Multi-Location Retail

This guide covers gift card operations for retailers with multiple physical locations, whether they use a single Shopify store with multiple locations or separate Shopify stores per location.

Scenario A — One Shopify store, multiple locations

This is the simpler setup. You have one Shopify store, and your POS devices at different locations all connect to it.

How gift cards work

• Cards issued at any location are valid everywhere (they're all on the same Shopify store)
• Balances are shared and updated in real time across all locations
• The Dashboard shows total activity, filterable by location

POS setup per location

1. Install the GiftCard Hero POS extension on your main Shopify store (one-time)
2. The tile appears automatically on all POS devices connected to that store
3. Each location's staff uses the same tile — no per-location configuration needed

Location-specific reporting

In Dashboard, review gift card activity across your store. Since all locations share the same Shopify store, all sales and redemptions roll up into a single analytics view. Use Shopify's built-in location reports (Admin → Analytics) to break down activity by POS location.

Physical card inventory per location

If you're using physical gift cards, track which card batches are at which location. When you run a monthly reconciliation, do it per location. See Managing Physical Gift Card Inventory for the full process.

Scenario B — Separate Shopify store per location (or per region)

Each location has its own Shopify store. By default, a gift card from Store A doesn't work at Store B. GiftCard Hero's Multi-Store feature solves this.

Setting up cross-store gift cards

1. Designate one store as the primary (usually your main/largest location)
2. Install GiftCard Hero on all stores
3. Connect them in Multi-Store → Manage Network

Once connected, a card issued at any store in the network works at all other stores.

Considerations for multi-store

• Separate subscriptions — each store needs its own GiftCard Hero subscription
• Currency — if locations operate in different currencies, configure exchange rate handling in Multi-Store settings
• Analytics — each store's dashboard shows its own activity; there's no unified cross-store dashboard (you'd need to export and combine manually)
• POS — POS on each store's devices works independently; cross-store balance resolution happens transparently

When cards are issued and where

For consistent customer experience, decide:

• Central issuance — all gift cards are issued from the primary store, distributed to locations
• Local issuance — each location issues its own cards; they work everywhere via the network

Central issuance is simpler for accounting; local issuance is more operationally flexible.

Staff training for multi-location

For POS staff at any location:

1. Checking a balance — same process everywhere; the system fetches the balance from wherever the card was issued
2. Accepting a card — no different from normal; Shopify POS handles gift card redemption natively
3. Issuing a new card — issued in the current store; valid everywhere via the network
4. "Card not found" error — tell the customer to contact head office; don't assume the card is invalid

Franchise model

If you operate as a franchise (locations are independently owned), consider:

• Who "owns" the gift card liability when a card is issued in one franchise and redeemed in another
• How to settle cross-location redemptions (e.g., monthly reconciliation and transfer)
• Whether to restrict certain locations from issuing vs. only redeeming

GiftCard Hero doesn't handle financial settlement between franchise locations — that's an accounting/legal matter between you and your franchisees.