E-Commerce
PrestaShop stores: builds, migrations, upgrades, wholesaler integrations and maintenance
Creating PrestaShop stores, moving them over from Shoper, WooCommerce and OpenCart, bringing them up to versions 8 and 9, connecting wholesalers and warehouses, B2B, B2C and multistore arrangements, and ongoing technical care. The store owner keeps the code, the data and the hosting.
What this covers: PrestaShop stores
A PrestaShop store that belongs to its owner
With subscription platforms such as Shoper or Shopify, the platform, the servers and the terms of use belong to the provider, which charges a monthly fee and, on some plans, transaction fees as well. PrestaShop is open-source software: the store runs on hosting the owner chooses, and the code and data are theirs. The price of that independence is that a store gradually collects third-party modules, patches and overrides, and after a few years it gets harder to tell why they were added and whether they're still needed.
So a store needs regular updates and someone who reacts when things around it change. Growing traffic and popularity tend to expose gaps in features and performance that nobody noticed at a smaller scale. That applies to new builds and to stores taken over from other developers alike. If you're considering WooCommerce, Sylius or another open-source platform, or marketplace integrations, see the open-source e-commerce page.
PrestaShop store development
A new store starts with an interview: what the store should achieve, what character it should have and how it will be run day to day. A retail shop with a few hundred products, a wholesale catalogue with prices shown only after login, and a business selling stock from wholesalers each need a different mix of theme, modules and data sources.
Based on those requirements, BeGiga proposes open-source solutions first and adapts them to the client. The aim is a balance between what's convenient for the team that will manage the store's content every day and what's easy to maintain for the developers who will work on it later.
The storefront can be built in a few ways. The simplest is a popular off-the-shelf theme suited to the industry, with a page builder for editing content without a developer. Our recommended route is adapting the official PrestaShop theme to a graphic design or materials supplied by the client. A third option is an agreed colour and component system, which keeps the look consistent without the cost of a full design from scratch.
The store can launch with its own product database or straight away on wholesaler data, if the supplier provides a suitable file or API. That's decided case by case, depending on the product range and the quality of the supplier's data.
Migrating a store to PrestaShop from Shoper, WooCommerce and OpenCart
Moving a store from Shoper, WooCommerce, OpenCart or another platform involves much more than exporting products. Categories, variants, customers and order history move over to the extent the old platform allows, and each field is mapped to its PrestaShop equivalent. URLs matter most for Google visibility: old product and category addresses get 301 redirects to the new ones, and SEO titles and descriptions move over with the data.
Before quoting a migration, BeGiga checks the data export from the old platform and the list of features to rebuild in PrestaShop, such as discounts, loyalty programmes, courier and payment integrations, and the storefront design. That way it's clear from the start what will transfer automatically and what needs manual work. The migration itself runs on a development copy, and the production store is switched over only after the data has been checked.
PrestaShop upgrades to versions 8 and 9
Upgrading PrestaShop, say from 1.7 to 8 or from 8 to 9, rarely comes down to a single click. Every installation is different: third-party modules, overrides and the theme need versions compatible with the new release, and the server has to support the required PHP version. When a module has no compatible version, BeGiga replaces it or adapts its code. Clients often ask whether it's better to upgrade the existing store or rebuild it and move the data, and the answer comes from the installation audit. For how upgrades from 1.6, 1.7 and 8 differ, see the PrestaShop upgrade page, and for what's new in the latest release and the risks involved, read should you upgrade PrestaShop to 9.2.
Installation audit and technical debt
Stores that have been running for a few years build up technical debt: modules nobody uses any more, undocumented core overrides, unnecessary data in the database and temporary fixes that became permanent. Any of these can block an upgrade or slow the store down, so before bigger work, an upgrade or a migration, the installation is worth checking. We carry out that review as part of our e-commerce audit service. To learn what most often slows a store down and when new hardware is actually justified, read slow PrestaShop store? A Lighthouse score is not the whole story. Stores weighed down by automated traffic will find more in why Cloudflare is not blocking bots.
PrestaShop technical maintenance
A store can be placed under ongoing maintenance: security updates for the platform and modules, bug fixes, small changes requested as they come up, and response to outages. The scope and response times are set in a maintenance agreement. Under maintenance, bugs and module incompatibilities are fixed as they appear, before they stop sales, and the store owner has one regular technical contact instead of looking for a developer every time something breaks.
