customizable theme built for high-volume stores. Designed with rich navigation and mobile-first optimization, it enhances user experience with a smart category menu, interactive product features, and over 40 sections to boost conversions. Perfect for seamless, fast, and engaging shopping experiences.

Primavera by Ultramarina – $400 USD 💵

A luxury ecommerce theme designed to help premium brands stand out and scale. With 30+ customizable sections, global theme blocks, and features like quick add, cart upsell, and infinite scroll, it’s built to boost sales and engagement. Crafted by luxury experts, it offers editorial layouts and elegant product discovery for a high-end shopping experience. Fully optimized with the latest tech, SEO, accessibility, and web best practices, this theme ensures your business is ready to grow with confidence.

Photo of the week

Colossal Biosciences, a "de-extinction" startup, has combined ancient DNA and CRISPR technology to create animals with dire wolf traits, resulting in three adorable pups—Remus, Romulus, and Khaleesi. This is an exciting milestone in their mission to bring extinct species back to life. Fun fact: one of their investors is George R.R. Martin, the mastermind behind "Game of Thrones," who brought dire wolves to life in his fictional world!

That's it for today!

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