067 - Preorders, Selling Plans, and AI Ops with Sandesh Kulai

<p>In this episode of the Liquid Weekly Podcast, hosts Karl Meisterheim and Taylor Page are joined by Sandesh Kulai, founder of STOQ by Artos Software.</p><p>Sandesh shares his journey from building early Shopify apps to working at Shopify, then returning to app development full-time with Artos Software. The conversation dives into the real complexity behind preorders, back-in-stock alerts, selling plans, deferred payments, storefront integrations, and supporting apps across a wide range of Shopify themes.</p><p>Sandesh also gives a behind-the-scenes look at Engine Room, Artos Software’s internal AI-powered operations dashboard, and shares practical advice for app developers on treating the business itself like a product.</p><p>STAY CONNECTED</p><p>Subscribe to Liquid Weekly for more expert insights:<br><a href="https://liquidweekly.com/">https://liquidweekly.com/</a></p><p>EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS</p><ul><li>Sandesh’s Shopify Origin Story</li><li>Built for Shopify Recognition</li><li>From Back-in-Stock to Preorders</li><li>Selling Plans Beyond Subscriptions</li><li>Why Preorders Are More Than a Button Change</li><li>Storefront and Theme Support</li><li>24/7 Human Support</li><li>Engine Room and AI Operations</li><li>Building the Business Like a Product</li></ul><p>FIND SANDESH ONLINE &amp; RESOURCES</p><ul><li>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandeshkini/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandeshkini/</a></li><li>Twitter/X: <a href="https://x.com/heysandy801">https://x.com/heysandy801</a></li><li>STOQ: <a href="https://www.stoqapp.com/">https://www.stoqapp.com/</a></li><li>STOQ on the Shopify App Store: <a href="https://apps.shopify.com/back-in-stock-restock-alerts">https://apps.shopify.com/back-in-stock-restock-alerts</a></li></ul><p>TIMESTAMPS</p><ul><li>00:00 - Cold Open: Fighting Operational Slowdowns with Engine Room</li><li>00:52 - Introduction &amp; Sandesh’s Birthday</li><li>03:02 - Built for Shopify Recognition at Editions.dev</li><li>07:50 - Rails, React, and the STOQ Tech Stack</li><li>08:52 - Sandesh’s Origin Story: Apps, Shopify, and Product Management</li><li>12:10 - From Restock Rocket to STOQ</li><li>13:36 - Why Preorders Are More Complicated Than a Button Change</li><li>15:16 - Selling Plans, Purchase Options, and Deferred Payments</li><li>18:38 - Deposits, Partial Payments, and Charging Customers Later</li><li>20:45 - Using Preorders and Waitlists for Better Inventory Decisions</li><li>21:36 - Conversion Analytics for Preorder Campaig