Creating an ecommerce store — especially a multilingual ecommerce store that needs to speak different languages to sell to international customers — is a daunting process. 

But some businesses have got this just right. 

Before we look at a few great examples of multilingual ecommerce stores, let’s take a quick look at the content management systems that power them (and how you can choose a good one). Because an online store’s multilingualism prowess ties directly to its underlying CMS or the ecommerce solution it’s built on.

Here are a few questions you’ll want to ask yourself when choosing a CMS platform to build your multilingual ecommerce store:

1. Will it grow with you? Most CMS platforms will generally work well for the first year of your business when you’re still small. But you tend to feel boxed in them once you start scaling. For example, if you start catering to internet users who use a right-to-left script, would your CMS support RTL? In line with this, will you be able to introduce multi-currency support? What about other general localization tactics? You don’t want to have to migrate to another platform within a year of starting! Also, your CMS should offer plugins to extend your functionalities as needed. 
2. How usable is it? How intuitive is the interface? Can you easily add products without needing a developer? Are the templates clean?
3. Is it compatible with other platforms? Your store is one part of your business mix. So you need it to work seamlessly with the rest of your business tech stack. Think native (or API-based) integrations with your email marketing solution, translation solution, payment solution, etc.
4. Is it SEO-friendly? Is your CMS optimized for search engines? Can your potential customers find your online store via search engines like Google or Bing? Does your CMS offer tools for search engine optimization?
5. Does it support multiple payment gateways? If you’re selling internationally, you’ll need a platform that supports all the popular payment gateways offering your users all their preferred payment options and user-friendly checkout experiences. 

Website translation 

Talking about selling internationally, the number one selection criteria when considering a CMS will be being able to set up a multilingual ecommerce store, so you can actually communicate with your new target markets in their native languages.

By setting up a multilingual ecommerce site, you can instantly offer your online shoppers a more personalized shopping experience where they can read your product pages in their own language(s). You shouldn’t need your users to use their browser’s translation app — Google Translate for Chrome, for instance — to understand what you’re saying. Your online storefront should look welcoming — and speak the same language(s) as your visitors.

Now, the idea of translating your store into a new language (or into several different languages) might seem intimidating. It is. But you’re in luck, because you’ve got translation solutions like Weglot that come with automatic translation (including machine translation) functionalities that let you create a multi-language ecommerce website in a few easy steps, without writing a line of code.

Your original store can be in English (which might be your online business’s default language), but you can offer it in a host of different target languages like Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese — you name it.

The best part is that Weglot is compatible with all the leading ecommerce CMS platforms. So, no matter what ecommerce technology you create your store on, it will be 100% translatable with Weglot! 

So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at some of our ecommerce customers using Weglot to create multilingual ecommerce stores. We’ll give you a sense of what you can achieve with our translation solution on each of the top ecommerce platforms – with WordPress/WooCommerce, Shopify, Squarespace, BigCommerce, and Wix.

Best multilingual ecommerce sites

Wheat Straws

Dutch company Wheat Straws uses its Shopify ecommerce store to do more than just sell. With a mix of environmental campaigning, and selling a product that reduces the impact plastic has on the environment, Wheat Straws practices what it preaches by donating 2% of every sale toward ocean cleanup. 

Take a look at the store’s fully translated checkout and see how both Dutch- and English-speaking clients can understand the whole buying process. 

Note their translated banners on the top of the website, ensuring people speaking either of the two languages understand their current shipping deals. Plus, you’ve got a fully translated FAQ section (which means there’s no confusion when it comes to delivery times and rates!).  

They’ve also gone the extra mile when it comes to localization and made their Wheat Straws available for purchase in three different currencies. This way, potential buyers don’t need to mess around with their own currency converter. 

We’re hoping it’s just a matter of time before Wheat Straws adds a few more languages to their site, so their plastic reducing message can continue to spread further around the world!

Raw

This premium artisan honey company, Raw, brings to the fore high-end honey products with beautifully designed packaging and a website to match. Raw runs on WooCommerce.

Born in the south of Lebanon to a small family into beekeeping, Raw’s creator is passionate about producing honey based on decades of experience and with proper scientific know-how. 

What’s not to love about this minimalist website available in Arabic and English.   

When it comes to its multilingual ecommerce capabilities, Raw showcases Weglot’s ability to support the translation and display of right to left languages. Such localization is key to giving audiences the native experiences they’re used to. 

Optica Rius 

This online Spanish eyewear store, Optica Rius, was set up by three sisters with a family history of selling glasses that dates back to 1950. 

By choosing Squarespace as their CMS, they could tap into the platform’s simplistic, beautiful templates and choose one that matched their brand sensibilities.

A quick look at their site shows how seriously they’ve taken their localization. With a translated blog in both Spanish and English, they ensure both their target markets get the same brand experience. 

The seamless translated checkout process is completely taken care of by Weglot. 

And, notice the number of brand names used throughout their site, such as ‘Silhouette’ and ‘Game.’ These are words that you wouldn’t want directly translated into Spanish or English. Great news, this is easily taken care of through your Weglot Dashboard where you have the option to choose words you never want automatically translated. 

Intelligent Fixings

Using Wix as its CMS, Intelligent Fixings, makes some of the finest dowel-like connectors for building sturdy furniture.

Their website is available in no less than 13 languages. Banking on the fact that this product will make the lives of DIYers and professional craftsmen significantly easier, it makes sense to sell to markets all over the world. 

But, adding so many languages to a Wix site is certainly no easy feat if you’re not using a translation app like Weglot (check out how to make your Wix site multilingual to find out more). 

A fully translated order form makes it easy for any one of the 13 languages to contact the company to pursue a purchase. When it comes to creating video content for product demos, they’ve made the right decision to keep it only visual, without creating content for each separate language. 

However, if you did want to create a product video for each target language, you have the option to replace your video with a translated version through the Weglot dashboard. 

Creating a multilingual ecommerce store 

You just saw some of the best multilingual ecommerce stores selling internationally on a number of different platforms.

Weglot powers the automatic translation for each of these stores.

If you, too, are looking to create a multilingual ecommerce store, try Weglot. Sign up for a free 10-day trial and see how easy it is to create an online store that speaks as many languages as your users do!