LocatorPilot setup guide

Coming soon. The public demo contains fictional stores. A newly installed merchant directory starts empty.

LocatorPilot lets the store owner manage a retailer directory and publish a map and store list through a Shopify theme app block.

1. Choose your plan

1. Open LocatorPilot from Shopify Apps as the store owner.
2. Open Plans and choose Starter for up to 100 active locations, or Growth for up to 500.
3. Review Shopify’s charge and trial eligibility before approving. Starter is US$9.99 per month; Growth is US$19.99 per month. The eligible trial is 14 days.

2. Add and confirm a store

1. In Locations, select Add location.
2. Enter the store name, address, city, country and any public contact details. Add categories shoppers can filter by.
3. Enter confirmed latitude and longitude, then check the pin. Postcode results are approximate centres; confirm the actual store entrance before marking it active.
4. Choose the store’s timezone and add opening hours. Use weekly schedules for normal hours and holiday exceptions for specific dates. Split and overnight hours are supported; missing hours remain unknown.
5. Apply the changes, then Save draft. Draft stores stay private. Active, confirmed stores can be published.

3. Import or update a CSV

1. Choose Import CSV. Upload a UTF-8 file or paste CSV content. The maximum is 5 MB and 2,000 rows; publication still follows your plan’s active-location limit.
2. Match your column headings to the location fields. Include country, coordinates and timezone for international locations.
3. Choose whether to add new locations only or update existing IDs and add new IDs. Use IDs from an export when updating.
4. Select Preview changes and review additions, updates and errors. Correct invalid rows, or explicitly choose a partial import if appropriate.
5. Apply the reviewed changes to the draft, then save. Importing does not publish and missing rows do not delete existing stores.

Download the CSV template. Export your directory from Locations when you need a copy or an update file.

4. Match your store’s appearance

1. Open Appearance and set the heading, introduction and accent colour.
2. Choose kilometres or miles, and a default search country.
3. Review the desktop and mobile previews, then Save draft. Check colour contrast and text length with your real store names.

5. Publish and place the locator

1. Open Publish and check how many active locations will be visible. Select Publish directory.
2. In Shopify, open Online Store → Themes → Customize or Edit theme.
3. Use the page selector to choose Pages → Create template. Name it stockists and base it on Default page.
4. Select Add section → Apps → LocatorPilot. Set the block height to suit the page and save the theme.
5. Create a page under Online Store → Pages, assign the stockists template and save. For an unpublished theme, preview the page in that theme first.
6. Preview on phone and desktop. Make the page visible when ready and add it to a menu through Content → Menus.

Saving a draft, publishing directory data, saving the theme and adding a navigation link are separate steps. If you change the app proxy path in Shopify, use the same path in the LocatorPilot block settings. Do not paste app code into the theme.

6. Check the shopper experience

1. Search by a known store name or city, and try category, country and open-now filters.
2. In Great Britain, try a postcode near a confirmed store. Distances are approximate straight-line distances, not driving distances.
3. Open store details and verify hours, public contact information and the directions link.
4. On mobile, test the store list and Show map control. Use my location asks the shopper for browser permission.
5. Check the empty-results state and ensure shoppers can clear filters. Contact a retailer for current stock; the directory does not show live inventory.

International coverage and lookup limits

International stores work with confirmed manual or CSV coordinates, country/city/name search, browser geolocation and local opening hours. Maps and these directory features do not require a paid API key. Worldwide automatic address lookup is not included, and merchant API-key settings are not currently available.

Great Britain postcode/place lookup includes up to 100 provider requests per shop per UTC day, subject to provider availability and a shared safeguard of 2,000 requests daily. Northern Ireland postcode lookup is not enabled. When limits are reached, local directory text matching, filters and browser geolocation remain available. No automatic lookup overage charges apply.

Restore, change plan or uninstall

Activity provides restoration of up to ten previous saved drafts, retained for 30 days. Restoring a draft does not publish it: review, save and publish the version you want shoppers to see.

Manage your subscription through Plans and Shopify. Before downgrading, archive excess active locations. If the published directory exceeds the new limit, it becomes unavailable until you reduce it and publish again; draft management and export remain available.

Export any records you need before uninstalling through Shopify Settings → Apps. Uninstall removes directory content and sessions. Reinstalling starts a new, empty directory.

Common questions

Need help? support@studio8022.com. Never send passwords or API keys.