simpleshop_theme/docs/plans/printify-integration-research.md

Printify Integration Research

Research notes from investigating Printify API integration, product syncing, and order submission risks. This document captures findings for future implementation work.

Product Identity & Matching

What identifiers exist?

Field	Stable?	Notes
id (provider_product_id)	❌	Changes if product deleted & recreated
sku (variant level)	❌	Auto-generated per product creation
blueprint_id	✅	The base product type (e.g., Gildan 5000)
print_provider_id	✅	The fulfillment provider
title	✅	User-defined, stable unless edited

Our matching strategy

1. Primary: Match by provider_product_id
2. Fallback: Match by slug (derived from title)
3. Potential improvement: Match by blueprint_id + print_provider_id + title

The slug fallback handles cases where Printify product IDs change (e.g., product deleted and recreated with same title).

How Shopify/Printify official integration works

• SKU is generated once when first published to Shopify
• SKU becomes the stable link for future updates
• Republishing matches by SKU
• The "publish lock" prevents editing after publishing

Duplicate Products

When duplicates occur

• Mock/test product generators run multiple times
• User accidentally creates products twice in Printify
• Migration scenarios with orphaned products
• Using multiple POD providers on same store

How we detect duplicates

Same title (and therefore same slug) but different provider_product_id.

In our test case, Printify returned 30 products but only 16 unique titles - every product existed twice with different IDs but identical:

• title
• blueprint_id
• print_provider_id

How we handle duplicates

Our upsert_product/2 function matches by slug when provider_product_id lookup fails, treating them as the same product and updating the provider_product_id to the latest value.

Is this a common real-world issue?

Research suggests no - duplicate products aren't commonly reported. Main sync issues are:

• Orders not syncing
• Store connection expiring
• Publishing failures
• Product info being overwritten on republish

The official Shopify integration handles product identity well through SKUs.

Sales Channel Integration Options

Option 1: Personal API Token (current)

• Pull products via API
• Works immediately, no approval needed
• We don't appear in Printify's "Publish to..." UI
• Products not "locked" after sync

Option 2: OAuth Platform Integration

• Apply at printify.com/printify-api
• ~1 week approval process
• Merchants authorize SimpleShop via OAuth
• We appear in Printify's publishing UI alongside Shopify/Etsy
• Products get "published" TO us with lock
• Webhooks for real-time updates

How publishing works in Option 2:

1. Merchant clicks "Publish to SimpleShop" in Printify
2. Printify sends product:publish:started webhook
3. We create the product on our side
4. We call publishing_succeeded.json to confirm
5. Product locked in Printify, shows as "Published to SimpleShop"

Benefits of official integration:

• Publish lock prevents editing after publishing (data consistency)
• Real-time webhooks
• "Official" feel for merchants
• Better UX in Printify dashboard

Downsides:

• Approval process
• More complex OAuth auth
• Ongoing partnership relationship

Order Submission Risks

How order submission works

We send to Printify:

%{
  product_id: "printify_product_id",
  variant_id: 12345,
  quantity: 2
}

We do not send price. Printify charges their current wholesale cost.

Risk scenarios

Scenario	Result	Who bears cost?
Wholesale cost increased	Order succeeds	Shop owner (you)
Wholesale cost decreased	Order succeeds	Shop owner profits more
Variant discontinued	Order fails	Customer experience
Product deleted	Order fails	Customer experience
Design changed	Order succeeds with new design	Customer gets wrong item

Why the publish lock matters

In official integrations, the publish lock prevents merchants from editing products after publishing. This ensures:

• Price consistency between storefront and fulfillment cost
• Variant availability guaranteed
• Design matches what customer saw

Without the lock (our current approach), products can change between sync and order.

Recommended mitigations

1. Webhooks / frequent polling

   • Subscribe to product:updated, product:deleted events
   • Or poll every N minutes for changes
   • Update local product data immediately

2. Pre-checkout validation

   • Before completing checkout, call Printify API
   • Verify variant still exists
   • Get current cost, compare to stored cost
   • Alert or block if significant difference

3. Cost monitoring

   • Store cost from Printify on each variant
   • During sync, compare old vs new cost
   • Alert shop owner if cost increased significantly
   • Consider auto-adjusting retail price

4. Graceful order failure handling

   • Catch "variant not found" errors
   • Notify customer immediately
   • Offer refund or alternative
   • Don't leave order in limbo

