50 Gifts
13 Countries
5 Small Businesses Supported

When Shopify wanted to thank the global developer community powering their platform, they turned to Gift Better Co. to design and execute a custom corporate gifting program across 13 countries. Using a curated gift box sourced from Shopify’s own merchant network and Gift Better Co.’s address collection tool, they delivered 50 personalized gifts to developers in categories ranging from top-rated apps to high-impact API partners. No complete mailing list was required to start.

TL;DR

  • Shopify gifted 50 app developers across 13 countries as part of a community appreciation program.
  • Gift Better Co. curated fully custom B2B gifts sourced from Shopify’s own merchant network.
  • Gift Better Co.’s Address Collect tool handled international logistics without requiring a full mailing list upfront.
  • Each gift was designed for shareability, and recipients posted about it organically on social media.
  • Every gift included a charitable donation to Let’s Get Together, supporting underserved communities’ access to technology.
  • The program demonstrates how enterprise gifting can serve brand storytelling, community building, and partner retention simultaneously.
  • ★★★★★
    The team made our experience seamless, they were timely, open to feedback, communicated effectively, and made great suggestions for our developers. They also handled everything from start to finish including shipping internationally. Knowing that every gift also contributed to a charitable cause was the icing on the cake!
  • Abir Dalati

  • Why Did Shopify Build a Gifting Program for Its Developer Community?

    Millions of merchants rely on Shopify to run their businesses, but the platform’s value is built in large part by the developers who create the apps and integrations merchants depend on. Shopify wanted a meaningful way to recognise this community, not with a generic gesture, but with something that reflected how much the relationship actually mattered.

    They contacted Gift Better Co. to design and execute a curated international gifting program. The recipient list was intentional: Shopify identified around 50 developers across four specific categories: top-rated apps by review score, the fastest-growing apps, those most recommended for quality, and large partners who had built high-impact APIs and integrations. The goal was to create something recipients would genuinely want to talk about.

  • How Does Corporate Gifting Work Across 13 Countries?

    Shopify’s developer community spans the globe. Shopify’s internal team didn’t have complete shipping addresses for every recipient. Collecting that information manually across 13 countries would have been a significant operational hurdle.

    Gift Better Co. solved this with a custom Address Collect page. Shopify’s team received a private link and shared it directly with each developer on the list. Recipients filled in their own shipping details, and Gift Better Co. handled the rest: from logistics coordination to international delivery.

    The Address Collect tool removed the need for a complete mailing list before launch, which is one of the most common blockers in enterprise gifting programs. Shopify could move forward as soon as the recipient list was confirmed, not after.

What Went Into Each Custom Gift?

Rather than a generic branded send, Shopify came to the brief with two clear goals: source from Shopify’s own merchant network wherever possible, and design an unboxing experience recipients would want to share. Every item was chosen with intention. The result was a gift box that told a story.

Each gift included:

  • Custom branded 121-piece puzzle
  • Branded gummy candies from Candy Fix, a woman-owned Canadian business
  • Reusable matte black insulated mug
  • Bag of espresso from award-winning Brown Bag Coffee Roasters, based in Aylmer, Quebec
  • Linen “note-to-self” journal
  • Custom coaster from Versatile, a company in Almonte, Ontario, featuring “<BR>” (the HTML line break tag, reimagined as an invitation for developers to take a break)
  • Custom-designed “thank you” greeting card chocolate bar

Five small businesses were supported through the curation of this gift. Sourcing from Shopify merchants wasn’t just a nice detail — it reinforced Shopify’s brand story through the gift itself.

What Was the ROI of Shopify’s Developer Gifting Program?

Corporate gifting earns its keep when it changes what happens next. For Shopify, the return showed up in reach and resonance.

Recipients posted organically about the unboxing across the Shopify Developer community, and the gift prompted at least one dedicated blog post from developer Dylan J. Pierce. Every share and post extended Shopify’s message about the value of building for the App Store to a wider audience of developers: the exact people they wanted to reach, through a voice more credible than any ad placement.

That kind of earned amplification is difficult to plan for and impossible to manufacture. It comes from designing something people actually want to talk about.

Each gift also included a donation to Let’s Get Together, a Toronto-based nonprofit supporting underserved communities’ access to technology. That charitable component added a layer of meaning that reinforced Shopify’s values to every recipient.

How Does This Translate to Other Corporate Gifting Programs?

The thinking behind the Shopify program translates directly to any company looking to strengthen relationships with the partners, clients, or communities that matter most to their business.

A few things made it work:

  • The recipient list was intentional. Rather than a broad send, Shopify identified who had genuinely contributed and built the program around that answer.
  • Sourcing aligned with brand values. Gifts from Shopify’s own merchant network made the story cohesive. The gift reinforced what Shopify stands for.
  • Logistics didn’t block the launch. Gift Better Co.’s Address Collect tool meant the program could begin before every address was confirmed.
  • Shareability was a design goal, not an afterthought. The custom coaster wit, the unboxing presentation, the community sourcing: all of it was built to travel.

Corporate gifting at the enterprise level works best when it’s treated as a program, not a transaction. That means thinking through the recipient experience, the brand alignment, the logistics, and the follow-through, before a single gift is ordered.

Ready to Build a Gifting Program Worth Talking About?

Whether you’re recognising a partner community, rewarding top clients, or marking a milestone, Gift Better Co. designs and executes enterprise gifting programs that do the work long after the box is opened.

Get in touch to talk through what that looks like for your organisation.

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