Everybody is launching Block Themes now

WordPress Block Theming released with the Twenty Twenty-Two core theme in January of that year. I immediately recognized the value that this technology provides and realized that the era of file-based Classic Themes was drawing to a close – that they were now obsolete, including the WooCommerce Storefront theme that was my previous go-to solution.

A Block Theme only needs a couple of minimal files to “boot up” the WordPress Block based designer (Site Editor) where you pick fonts, colors, layouts, and visually edit all of your templates.

Tip: use the free Create Block Theme plugin to easily generate your own empty block theme.

I’ve been busy launching a bunch of Block Theme based storefronts. Here’s examples to take a look at:

• bestchinesemedicines.com
• macrofriendlyfood.com
• naasco.com
• ovafit.org
• pacificpenworks.com
• tacknrider.com
• tonyofbeverly.com (nearing release)
• yunnanbaiyaofordogs.com

In addition to Block Themed sites, I also help stores running Elementor, Divi, Storefront, or other Classic Themes to transition over to Blocks via code and content cleanup, in some cases even installing a theme.json file in a child theme to shim some of the critical Block Theme features for Classic Themed environments.

Shopify

While we’re on the topic of theming; I’ve also been hard at work on some Shopify stores. For these I recognize that when Shopify fits a brand, it’s best to use it at its core, including the theming layer and most of the Apps.

Shopify offers about a dozen free themes, all of which use the same code base and are kept current with the core feature track and official Apps – the all-in-one experience that Shopify is famous for. When in Rome…

Here’s my recent Shopify official theme example stores:

• bestnaturalpets.com
• coastandcanyonshop.com
• rootandspring.com
• shop.yunnanbaiyaofordogs.com
• unstoppablehealthandwellness.com

Whether you’re working with WooCommerce or Shopify, or both, it pays to focus on the core technology and minimizing the third party components so that you have a high performing and easily maintained environment that supports all of the best features as they forge ahead.