CatGPT just opened her first real-life pop-up store in NYC this past Saturday. The entire event was hosted by Shopify, yet founder Cat Goetze is taking home 100% of the profit.

Shopify provided Goetze a fully staffed venue, event production support, promotion, and retail-ready tech & amenities to host her brand physical phones.

The only thing that mattered was that her brand was built on Shopify.

This is what commerce infrastructure looks like today.

Shopify’s goal isn’t to make profit off of their events. All the revenue goes back to the founder. Shopify is instead trying to build infrastructure that’s compelling enought that the top 1% of founders stay on the platform.

Two years ago, creator @urmomashley sold $100,000 worth of products within an hour of launching Nami Matcha. As a result, Shopify Spaces provided her with services to succeed at retail.

1,300 fans showed up to Nami Matcha’s first NYC pop-up, generating $23,000 in sales. Ashley provided the audience, Shopify provided the space, and Nami Matcha took all the profit.

That’s why Shopify is prioritizing creators. Not because they’re seeking profit, but because they notice that creators have leverage that make businesses succeed.

Ashley and Shopify have since hosted three more events together, and Shopify is now the backbone for Nami Matcha as they plan to expand operations into cafés.

What started as a one-off pop-up has now grown into a lasting partnership between the two brands. One that keeps Ashley Alexander hosting Nami Matcha through Shopify.

Today, Shopify is not just where online transactions occur. The company is positioning itself to become an integral part of building a creator's brand.

Before hosting CatGPT’s analog phone pop-up, Shopify worked with her to flesh out the brand’s creative vision. The result was a fully 90’s inspired retail experience that banned modern phones and reinforced her “chronically offline” identity. Shopify enabled Goetze to realize her brand into a physical space, all while retaining full ownership of the customer relationship and profit.

In a world where platforms take, Shopify is betting on the one thing creators need: ownership.