American shoppers have undergone a drastic transformation. People in the U.S. increasingly follow a blended shopping journey: they research online, compare prices on their phones, narrow down their choices, and then visit a physical store to physically touch, feel, and validate the product before making a final purchase. This “digital research physical verification” behaviour is especially common in categories like electronics, beauty, wellness, home improvement, and apparel, where customers want to assess quality, size, color accuracy, and build in real life before committing.
A GE Shopper study revealed that about 82% of US shoppers first look online and then buy in physical stores. For business owners with Shopify sites, this is a fantastic opportunity, as long as shoppers are able to find your store that is closest to them.
If your e-commerce website runs on Shopify store locator can turn that online discovery into actual sales. Store locator tools like LocateStore make it super easy for businesses across the United States to help potential customers find the nearest outlet, dealer, or pickup point.
The Rise of Hybrid Shopping in the U.S.
The U.S. retail environment has certainly transformed. Gone are the days when shoppers followed a single path; nowadays, they move between online and offline channels, making comparisons, checking out alternatives, and doing their due diligence without cutting corners.
Here are some statistics that can help explain this shift:
- According to the US Census Bureau (2024), 72% of all U.S. retail sales still take place in physical stores
- In 2024, online sales in the US crossed 1.4 trillion USD, the highest to date, as per Digital Commerce 360
- A whopping 65% of consumers first check a store’s website, and then only do they visit.
Customers in the US today demand convenience, availability, and speed. Ergo, when they find a product (or service) on your Shopify store, they then want to know the nearest store, service centre, branch, or outlet where they can get it.
This is exactly why a store locator app is critical for businesses that have multiple locations.
What Is a Shopify Store Locator?
A Shopify store locator is a tool embedded on your Shopify website, and it shows customers the location of all your physical stores, retail partners, dealers, distributors, or service centres along with an interactive map. Think of it as an
e-commerce business finder. It displays important information like:
- Store name
- Address
- Business hours
- Phone number
- Directions
- Distance from user
Maps are very important where store locators are concerned. The use of online maps grew 16% year-over-year in the U.S., and users expect fast-loading, user-friendly maps, tools built on Mapbox, like LocateStore, to deliver a smoother experience than conventional Google Maps setups.
Why Every U.S. Retailer Needs a Store Locator in 2025
While it’s a fact that online shopping keeps growing, customers still want to have the option of visiting a store. But they don’t want to waste time in a manual search. They demand fast, location-based results.
Here’s why a store locator like LocateStore is more important than ever today:
Online-to-offline journeys are increasing
Salesforce studies show that 59% of online shoppers choose in-store pickup options wherever available. This means they prefer buying online but would like to make a final physical inspection before they collect it in-store.
“Near me” searches are exploding
Search engine giant Google says that there has been a 500% increase in online searches with the phrase “near me” over the past four years. When locations are correctly mapped, it’s possible for your business to appear in more local searches.
U.S. retailers are expanding geographically
The IHL Group says that more than 1,800 major retail chains expanded their business by adding more stores in 2024. And when there are more stores, branches, or outlets, the need for a centralized business locator is even greater.
How a Shopify Store Locator Boosts Your E-Commerce Business
A thoughtfully designed store locator is more than just a utility; it’s a growth driver.
Why use a store locator?
Increases In-Store Sales
Google’s research tells us that about 46% of shoppers visit a store within 24 hours of browsing online for a product or service. When customers are able to find your nearest outlet instantly, it helps them decide quickly and shortens their buying cycle.
Enhances Customer Experience
Shoppers today want clarity, convenience, and speed; a store locator tool like LocateStore provides relevant information, loads maps fast, and eliminates guesswork for customers. This helps them to enjoy a much better customer experience than before.
Strengthens Trust
One of the best ways to boost credibility and build customer trust is by having verified store locations. RetailDive discovered in their survey that 88% of consumers tend to trust brands a lot more when they are able to confirm a physical presence.
Reduces Customer Support Load
Most of the queries from customers who call in to multi-location businesses are usually about where they can get a specific product near them, whether they have a dealer or branch in a specific city, or till what time their stores in a particular location remain open. A store locator answers these questions before they are asked.
Helps You Manage Dealers & Multi-State Presence
Any business that has dealers, multiple outlets, retail networks, and distributors benefits from transparency. In the US, businesses utilize store locators to ensure visibility to their partners.