PrestaShop integration with wholesalers and warehouse systems
A wholesaler integration starts with finding out how the supplier publishes its data: as XML or CSV files or through an API. We also check how often the supplier refreshes it, how good its API is and what data the feed actually contains. Based on that, BeGiga sets up a synchronisation that runs on a schedule, adds new products, updates stock levels, prices and descriptions, maps the wholesaler's categories to the store's and applies markups. The integration handles product combinations and attributes, and with several suppliers at once it supports dropshipping.
The store can also be connected to marketplaces such as Allegro or Amazon, to multichannel sales management systems like Base.com, to warehouse and accounting software, couriers and payment providers. Stores with several warehouses that ship from multiple sources get a separately planned order flow, so each order reaches the right warehouse.
B2B, B2C and multistore
BeGiga builds stores for retail customers, wholesale B2B platforms and setups that combine both. A B2B store usually has prices tied to customer groups, a catalogue visible only after login, minimum order values, VAT number verification with company data filled in automatically at registration, and invoices passed on to the accounting software. In a B2C store, speed, a smooth checkout and payments matter more. The latest PrestaShop versions also include built-in B2B foundations, which makes these stores easier to build without touching the core.
Multistore mode lets you run several stores from one back office: separate stores for different brands, countries and languages, or separate sites for wholesale and retail buyers that share a catalogue and stock. Each store can have its own domain, theme, currencies and payment methods.
Custom PrestaShop modules
Custom modules are built where the ready-made modules available on the market don't cover the store's logic: pricing rules per customer group, product configurators, B2B features, non-standard checkout steps or integrations with specific wholesalers. In most cases, though, a ready-made module from a developer who updates and supports it regularly is a better choice than a bespoke one. We also advise on choosing those modules.
AI assistant and MCP server in PrestaShop
The latest PrestaShop versions can run an AI assistant in the back office that answers questions about orders, products and customers and makes changes once an employee approves them. The assistant works through an MCP server, which external AI applications use to reach the store's data. BeGiga sets up the assistant and the MCP server, configures employee permissions and, where needed, writes modules that expose the store's own functions to the assistant. It requires a compatible store version and an API key for the chosen model provider. For wider uses of AI in a company, see the page on AI projects and document analysis.
How a PrestaShop store project runs
- Discovery. The store's goals and character, access to current systems, the analytics, warehouse and accounting tools the store uses, the migration plan and a check of wholesaler files and APIs.
- Technical plan. Scope of work, theme or form of graphic design, the modules affected, risks and a quote before work begins.
- Delivery. Build, migration, integration or upgrade according to the agreed plan, on a development copy of the store.
- Handover and maintenance. Go-live, documentation and an optional maintenance agreement.
FAQ: PrestaShop stores
Does BeGiga work only with PrestaShop?
PrestaShop is our main platform, and most of our modules and integrations are built for it. Other PHP-based e-commerce engines are covered when a project needs it. If discovery shows that a different platform would suit the store better, we say so before preparing a quote.
Will migrating to PrestaShop hurt our Google rankings?
Not if you check before the migration whether redirects are needed. PrestaShop usually builds product and category URLs differently from the old platform, and changing the link structure without 301 redirects hurts Google rankings, because the old addresses stop working. So before migrating we compare the URL structures, set up redirects wherever addresses change, and move SEO titles and descriptions over with the data.
Does a wholesaler integration run automatically?
Yes. Once configured, it pulls the wholesaler's data on a schedule and updates stock levels, prices and descriptions without anyone on the store's side having to step in. How often depends on how frequently the wholesaler refreshes its file or API and on the request limits it sets.
Can one back office run several stores?
Yes, PrestaShop has a built-in multistore mode. Several stores, for example for different brands, countries, or separately for wholesale and retail buyers, then run from one back office and can share a catalogue and stock.
Can you take over a store built by another agency?
Yes. Work starts with a review of the code, modules and hosting, so it's clear exactly what we're taking over. Undocumented overrides and abandoned modules are common, and they can usually be sorted out.
Will the store depend on BeGiga after the project?
No. Modules follow PrestaShop standards and all the work is documented. Further development can be handled by the owner's team or by any developer who knows PrestaShop.
