If you're looking into setting up an online store and want a solution that can grow with your business, Odoo is worth a closer look.
Odoo is an open-source suite of business applications that includes tools for ERP, CRM, inventory management—and e-commerce. Unlike more popular platforms like Shopify, which are focused solely on retail, Odoo brings e-commerce into a broader business context.
Odoo's e-commerce offering is characterized by its modular design and seamless integration with other business areas. Unlike many standalone shop systems, Odoo offers unique integration with your entire business operations – from purchasing and warehousing to order management, accounting, and marketing.
This article is for business owners, marketers, and IT professionals who are considering Odoo as an e-commerce platform. It covers the basics of getting started, highlights features that are particularly useful for B2B companies, and compares Odoo to Shopify to help you evaluate whether it's the right fit for your goals.
Why Businesses Choose Odoo for Their Online Store
More than2.000 companies in Germany—and many more worldwide—use Odoo as the foundation for their online stores. One of the key reasons is how well it brings different parts of a business together.
With Odoo, you can manage your store alongside sales, inventory, accounting, and marketing—all from the same system. Data flows automatically between these areas, reducing manual input and improving consistency.
Its open-source foundation also makes Odoo highly customizable. You’re not locked into fixed features or pricing tiers. As your business evolves, you can adapt the platform to fit new workflows—whether that’s handling support tickets, managing projects, or integrating with a production line. For growing companies that need more than a simple storefront, this kind of flexibility can be a major advantage.
How Odoo Fits Different E-Commerce Models
- B2C-Shops (Business-to-Consumer): Odoo works well for businesses that sell directly to consumers across industries like fashion, electronics, home goods, lifestyle, books, and sporting equipment. The platform supports the creation of visually appealing product catalogs, flexible pricing models, various shipping options, and a smooth ordering and payment process. Customers benefit from intuitive navigation, while companies can run marketing activities like email campaigns or manage loyalty and subscription programs directly within the system.
- B2B-Shops (Business-to-Business): For companies selling to other businesses, Odoo includes features tailored to the needs of B2B commerce. These include managing customer accounts with custom pricing and discount structures, handling bulk orders, supporting order approvals, managing credit limits and payment terms, and integrating with systems like EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). This makes it a viable option for wholesalers, component manufacturers, office furniture suppliers, and other B2B sellers looking for streamlined and customizable sales channels.
- Hybrid (B2C und B2B): Odoo is also well suited to businesses that serve both consumer and business customers. Companies can run a single store while applying different pricing, product catalogs, and checkout flows depending on the customer type. This is particularly useful for manufacturers who sell both to end customers and to retail partners, or for wholesalers offering select items directly to consumers. Odoo’s configuration options allow for this kind of dual setup without needing separate systems.
How-To: Building Your Online Store with Odoo
You don’t need to be a developer—or even have prior experience with e-commerce platforms—to get started with Odoo. The setup process is designed to be approachable, whether you’re launching a new online store or integrating one into an existing business system. Below are the key steps to go from blank slate to functioning storefront.
1. Install the E-Commerce Module
Start by opening the Odoo app dashboard and searching for the "E-Commerce" module. With just a few clicks, you can install it and add it to your Odoo environment. The module automatically includes all the core features you need to run an online store.
2. Set Up Products and Categories
Once the e-commerce module is installed, you can begin adding your products. Odoo provides an intuitive interface where you can enter product details, set prices, manage variants (like size, color, or material), and upload images and descriptions. Organizing your products into categories helps make the store easier to navigate and improves product discoverability for your customers.
3. Customize the Design
Odoo includes a built-in website builder that lets you customize your store’s design visually. You can choose from a range of responsive themes and adjust layouts using drag-and-drop tools—no coding required. For more advanced customizations, it’s also possible to add your own HTML, CSS, or JavaScript.
4. Test and Go Live
Before launching your store, it’s important to test everything thoroughly. Go through the full purchasing process—from product selection to checkout, including payment gateways and shipping options. Check that all settings are working as expected and that the customer experience is smooth. Once everything is in place, you’re ready to publish your website and open your store to the public.
B2B Features in Odoo E-Commerce
While many e-commerce platforms focus on consumer sales, Odoo stands out for its B2B capabilities. If you're selling to other businesses, you’ll likely run into requirements that go beyond a typical shopping cart—and Odoo has built-in tools to support them.
- For starters, you can offer custom pricing for each customer. Once logged in, business clients see their own price lists, including tiered discounts or contract-specific rates. This makes it easy to accommodate different agreements without manual adjustments.
- Another useful feature: Odoo lets you replace the standard “Buy Now” flow with a quote request system. Instead of checking out, customers can ask for an offer. Your sales team can then create and send tailored quotes directly within Odoo—streamlining back-and-forth negotiation.
- If your sales reps are actively involved in the order process, they can be granted access to customer accounts. That way, they can place orders on behalf of clients, track delivery status, and manage communication—all from within the same system.
- Odoo also supports invoice-based ordering, which many B2B customers prefer over immediate payment. You can define credit terms, due dates, and manage invoicing without relying on external tools.