Essential Features to Look For in a Store Locator App
There are several store locator apps, but not all are properly designed or suitable for all types of businesses. If you’re looking for the best results on Shopify, you need to look for these:
Mapbox Map Integration
Mapbox is preferred by millions of navigation apps in the USA, as it delivers fast performance and a high degree of customization. This is crucial, as 70% of location or near me searches originate from mobile.
Google Sheets Backend
Many locator apps necessitate manual entry, backend dashboards, or other methods that require coding skills. As LocateStore is entirely built on Google Sheets, it simplifies matters greatly. You can:
✔ Upload thousands of locations at a time if needed
✔ have multiple team members collaborating in real time
✔ Perform instant syncing without coding or tech skills
As it is cloud-based, you always get up-to-date data; Statista data reveals that 78% of U.S. businesses use cloud-based collaboration tools. That makes this approach perfect for modern workflows
Mobile-Optimized Locator
Nearly 60% of e-commerce traffic in the US comes from mobile devices; this makes it imperative that your locator is fast and responsive, delivering smooth performance every time.
Advanced Search Filters
A store locator should allow users to search by postcode, city, map coordinates, state, radius, category, and filters like ‘Open 24 hours’
Easy Embedding Across Shopify
The tools should be easily embeddable in whatever page you want like the Home Page, Store finder page, Dealer locator page, Landing Page, or Product pages. The more the flexibility, the better.
Why LocateStore Stands Out
LocateStore has become a popular choice for US retailers with multiple locations as it solves the most commonly experienced operational pain points.
Built on Google Sheets
LocateStore does include a dashboard, but all store location details are managed through Google Sheets—this is one of its biggest differentiators. For large U.S. retailers that handle hundreds of locations, managing everything in a sheet saves significant time, especially compared to manual entry inside a dashboard.
With Google Sheets:
- A single alteration updates locations across websites in real time
- Anyone with access to the Store Locations Google Sheet can collaborate directly, no need to log in to LocateStore to make updates
- Instant import and export of locations can be performed
With 61% of U.S. retailers saying that location data management is one of their biggest challenges, this is a game-changer.
Mapbox for Fast, Modern Maps
Google Maps has usage limits and variable pricing tiers, and can be expensive for smaller businesses. Mapbox is faster, reliable, and more flexible, and delivers better user experiences on mobile.
Unlimited Locations
LocateStore scales with your business, letting you add as many locations as required; whether you have 5 stores or 5,000, you can manage all locations easily.
Easy to Add to Shopify
Setting up LocateStore on your Shopify site is quick and simple, and just takes a few minutes for anyone without coding skills. You simply have to generate your embed code, copy, paste, and publish.
Supports Local SEO
With properly structured store data, your business will organically appear more often in
location-based searches. This way, it can help you tap into the 30% of location-related mobile searches.
Which Industries Benefit the Most
Every business with multiple locations can benefit from a store locator. However, there are a few industries that get the most benefits.
- Consumer Electronics: Americans buy them both online and offline, but 63% buyers prefer to browse in stores or pick up in-store
- Beauty & Wellness: Retail partner visibility brings immense benefits to skincare, cosmetics, and perfume brands.
- Food & Beverage: Shoppers in the US prefer local availability, as can be understood from 50% of grocery searches include near me phrases.
- Automotive Accessories: Tyre shops, service centers, and car accessories outlets benefit hugely from location transparency.
- Home Improvement: Stores selling hardware, tools, paint, wood, and similar products are those that customers want the nearest outlet immediately.
Also read: The Store Locator App Can Boost Your Shopify Website
Conclusion
A Shopify store locator is not optional for U.S. e-commerce brands anymore. You can see that it enhances customer experience, increases in-store conversions, builds trust, and helps retailers manage multiple outlets without hassles.
Businesses that want an easy, scalable, map-based locator without technical complexity should consider LocateStore, as it ticks all the right boxes.
FAQs
1. What are the benefits of a Shopify store locator?
A Shopify store locator makes it easy for customers to find your nearest physical store, get directions, and visit you faster. It improves user experience, builds trust, and reduces “Where is your shop?” support questions all helping increase in-store traffic and sales.
2. How can a Shopify store locator help my business?
It directs customers to your nearest store, drives in-store sales, supports local SEO, and builds customer trust.
3. Best way to insert a store locator directly into a product page?
Simply embed the store locator code in the product description; you can also use a custom block in your Shopify theme editor.
4. What is the best Shopify store locator?
We recommend LocateStore as it uses Mapbox, syncs data via Google Sheets, offers fast onboarding, and supports unlimited locations. It is fast, simple, and cost-effective.