5. Stale data warnings

   • Track last_synced_at per product
   • Warn in admin if product not synced recently
   • Consider blocking orders for very stale products

API Rate Limits

From Printify documentation:

• 600 requests/minute global
• 100 requests/minute for catalog endpoints
• 50 products per page max
• Product publishing: 200 requests per 30 minutes

Implementation Status

Completed

• Product sync with pagination
• Parallel processing (5 concurrent)
• Slug-based fallback matching
• Error recovery (try/rescue)
• Checksum-based change detection

Not yet implemented

• Webhook endpoint for real-time updates
• Pre-checkout variant validation
• Cost change monitoring/alerts
• OAuth platform integration (requires Printify approval)
• blueprint_id + print_provider_id matching

Open Source vs Managed Hosting Considerations

The core tension

SimpleShop exists in two forms:

1. Open source - self-hosted by anyone
2. Managed hosting - SaaS service run by us

Printify's integration options have different implications for each.

Personal API Token (current approach)

How it works:

• Each merchant creates their own Printify API token
• Token entered in SimpleShop admin
• Direct API access, no intermediary

Open source: ✅ Works perfectly

• Each self-hosted instance uses merchant's own token
• No central service required
• Full functionality

Managed hosting: ✅ Works perfectly

• Same as self-hosted
• Each tenant uses their own token
• No special relationship with Printify needed

Downsides:

• Merchants must manually create/manage API tokens
• No "Connect with Printify" button UX
• Products not locked after sync (data consistency risk)
• No real-time webhooks (must poll or manual sync)

OAuth Platform Integration

How it works:

• Register SimpleShop as an app with Printify
• Get OAuth client ID/secret
• Merchants click "Connect" and authorize
• We receive access tokens, appear in Printify UI

Open source: ❌ Problematic

• OAuth requires registered callback URLs
• Can't register infinite self-hosted domains
• Would need to proxy through a central service
• Defeats the "fully self-hosted" value proposition

Managed hosting: ✅ Works well

• Single registered callback URL
• "Connect with Printify" button
• Appears as official integration
• Real-time webhooks
• Publish lock for data consistency

Hybrid approach possibilities

Option A: Token for open source, OAuth for managed

• Open source uses personal API tokens (current)
• Managed hosting uses OAuth integration
• Two code paths, more maintenance
• Clear value differentiation

Option B: Webhook proxy service

• Register OAuth app
• Self-hosted instances connect through managed webhook proxy
• Proxy forwards webhooks to self-hosted URLs
• Adds dependency on central service
• Could be free tier for open source users

Option C: OAuth with self-registration

• Document how to register own OAuth app with Printify
• Self-hosters go through Printify approval themselves
• Complex, unlikely many would do this
• Each instance is independent

Business model implications

Approach	Open Source	Managed Hosting
Personal API Token	Full feature parity	No differentiation
OAuth (managed only)	Basic sync only	Premium "official" integration
Webhook proxy	Depends on proxy	Full features

Potential differentiation for managed hosting:

• Official "Publish to SimpleShop" in Printify UI
• Real-time sync via webhooks
• Publish lock (data consistency guarantee)
• Pre-checkout validation (verify before order)
• No token management for merchants

What open source keeps:

• Full product sync (polling-based)
• Order submission
• All admin features
• Self-hosted independence

Printify partnership considerations

What registering as an app might require:

• Application/approval process (~1 week)
• Technical integration review
• Ongoing partnership relationship
• Support obligations?
• Usage/volume commitments?

Questions to research:

• What are Printify's requirements for app partners?
• Are there fees or revenue sharing?
• Can we register once for managed hosting only?
• What support/SLA obligations exist?
• Can app be limited to specific redirect URIs (managed only)?

Recommendation

Phase 1 (now): Personal API tokens for both versions

• Works everywhere
• No partnership dependencies
• Validates product-market fit first

Phase 2 (if managed hosting gains traction): OAuth for managed only

• Apply for Printify app registration
• Implement OAuth flow for managed platform
• Keep token-based flow for open source
• Use as value differentiator

Phase 3 (optional): Webhook proxy for open source

• If demand exists for real-time sync in self-hosted
• Could be free or paid add-on
• Maintains open source independence while adding capability

References

• Printify API Reference
• Printify Help - Sales Channels
• Printify Partner Application
• Shopify Product Status