Moving from an Instagram shop to an e-shop means orders stop arriving as DMs and start landing in a store that takes payment, issues tax documents and generates courier labels on its own. It typically takes 4 to 8 weeks and costs from €800 for a simple catalogue up to €4,000 for a full build with integrations.
Instagram stays as the channel that brings people in. The e-shop is where those people buy without waiting for a reply.
Want a migration plan for your own shop? Book a free 30-minute call and you will leave with a step list and a realistic timeline.
Table of Contents
Why Instagram alone is not enough
This is not about aesthetics. It is three practical problems that grow as you grow.
1. In-app checkout is not available in Greece. Instagram Checkout runs only in selected markets, with the US at the centre. Everywhere else, Instagram sends the buyer to your website. With no website, the buyer lands in your DMs instead.
2. DMs eat your day. “How much is it?” and “do you have it in medium?” each take three to four minutes once you check stock and quote shipping. At 20 questions a day, that is an hour of pure admin — every day.
3. You do not own the audience. The account can be locked, the algorithm can shift, reach can collapse. Your email list and your website stay yours.
There is a fourth, less obvious one. Nobody searches Google for “Instagram page selling handmade jewellery”. They search for the product — and products are only found when they have their own page.
What actually changes after the move
| Today with DMs | With an e-shop |
|---|---|
| You answer stock questions | Stock shows live |
| You send an IBAN and wait for a transfer | The customer pays by card or on delivery |
| You copy addresses from screenshots | The checkout form captures them properly |
| You issue receipts by hand | Documents go to the tax authority automatically |
| You sell while you are awake | You sell at 3am |
| The customer disappears after the sale | You keep an email and an order history |
The last one is the most underrated. A customer who bought once costs almost nothing to sell to again — provided you can reach them.
What paperwork do I need first?
If you already sell legally and issue documents, you have the basics. If you have been selling informally through DMs, the e-shop is the moment to sort the paperwork out.
In Greece you need a business activity code covering e-commerce, registration with the business registry (GEMI), and a declaration of the online store. Your accountant handles this in a few days.
The site itself also needs terms of use, a returns policy and a privacy policy. These are not decoration — they are legal requirements and they do get checked.
Step by step: how the migration works
Step 1: Secure the domain and the name
Pick a name that is easy to spell over the phone and register the .gr before someone else does. If your Instagram handle already has recognition, keep it identical.
Step 2: Choose your platform
For a Greek store with cash on delivery and invoicing, WooCommerce is the usual route. Shopify gets you live faster but costs a subscription and makes some local requirements harder.
The detailed comparison, with numbers, is in our guide on how much an e-shop costs in Greece.
Step 3: Build the catalogue before the site
This is the step that delays everyone. Create a simple file with one row per product:
- Product name
- SKU
- Price and VAT rate
- Variants (size, colour)
- Stock
- A 2–3 sentence description
- Photographs
Your existing Instagram photos are usually fine, as long as they are high resolution and shot against a clean background. The square Instagram format normally needs recropping for a product page.
Step 4: Set up payments
Start with two options: card and cash on delivery. Cash on delivery is still popular in the Greek market and it is not worth dropping at launch.
| Option | Fee | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Viva Wallet | 1.5% – 2% | Greek provider, fast settlement |
| Stripe | 1.4% + €0.25 | Good if you also sell abroad |
| Cash on delivery | €1.50 – €3 per shipment | Pass it on to the customer |
| Bank transfer | €0 | Keep it as a third option, not the first |
Step 5: Connect couriers and shipping
Define zones: Athens/Thessaloniki, rest of the mainland, islands, remote areas. Set your free-shipping threshold slightly above your average basket — if you average €32, set it at €45.
Automatic label generation removes the largest chunk of daily admin.
Step 6: Sort out invoicing
From 1 October 2026, electronic invoicing becomes mandatory for all Greek businesses. Build the integration in from day one rather than scrambling later.
The full guide with steps, costs and deadlines is here: connecting an e-shop to myDATA.
Step 7: Reconnect Instagram — properly this time
Once the site is live, create a product catalogue in Meta Commerce Manager and connect it to your e-shop. You can then tag products in posts, stories and reels, and every tag leads to a product page instead of your inbox.
You will need a professional account, a linked Facebook Page and a verified domain.
How long does it take?
| Phase | Duration | Your part |
|---|---|---|
| Catalogue preparation | 1–2 weeks | Photos, prices, descriptions |
| Design & development | 2–4 weeks | Approvals, copy |
| Integrations & testing | 1–2 weeks | Test orders |
| Launch & first campaign | 1 week | Announcing to your audience |
Timelines almost always break at the first step. Anyone who arrives with the catalogue ready goes live in half the time.
No time for the catalogue? We handle product entry and bulk import so you only have to worry about the photographs.
Will I lose my customers?
No, provided you migrate gradually. The mistake is vanishing from Instagram the day the site opens.
The four-week plan:
- Week 1 — Tease. Stories about “what is coming”, no detail. Collect emails in exchange for a first-order discount.
- Week 2 — Launch. Link in bio, a highlight with ordering instructions, an announcement post and a reel.
- Week 3 — Shift. Answer DM questions politely with a link: “It is available here, it takes a minute to order.”
- Week 4 — Settle. Set an automated DM reply carrying the link, and start tagging products in every post.
Keep DMs open for questions that need a human. The migration is about orders, not about conversation.
The first 30 days after launch
An e-shop does not produce sales because it exists. It produces them because you work it during the first month, while you still have your audience’s attention.
| Week | Priority | Practical target |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Announcement and first orders | 10 orders from existing customers |
| 2 | Fixing friction | Find where baskets are abandoned and fix it |
| 3 | Product content | Product tags on every post and reel |
| 4 | Repeat sales | First email to your list |
What to watch from day one:
- Conversion rate: how many visitors buy. 1%–2% is normal early on.
- Basket abandonment: above 70% usually points to shipping costs or too few payment options.
- Average basket: grows through bundle suggestions, not discounts.
- Traffic sources: install Google Analytics before launch, not after.
Ask five friends to place a real order in week one and tell you where they got stuck. That half hour finds more problems than a month of analytics.
The six mistakes that cost you
- Launching with 8 products. The store looks empty. Start with at least 20–25.
- Hiding shipping costs. The customer reaches checkout, gets a surprise and leaves.
- Forgetting mobile. Over 80% of Instagram traffic is mobile. Test every step on a phone.
- Not collecting emails. One field at checkout builds the only channel you actually own.
- Leaving invoicing until later. The first order will arrive before you are ready.
- Skipping Google. A Google Business Profile brings local searches for free — see our guide to local SEO.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep both channels?
Yes, and you should. Instagram drives discovery, the e-shop closes the sale.
Do I need a professional photographer?
Not at the start. Natural light, a neutral background and consistent framing carry you through the early months.
What happens to my existing comments and testimonials?
They do not transfer automatically. Screenshot the best ones and publish them as testimonials on the site.
Is there funding available for an e-shop?
Periodically yes, through digitisation schemes. See what currently applies in our guide to ESPA funding for websites and e-shops, and do not start spending before approval.
How many orders do I need to break even?
At a €3,000 build and €18 gross margin per order, you need roughly 20 orders a month to repay year one.
Start here
Before requesting quotes, gather three things: how many products you will list, how many orders you currently close in DMs each month, and your average basket value.
With those, planning takes one meeting instead of three.
Next step Book a free 30-minute call with the team at The Dev Alley. We will look at what you sell, what the migration costs and how soon you can be live — no commitment.
