SuperDTF
A digital platform for a DTF (Direct to Film) printing business, managing orders, designs, and customer interactions end-to-end.
Overview
SuperDTF is a DTF (Direct To Film) printing business platform where customers can upload artwork, configure print settings, and place fully customized print orders directly through a Shopify store.
I worked on EZ-Uploader, a Shopify application built from scratch that powers both the customer-facing upload experience and the merchant admin system.
The app is currently in production.
Project Snapshot
| Scope | Details |
|---|---|
| Type | Shopify Custom App |
| Duration | ~4 Months |
| Architecture | Admin Panel + Storefront Widget |
| Core Problem | Dynamic custom print orders |
| Integrations | Shopify GraphQL APIs |
| Storage | S3 / Cloudinary |
Key Responsibilities
- Built the Shopify application from scratch
- Developed merchant admin panel for configuration and pricing control
- Built storefront widget embedded inside Shopify product pages
- Implemented full custom order workflow for print products
- Integrated Shopify GraphQL APIs for product, cart, and order management
- Designed high-resolution image upload and validation pipeline
- Worked on production deployment and client onboarding setup
System Flow
Customer Upload
↓
Artwork Validation
↓
Print Configuration (size, DPI, scaling, etc.)
↓
Dynamic Price Calculation
↓
Hidden Shopify Product Creation (GraphQL)
↓
Add to Cart
↓
Checkout via Shopify
↓
Order sent to production system
Interesting Engineering Problem
Shopify assumes products are predefined before checkout.
In this system, every order is unique and generated at runtime based on user-uploaded artwork and print configurations.
Approach
Instead of static products:
- Generate a hidden product dynamically via Shopify GraphQL API
- Attach print configuration metadata to the product
- Immediately inject it into the cart
- Let Shopify handle checkout normally
This allowed fully custom print orders to work within Shopify’s constraints without modifying the core checkout system.
File Upload Pipeline
- High-resolution image upload support for print production
- Validation for file type, resolution, and print suitability
- Cloud storage integration using S3 / Cloudinary
- Secure handling of large artwork files
Architecture Notes
- Frontend widget embedded inside Shopify stores
- Separate admin panel for merchant configuration
- Node.js backend handling Shopify API communication
- Decoupled upload and order processing flow for scalability
Stack
- React
- Node.js
- Express
- Remix
- Shopify GraphQL API
- AWS S3
- Cloudinary
Outcome
The system replaced a manual order-taking process with an automated Shopify-native workflow, enabling customers to place fully customized print orders directly from the storefront while keeping fulfillment aligned with internal production systems.