ASR Sunday Brief #18

What Shopify operators were talking about this week

September 20, 2026

From the founder:

Two new app comparisons went live this week - subscriptions and page builders. Built the same way as the rest: from real reviews our network wrote about apps they actually run. More on how we make them below.

The pattern of the week is something I didn't expect. Operators have stopped describing problems and started writing specifications. One submission this week was a numbered list of six analytics requirements that ended with the line "now automate this."

That's not a merchant asking for help. That's a product brief.

Like this newsletter? Forward this email to another brand operator or app developer!

Welcome to the brand network

These are a few brand operators that joined us this week:

Yining F. — E-commerce Manager, Sweden · Home & Lighting · Plus plan

Andros G. — Owner · Fashion & Apparel · Grow plan

Hassan C. — Development · Shopify Partner

Start a project to meet these participants and others like them.

  • Owners/managers looking to increase post-purchase upsells through AI
    Research Call · Incentive: $120 · 60 mins — on raising AOV without spending more on acquisition

  • Subscription Growth on Shopify: What's Working in 2026 
    Sales Call · Incentive: $250 · 45 mins — from a Shopify-native subscription platform

  • Seeking DTC brands — coupon protection and discount recovery 
    Sales Call · Incentive: $250 · 30 mins — on protecting margin from coupon leakage

Pattern of the week

Something changed in the shape of the submissions this week.

One operator wrote six numbered requirements — days out of stock, sales velocity when in stock, units that could have sold, the dollar value of the miss, adjusted for price and seasonality, checked against prior-year trends — and closed with: "now automate this."

Another described moving from using AI as a chat tool to building with it: small, purpose-built internal tools that a non-technical team can maintain, for things like generating structured data files and processing pricing updates across regional storefronts. A third laid out a three-pillar operating breakdown. A fourth wrote a full store-improvement sprint and named the throughline herself — turning existing stock and traffic into revenue rather than acquiring more of either.

Why it matters: a year ago these submissions described symptoms. Now a meaningful share of them arrive scoped — requirements listed, constraints named, success defined. Operators have run enough AI experiments to know what a buildable request looks like, and they're writing them that way.

If you build apps, this is the most useful thing in the newsletter this week. The spec is already written. Somebody just has to ship it.

Referral contest - final stretch

The contest runs through September 30, so there's a bit over a week left, and the leaderboard is still open enough that a couple of good introductions can land you on it.

How it works: share your referral link, and anyone who signs up through it and completes their first research call counts as an activated referral.

What you earn regardless: $50 for every Shopify store operator you refer, $100 for every Shopify Plus operator.

What's on top, for the three highest activated-referral counts:

  • 1st — $1,000

  • 2nd — $500

  • 3rd — $300

2–4 activated referrals is still enough for a podium spot. Prize money comes out of our pocket, not a sponsor's - it's how we say thanks for helping the network grow.

Something you can copy and adapt:

Hey — thought of you. It's a research network where Shopify brands get paid ($100–$250) for 30–45 minute calls with app teams building tools for stores like yours. You hear what's coming before it launches and get paid for the time. Here's my link: [your link]

Real thanks to everyone who's taken part. Whatever the final board looks like, it's made a difference.

Two new comparisons — and how we build them

Two more head-to-head comparisons went live this week:

Worth explaining how these get made, because it's the whole point of them.

Every comparison is built from app reviews our participants wrote about tools they actually run. Not vendor briefings. Not affiliate rewrites. Not a writer summarising the app's own marketing page. The subscriptions piece is built on 25 operator reviews - 16 Recharge, 5 Appstle, 4 Loop. We publish the sample sizes, including when they're small, because you should know how much weight a verdict carries.

What comes out is different from the App Store version. The subscriptions comparison found that 60% rated their app "Very Satisfied" and 100% still actively use it - but the tension operators actually described was Recharge's reliability against its price, which is precisely why the challengers exist. That's the kind of thing you only learn from people 12+ months in.

If you run any of these apps, your review makes the next one better - add it from the App Stack tab in your account.

From the feed this week

Three reads worth your time this week:

Join our private communities

Join the ASR Brand Operator Slack

Private discussions for Shopify brands. Apply to join →

Join the ASR Shopify App Slack

For Shopify app founders. Apply to join →

See you next week.

Jon and team
— app store research

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