How World of Books Scaled Globally with Shopify Payments

Introduction

World of Books started in 2002 as a UK-based used-book retailer driven by sustainability. Over two decades, it grew into a certified B Corporation, rehoming over 100 million titles and earning Queen’s Awards for Sustainable Development and International Trade. By 2022, it had 10 million books in inventory and customers in 190 countries. When leadership acquired a major US competitor, their international sales tripled overnight. That created a need for a unified e-commerce setup able to handle multiple legal entities, currencies, and a fast checkout flow.

The Challenge

Managing UK and US operations as separate entities is complex. The team needed to comply with tax rules, avoid foreign exchange losses, and still offer a smooth purchase journey. They repriced about half their inventory daily based on market conditions and supply. Their legacy tech was custom and brittle, and checkout conversions lagged. The group wanted Shop Pay across both stores and a repricing pipeline that kept pages up-to-date without extra headcount.

The Solution

World of Books replatformed to Shopify, using Shopify Payments’ Multi-Entity Management and Shop Pay. The team consolidated product catalogs and built a custom repricing engine that interfaces with Shopify’s API. Having separate entities on one backend meant pricing and stock updates happen in real time, with correct bank accounts and currencies assigned. The integrated setup slashed manual FX transfers and legal checks.

The Results

An A/B test showed a 10% rise in conversion rate compared to the old stack, and an 18% boost during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday window. World of Books set seven all-time volume records in the days around BFCM. The replatform avoided three to four months of migration work, tens of thousands of pounds in fees, and the cost of extra hires. Inventory displays stay accurate, repricing runs at scale, and the customer flow uses Shop Pay to speed up checkout.

Looking Ahead

With US and Australia now top markets, World of Books plans further expansion into Europe. The unified commerce infrastructure and Multi-Entity Management clear the path for new acquisitions and entities under its private equity group. The team sees Shopify Payments as a core tool for scaling direct-to-consumer growth in complex, multi-region setups.