Shopify agency for brands across Canada
Shopify development, SEO and growth marketing for Canadian brands, with bilingual stores, provincial sales tax and cross-border shipping planned in from the start.
Shopify experts for Canada brands
Shopify was founded in Ottawa, and Canadian merchants have embraced it ever since. Selling online across Canada still comes with its own challenges: a huge country with a small, spread-out population, sales tax that changes by province, French language rules in Quebec, and shoppers who will happily buy from US stores if a Canadian brand looks slower or more expensive. A Canadian Shopify store has to be clear about delivery times, duties and total cost from the first page.
BOOST STAR Experts is a Shopify Partner agency working remotely from India with brands from Vancouver to Halifax. We design and build Shopify and Shopify Plus stores, migrate from WooCommerce, Magento and other platforms, and run SEO, CRO, Google Ads, Meta ads and email marketing. Calls are scheduled in your business hours, and the time difference means work continues overnight on your clock.
Selling online in Canada: what your store needs
Payments Canadians use
Interac debit dominates in physical stores, but online most Canadians pay by credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal or Shop Pay. Pay-later options such as Afterpay and Affirm are common for fashion, furniture and electronics. We set up Shopify Payments in Canadian dollars and show familiar wallets prominently on mobile checkout.
GST, HST, PST and QST
Canada charges 5% GST nationally, harmonised HST of 13% to 15% in several provinces, and separate PST or QST in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec. Alberta charges GST only. We configure Shopify’s tax settings by province and product type, and your accountant confirms registration once you pass the small supplier threshold.
Shipping a very large country
Delivery costs and times vary widely between a downtown Toronto address and a northern or rural one. Canada Post reaches everywhere, while Purolator, UPS and FedEx are strong in cities. We set zone-based rates, free shipping thresholds that protect margin and realistic delivery estimates, including for remote postal codes.
French, privacy and email consent
Stores selling to Quebec need French content under the Charter of the French Language, and Quebec’s Law 25 adds stricter privacy and consent rules. Across Canada, CASL requires consent before sending marketing emails. We build bilingual storefronts, cookie consent and compliant email sign-up flows.
Payments, delivery and compliance in Canada
- Visa & Mastercard
- Shop Pay
- Apple Pay
- Google Pay
- PayPal
- Afterpay
- Affirm
- Canada Post
- Purolator
- UPS
- FedEx
- Canpar
- Stallion Express (to the US)
- GST / HST / PST / QST by province
- CASL anti-spam consent
- PIPEDA privacy
- Quebec Law 25
- French language requirements in Quebec
Working together
India is 8 to 13.5 hours ahead of Canada depending on the province, so we hold calls in your morning, which is our evening, and build while you sleep. Clients in Toronto and Montreal get the most live overlap; West Coast clients usually prefer early-morning calls.
Time zone: NT, AT, ET, CT, MT, PT (UTC−3:30 to UTC−8). Currency: CAD ($). Languages: English, French.
How we work
Discovery call
We learn your goals, catalogue, tech stack and market, then agree what success looks like.
Audit & roadmap
A store, SEO and competitor audit turns into a prioritised roadmap with a timeline and fixed quote.
Design & build
UX, design and development in sprints, with a private preview store you review at every step.
Launch
QA across devices, redirects, tracking and a planned go-live with no downtime.
Grow
SEO, CRO and paid campaigns compound results month after month, with clear reporting.
Ongoing support
A dedicated team for fixes, new features and seasonal campaigns when you need them.
Frequently asked questions
How do you work across Canadian time zones from India?
We schedule calls in your morning, which is our evening, and do most build work overnight on your clock. Toronto and Montreal clients have the easiest overlap. For Vancouver and Calgary, early-morning calls work best. Written updates and recorded walkthroughs mean you rarely wait on us between meetings.
Can you set up sales tax for every Canadian province?
Yes. We configure GST, HST, PST and QST in Shopify by province, set product-level exemptions where they apply and display tax correctly at checkout. Registration and remittance decisions should be confirmed with your accountant, especially once you sell into Quebec or British Columbia, where separate provincial registration may be required.
Do we need a French version of our store to sell in Quebec?
If you sell to consumers in Quebec, French content is required under the Charter of the French Language, and French must be at least as available as English. We build bilingual Shopify stores with Translate & Adapt or a translation app, separate French URLs for search and a language switcher.
Can our Canadian store sell to customers in the United States?
Yes. We set up a US market in Shopify with US dollar pricing, duties and import taxes estimated at checkout where supported, and shipping through cross-border carriers. US duty rules on low-value parcels have changed recently, so we review your products and shipping method before you scale up.
Do you have an office in Canada?
No. BOOST STAR works fully remotely from India and does not have a Canadian office. Each project has a named lead, a shared board and video calls in your business hours. Typical Shopify builds take 4 to 10 weeks, and bilingual stores add time for translation and review.