Multi-Warehouse & 3PL
Setting up a custom subdomain for your Brand portal
Give each Brand its own slug.shipwave.app URL for customer returns and order tracking.
What the subdomain does
Every Brand gets a free subdomain on shipwave.app in the form {slug}.shipwave.app. That URL hosts the customer-facing portal where shoppers track their orders, start a return, and download return labels. The portal shows the Brand's logo, colors, and support email—not ShipWave's. To shoppers, it looks like a native part of the Brand's store. You don't need a separate domain to start; the subdomain works out of the box.
Choosing your slug
When you create a Brand (see Organizations and Brands), the slug field becomes part of the URL. Keep it short, lowercase, and recognizable: acme yields acme.shipwave.app. Slugs must be unique across all ShipWave Organizations and can only contain letters, numbers, and hyphens. You can change the slug later from Admin → Brand Settings, but old links will 404 after a 30-day redirect grace period—so pick something durable.
How the routing works
ShipWave detects the subdomain on every incoming request and pins the session to that Brand's data. A shopper visiting acme.shipwave.app/track/ABC123 sees Acme's tracker, Acme's branding, and Acme's support contact. The same URL pattern on a different Brand's subdomain shows that Brand's order. There's nothing to configure on your end beyond creating the Brand—DNS and SSL are handled automatically.
Linking customers to the portal
Your Shopify shipping confirmation, return-request emails, and ShipWave-sent tracking notifications all use the Brand's subdomain by default. If you send customers there manually (from a support email, a help article, etc.), share the full URL: https://acme.shipwave.app/returns/new opens the return-request form scoped to Acme. The portal does not require login—customers authenticate by order number plus email or ZIP.
Upgrading to your own domain
When you outgrow the shipwave.app subdomain and want the portal on your own domain (like returns.acme.com), see Custom domain setup. The subdomain keeps working in parallel—you don't need to choose one or the other.
FAQs
Is the subdomain free?
Yes. Every Brand gets a free shipwave.app subdomain at no extra cost. Custom domains may be billed separately depending on your plan.
Can I claim a subdomain before another company does?
Yes. Slugs are first-come, first-served. If you have a brand name worth protecting, create the Brand early and squat the slug.
What if my slug is rejected as already taken?
Try a variation (acme-co, acmestore) or contact support if you believe you have a legitimate trademark claim to a reserved slug.
More in Multi-Warehouse & 3PL
- Organizations and Brands: how multi-tenant ShipWave works
The structure 3PLs use to run multiple client brands from one ShipWave account without mixing data.
- Inviting team members and the six ShipWave roles explained
Add staff, brand owners, and pickers to your Organization with the right level of access.
- Switching between Brands in the admin header
How org-level staff jump between client Brands or view aggregated data across all of them.
- Connecting a custom domain to your Brand portal
Point your own domain (orders.acme.com) at ShipWave for a fully white-labeled customer experience.
- 3PL billing: setting per-brand rates and reviewing monthly invoices
Configure storage, receiving, pick, and shipping markup rates per Brand and finalize invoices via Stripe.