Smart fulfillment hold automation for Shopify mixed orders by STOQ

Shopify merchants know that handling orders containing both in-stock and preorder products is a constant logistical challenge. With STOQ’s advanced preorder automation, you can seamlessly hold fulfillment for the entire order or just the preorder items, based on your preferences. This helps keep shipping costs low, sets clear expectations for your customers, and gives you full control over every mixed order fulfillment. 

Discover how STOQ’s flexible, Shopify-native automation streamlines your preorder process and protects your margins on every sale.

Why we built this feature

Managing orders with both in-stock and preorder items has long been a headache for Shopify merchants. Many had to juggle costly split shipments or spend hours manually reviewing orders, leading to mistakes and unhappy customers.

At STOQ, we believe in automating the complex so merchants can focus on growth. Our new automation holds fulfillment until all preorder items are ready, saving time, cutting costs, and improving customer experience—just the way it should be.

What's new: Automatic hold fulfillment orders

STOQ’s new automatic hold fulfillment feature takes the hassle out of managing mixed orders with preorder products. The moment a customer places an order, STOQ scans all items to detect any preorder with unknown delivery dates.

When preorder products are found, STOQ instantly places a fulfillment hold on the entire order through Shopify’s API, keeping everything together until all items are ready to ship. This hold appears natively in your Shopify admin, with no extra steps or new interfaces to learn. Best of all, you retain full control to manually release holds or configure select products to ship immediately if needed.

With STOQ, your workflow stays seamless, your shipping costs are optimized, and your customers enjoy a smooth, transparent purchasing experience.

How it helps your store

• ‍Slash shipping costs: By eliminating duplicate charges—STOQ ensures mixed orders ship together, helping most merchants save on costs, typically spent on split shipments.‍
• Save valuable time: Manual order reviews become a thing of the past as STOQ automatically holds and manages fulfillment in seconds, freeing your operations team to focus on growth.‍
• Deliver a better customer experience: Customers receive their entire order in one shipment with accurate tracking, reducing confusion and support tickets.‍
• Scale effortlessly: Whether you’re handling dozens or thousands of preorder orders, STOQ’s smart automation grows with you—no extra work needed.

This powerful balance of cost control, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction turns preorder headaches into business wins.

Getting started

Setting up automatic fulfillment holds with STOQ is quick and easy, no technical expertise needed. Simply:

1. Navigate to STOQ Admin → Preorders → Shipping Settings
2. Toggle on "Hold all fulfillments for orders containing preorders"
3. Click Save
   

That’s it! From now on, STOQ will automatically manage holds on any order that includes preorder items, ensuring your shipments stay consolidated. Existing orders remain unaffected, so you have full control during the transition.

When you're ready to ship, simply release held fulfillments directly from your Shopify admin or by navigating to STOQ → Reports → Preorders. This gives you complete control over fulfillment timings.

Automate your preorder fulfillment today with STOQ

Smart preorder fulfillment shouldn’t require a logistics degree. STOQ’s automatic hold feature works quietly in the background, freeing you from manual order reviews and costly split shipments.

Whether you’re just starting out or scaling rapidly, this powerful automation simplifies your workflow, cuts shipping costs, and enhances customer satisfaction, all with minimal effort.

Don’t have STOQ yet? Get started today and see how easy it is to control preorder fulfillment while protecting margins and delighting customers.

Try STOQ for free!

Ready to experience the benefits firsthand? Log in to STOQ and enable automatic holds in just a few clicks. Your warehouse team, and your bottom line, will thank you.

FAQs

What happens if I need to ship part of an order immediately?

Yes, you can manually release the fulfillment hold in Shopify admin anytime to ship in-stock items right away. Plus, STOQ lets you configure certain preorder products to bypass holds and ship separately, giving you full control over mixed order fulfillment.

Does this work with third-party fulfillment services?

Yes, the hold appears in Shopify's native fulfillment system, so any 3PL or fulfillment service that integrates with Shopify will respect the hold.

Can I configure different hold rules for different products?

Absolutely. You can set up product-specific rules in your preorder shipping settings, allowing some items to ship separately while others trigger full order holds.

What if a customer wants to cancel the preorder portion of their order?

Standard Shopify order management applies. You can partially refund the preorder items and release the hold for the remaining in-stock items to ship immediately.

Does this feature cost extra?

Automatic fulfillment holds are included with all STOQ preorder plans at no additional cost. It's part of our commitment to making preorder management as seamless as possible.