Building Shopify custom applications from scratch can be challenging, especially if you’re tired of rewriting boilerplate for every project. The Shopify developer ecosystem has tutorials, but open-source starter kits for production-ready apps are still rare.
That’s why I built Brush, a full-stack starter kit designed to give developers and agencies a modern, maintainable, and scalable foundation for complex Shopify custom apps.
In this post, I’ll cover:
- Why a starter kit matters
- What Brush includes
- How its stack accelerates development
- When to use it in real projects
Why a starter kit for Shopify Custom Apps matters
Shopify Custom Apps allow you to build bespoke backend logic, admin interfaces, and storefront enhancements tailored to a specific store. Unlike public apps, custom apps are exclusive to a shop’s needs.
But building them involves:
- Authentication to the Shopify APIs
- Backend data modeling
- Frontend integration with Shopify themes
- Build tooling and deployment
- Localization and validation
- And, of course, a scalable hosting architecture
Without a starter kit, you spend weeks wiring this infrastructure before adding meaningful features.
What Brush actually is
Brush addresses repetitive setup work and provides a modern, cohesive framework for building Shopify Custom Apps. It’s open-source and aimed at developers who want:
- High-quality, maintainable code
- Scalable architecture for quality apps
- Production-ready tooling and patterns
Instead of reinventing the wheel for each project, Brush gives you a reliable foundation for serious custom app development.
The stack behind Brush
Brush combines modern tools chosen for real-world web app development:
🟢 Gadget.dev — Backend & hosting
Gadget.dev powers the backend (hosting, database, scheduling) and exposes a REST API for Shopify themes and admin pages. It handles authentication, Shopify API integration, and provides production-ready backend infrastructure.
🟢 Zod — Data validation
Zod installed out-of-the-box so that you can validate data flowing between your Shopify theme and backend, ensuring type safety and consistency throughout your app.
🟢 Vite — Fast frontend builds
Vite builds a modern frontend that integrates seamlessly with Shopify themes, producing lightweight (<35 kB) optimized bundles for fast performance.
🟢 Alpine.js — Lightweight frontend reactivity
Alpine.js provides reactive components within the Vite app, enhancing server-rendered Shopify themes without adding bloat.
🟢 i18next — Unified translations
i18next delivers a single source of translations across frontend and backend. Brush makes this possible by using Shopify theme locale files for consistency.
🟢 TypeScript everywhere
Brush uses TypeScript throughout the stack: backend (Gadget.dev), frontend (Vite/Alpine), and data models. This improves maintainability and help catch bugs early.
How Brush helps you optimize your workflow
Instead of spending time setting up database, wiring up authentication, crafting API layers, configuring build tooling, addressing localization and so on, Brush gives you these foundations, so you can focus on:
- Building business logic
- Adding custom admin pages
- Hooking into Shopify webhooks
- Creating advanced storefront features
- Interacting with 3rd party services (ERP, CRM, ...)
This significantly reduces time-to-market and ensures scalable and maintainable code from day one.
When Brush makes sense
Brush is ideal for:
- Any Shopify Custom App
- Projects requiring high code quality and long-term maintainability
- Developers who want modern tooling, fast builds, and type safety
Closing thoughts
Shopify Custom Apps empower bespoke workflows and deep integrations into information systems. But building them is non-trivial. Brush gives developers a modern starter kit to reduce repetitive setup, improve maintainability, and accelerate development.
Check it out: https://brush.maddlen.fr/
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