Deactivate Payments on or Close a Shopify Store

If you do not want to use your Shopify store completely, you have different options for partly, fully and even temporarily closing the store. 

1. Maintain the basic store without receiving payments. You may prefer this option if you are building on your store and not are yet ready to allow visitors to see and or make payments online. You can either allow visitors access or password protect the store. The monthly cost of this arrangement is USD 14 monthly. However, to properly activate this discounted arrangement, call Shopify directly and request that they turn off the payments facility. Otherwise, you may continue to receive the full monthly charge of USD 29. 
2. Close the store. You may entirely retire the store, even on the backend. Consequently, you will receive no monthly charges. To avoid being charged for the next month, complete the steps below before the next month's payment cycle begins. Shopify uses UTC time. Note however that, if you close the store within 3 days after that new month's payment cycle begins, you may be eligible for a refund. Before proceeding with this option, consider backing up your store, just in case you have a change of heart. The steps are below. 
3. Temporarily close the store. You may prefer to consider this an option if you are certain not to open the store for an extended period, possibly due to illness or other such circumstances. Although Shopify does not expressly offer such an option, it exists. Specifically, Shopify guarantees that closed accounts (as discussed above) are maintain closed stores for up to 90 days. Consequently, if you are able to use the store after that period, you can re-open the store and continue working on it. Before proceeding with this option, consider backing up your store, just in case something changes on the Shopify backend. The steps are below.

Steps to Close Your Shopify Store.

Before closing your store, consider backing up your store content, just in case you change your mind. See those steps on this page. Additionally, you may also sell your store on Shopify's Exchange site.

• 'Settings' (from within your dashboard)
• 'Account' (located in the right section of the page among the various options)
• 'Sell or close your store' (at the bottom of the page. You will therefore need to scroll all the way down to find this option).

Steps to Backup Your Shopify Store's Custom Theme &/ Products

This option allows you to create a copy of your store outside of the Shopify environment. If you wish to reinstate the store, you may import it back into Shopify. This may be useful if your store used a custom theme (and not one of Shopify's free templates). Although Shopify changes its back office from time to time, your custom template is likely to continue to be compatible when or if you decide to return to Shopify.

Outside of the following steps, also consider video recording your store's front and back ends to have a visual record of the store's contents and features.

To download a custom theme
This process includes your liquid files. However, if you wish, take extra precaution by making copies of any liquid file templates you might have made. 

• Settings
• Online Store
• Themes
• Click the 'Actions' (dropdown menu for more options)
• Download [your custom them]
• Check your email inbox with the name 'Theme export for www-yourdomain-com-theme_name' for notification
• Click the 'theme export' link to receive a zipped download whose name starts 'theme_export...'.

To download the product information
This process will save the product tags within the CSV files. However, it will not save 'Collections'. Consequently, save a screenshot of your list of collections and corresponding definitions from within the 'Collections' page.

• Products (from within your dashboard)
• Export
• Select to export 'All products'
• Select to export as 'CSV file'
• Click 'Export products' button
• Check your inbox or an email from '[your_company_name (Shopify)]'
• Click 'products_export.zip' link to download the csv file

To download the content of liquid files
Liquid files are usually includes in the theme backup process (above). However, if you wish to take extra precaution by making copies of any liquid file templates you created, use the following steps. In this example, my 'Contact Us' page has special javascript and other code that was not permissible within the regular static pages. Consequently, the contents of that page were placed inside a liquid template.

• Create a folder in Google Drive
• (Optional) This step ensures you remember the correspondences between liquid pages and static pages. Take a screenshot of the backend of the page to which the template applies.
• Online store - Pages - click on the page - make a screen shot (usually by pressing the 'PrtSc' button on your computer).
• (Optional) Paste this screenshot into a Google Docs Page 
  
• Settings
• Online Store
• Themes
• Click the 'Actions' (dropdown menu for more options)
• Select the 'Edit code' option
• Scroll down to the 'templates' section and look for the template you created.
• Open your template. Then copy and paste its contents into Google Docs (as an option, below the screenshot of the backend of the page to which the template relates). 
• Name the Google Doc appropriately, perhaps the same as the liquid file.
  

To download static page content
This requires accessing the HTML code from each static page and then copying the contents into a text file, using programs like Notepad++.

• Online store
• Pages
• Select the page
• Click the < > button to access the HTML code.
• Paste the HTML code into Notepad++ or other suitable text program

To record details from apps
A few apps (like MailChimp) will automatically save all of your updated details. In fact, you can continue accessing them even after your store has been closed. However, since this is not always the case, save the details of other apps.

• Apps
• Click the link of the app to see details of the settings and location on your site you applied the app
• Click 'Update app'
• As much as possible, take screenshots and videos of the front and back ends of apps.
• Repeat this for each app in turn

To download PDF, images, etc
Unfortunately, there are no assurances that your files will appear when you open your account again. Specifically, it is likely that you will need to reload all of the images and reassign the new hyperlinks. Consequently, it is a good idea to download copies.

• Settings
• Files
• Click the link of each document
• Save the file to your computer by clicking the download icon in the top right corner of the Google Chrome browser window.

To copy collections & their definitions

• Products
• Collections
• Take screen shots with the collection names and definitions (such as tags. Tags are automatically copied into the CSV coding when downloading a backed up copy of the products. See steps above.)

To disconnect the domain
If there is any chance that you will reopen your store on a platform other than Shopify, you should disconnect the domain before deactivating and closing your store. If you do not, you will be unable to point the domain to that other platform without first paying the activation fee.

• Sales channel
• Domain
• In the 'primary domain' section, click the 'disable redirection' link

CONTENT RELATED TO DEACTIVATING PAYMENTS ON A SHOPIFY STORE OR CLOSING A SHOPIFY STORE

• Shopify

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