Creating stores

Use the New Store function in WebSphere Commerce Accelerator to create a store.

Procedure

Open WebSphere Commerce Accelerator. Select either Extended Sites Hub or an existing custom store from which you want to base the new store.
Select New Store from either the Channel or Extended sites menu options.
From the General page:
1. Input the store unique identifier, store display name, store description, email address, default store currency you accept, and the store's organization into the fields.
2. If your organization owns more than one store and you want the registered customers of this store to have access to previously created stores, then select Allow the users of other stores to access this store by specifying the same owning organization check box. Then, select the organization that owns the previously created stores.
  
  Tip: By default, the registration process creates registered customers in the organization that owns the store. However, if your extended site has more than one organization that owns a store, you might want all registered customers to have access to all the stores. To achieve this result, an IT developer can change the registration process so that registered customers are created in the Extended Sites Seller Organization. As a result, each customer that registers can access all the stores in all organizations that have the Extended Sites Seller Organization as a parent. For more information, see Enabling registered users to access all stores in the Extended Sites business model
3. Click Next.
From the Store Type page, select the store type for your store's business resources and click Next. Examples of business resources that are provided by the store type include JSP files that define the store's shopping flow, any tax settings, and the WebSphere Commerce commands. A description of the store type you select displays under the Store type list.
Under the Catalog list, you can either select an existing catalog and modify it, or you can select Empty catalog to create a new one from scratch. If you select an existing catalog from the list, a description of that catalog displays below the list. Depending on the business model for your store, select one of the following catalogs from this list:
- If you are working with extended sites, select the store master catalog that is created for the largest auto parts retailer in the country.
- If you are working with the supply chain, select the supplier marketplace catalog, which is a shared catalog that each supplier store must use.
Note:
- You can add products and categories to your catalog and make fixed price changes by using the Product Management tools within the WebSphere Commerce Accelerator. You can also use the catalog filter to select or hide the products from a master catalog, and make percentage price adjustments to the products within the catalog.
- It is recommended to place the sample catalog.csv file for Sellers to download from the Commerce Supplier Hub. This sample could serve as a starting point for Sellers to create their catalog structure. A sample can be found in the samples directory:
From the Payments page, select one or more payment methods that are supported at your store.
- American Express Credit Card
- Bill customer later
- Payment by Check
- Customer will pay cash on delivery
- Used for compatible mode
- Master Card Credit Card
- Customer will pay later
- VISA Credit Card
- Prepaid payment method
  Prepaid payment method is a dummy payment method reserved only for Service Provider Solution (SPS). Prepaid payment method can be used for subscription orders that have a prepaid payment type. It is not displayed or used on the storefront for normal orders.
From the "Store Creation Summary" page, review the information. The page summarizes the information and options you provided in WebSphere Commerce Accelerator. If you are satisfied with the data you entered, click Finish. Otherwise, click Previous to return to the previous pages of the wizard and modify the information.
Upon clicking Finish, the resulting "Store Creation Confirmation" page displays a progress indicator that is used to illustrate that the store is being created. A status message displays when the store is created successfully. Since the store home page is not automatically displayed, you can view or work with your store:
- Click Bookmark Store to save the URL for the store's home page to your browser so that you can view your store home page by selecting the bookmark in your Internet browser.
- If you open IBM Management Center for WebSphere Commerce, click Launch Store to view the store's home page.
- Launch WebSphere Commerce Accelerator to use the WebSphere Commerce Accelerator for managing your store. WebSphere Commerce Accelerator provides various wizards, notebooks, dialogs, and lists that you can access by using various menus. Use the functions within the WebSphere Commerce Accelerator to customize and maintain your store.

What to do next

You must open the store for business in order for customers to access it. Only stores with a status of Closed can be opened. Closing a store prevents customers from accessing the store. Ensure that your store has a closed status before changes are made. The Channel Manager can open or close the store for the reseller, which allows or prevents customers from accessing the store.

Open IBM Commerce Management Center
From the Management Center Tools menu, Store Management. If this menu option does not appear, then your Logon ID does not have the authority to perform this task. Contact your Site Administrator.
From the navigation menu, select Stores. The resulting page displays all of your stores.
Right-click the store that you would like to open and select Open Store. The state of the store indicates an opened status.

You can also close the store by:

Opening IBM Commerce Management Center
From the Management Center Tools menu, Store Management. If this menu option does not appear, then your Logon ID does not have the authority to perform this task. Contact your Site Administrator.
From the navigation menu, select Stores. The resulting page displays all of your stores.
Right-click the store that you would like to close and select Close Store. The state of the store indicates a closed status.