- Finally, clients can log in at any time to view their full order history, download invoices, and check the status of current shipments. This kind of transparency is not only expected in many B2B relationships—it also reduces support overhead.
Real-Life Examples & Live Demos of Odoo-Based Online Stores
Rund um die Biene: A Sweet E-Commerce Experience from Austria
https://www.rund-um-die-biene.at/
This Austrian online shop specializes in bee-related products and beekeeping supplies—from honey and propolis drops to pollen, beeswax, and cosmetics. They also offer everything an active beekeeper might need, like protective clothing, books, harvesting tools, and feed. The company chose Odoo early on because it offered all the necessary tools in a single, unified platform—no extra interfaces, no external workarounds. That integration-first approach aligned well with their own commitment to quality and efficiency from day one. …
Lebenslust: Bringing Vorwerk’s Kobold Cleaners to Japan
Lebenslust (formerly Kobold Japan) was founded in 2013 and is responsible for introducing Vorwerk’s premium Kobold vacuum cleaners to the Japanese market. With Odoo, the company built an e-commerce solution that connects directly to their backend systems—creating a smoother, more integrated shopping experience for customers.
Rhea Vendors Benelux: From Fragmented Tools to a Unified System
Rhea Vendors Benelux, part of a global group known for custom coffee machines, faced operational challenges due to a patchwork of disconnected tools. Though the business was running, the team wanted a more scalable and modern system. Odoo helped them consolidate processes, boost efficiency, and prepare for long-term growth.
Pharmactive Biotech: Digitally Transforming with Odoo
Pharmactive Biotech Products, a Spanish company specializing in scientifically backed natural ingredients, used Odoo to rethink and streamline its internal operations. The platform helped them improve cross-team collaboration, boost scalability, and adopt a more data-driven approach to decision-making.
These examples show just how varied the use of Odoo can be—spanning both B2C and B2B industries, from health and wellness to manufacturing and retail.
If you're considering Odoo for your own business, a live demo can be a great starting point. It gives you a hands-on look at how the platform works before making any final decisions. We’re happy to arrange a personalized demo so you can see the interface, workflows, and flexibility for yourself.
Odoo vs. Shopify: A Direct Comparison
Let’s address the elephant in the room: Why not just use Shopify? It’s the question on everyone’s mind when Odoo comes up as an e-commerce solution—and for good reason. Shopify is one of the most well-known platforms out there, especially for small and mid-sized online stores. So how does Odoo compare? And when does it actually make more sense? Both platforms are powerful, but they take very different approaches to online commerce. Here’s a side-by-side look at how they stack up:
Feature | Odoo | Shopify |
Hosting | Can be self-hosted or used as SaaS | Fully hosted SaaS |
Customization | Highly flexible (open source) | Easy to use, but less customizable |
Tools | ERP, CRM, accounting, purchasing, sales, marketing, and more | Primarily focused on e-commerce |
B2B Functions | Included by default | Requires third-party apps or workarounds |
Costs | Pay only for what you use (modular, based on needs) | Monthly fees + extra costs for apps |
Which Platform Fits Which Business?
- Odoo is best suited for businesses that want a fully integrated, end-to-end solution—especially those that need to manage more than just a shop. It’s a strong fit for B2B models or companies with complex workflows that benefit from flexibility and deep customization. If you're looking to combine e-commerce with ERP, CRM, and internal operations in one system, Odoo is a strategic choice.
- Shopify, on the other hand, is ideal for small to medium-sized B2C businesses that want to get started quickly and don’t need much technical involvement. It's a plug-and-play solution with a wide range of third-party apps. Just keep in mind that many add-ons come with extra costs, and B2B functionality often requires additional workarounds.
E-Commerce Extensions & Integrations
Another area where Odoo really shines is its ability to connect with a wide range of external tools and services. These integrations help streamline your e-commerce operations and reduce manual effort:
- Payment Providers Odoo supports popular gateways like PayPal, Stripe, Mollie, and others—giving your customers flexible and secure ways to pay.
- Shipping Partners Integrate with carriers such as DHL, UPS, and DPD to automate logistics workflows, print shipping labels, and generate tracking numbers directly from your system.
- Accounting Tools You can export data or directly integrate Odoo with accounting software like DATEV or QuickBooks to simplify financial processes and stay compliant with local regulations.
- Marketing Tools Link Odoo with your marketing stack—whether it’s email automation, web analytics (e.g. Google Analytics), or social media scheduling—to better coordinate and optimize your outreach efforts.
What’s Next for Your Odoo Store?
To sum it up: Odoo is a strong choice for businesses that need more than just a basic online shop. Its deep integration with ERP, CRM, and inventory systems makes it a powerful platform that can scale with your business and adapt to more complex requirements over time. Whether you’re operating a B2C store, a B2B sales channel, or a hybrid model, Odoo offers the flexibility and structure to support your growth.
Ready to explore what Odoo could do for your business? We’d be happy to walk you through a personal demo or help you get started with a sandbox environment to try it out for yourself. You can also reach out for a tailored consultation.
Creating an Online Store with Odoo: How-To, Key B2B Features & Comparison with Shopify