Way to sell
A catalog where the conversation closes the sale.
A read-only storefront — beautiful product pages, photos, descriptions, prices (or "enquire for price") — without a cart, checkout, or payment. Built for high-ticket, bespoke, or consultative businesses where the close happens in conversation, not at a Buy Now button.
What is it
Catalog mode is a single setting on your storefront — pick Online Catalog as your operation mode and the cart, checkout, payment selectors, and Orders dashboard disappear. What's left is a fully styled storefront with categories, items, photos, pricing (or strikethrough / from prices), descriptions, item options, and image galleries. Customers find you, browse the catalog, and reach out via your contact details — phone, WhatsApp, email — surfaced in your storefront header, footer, About page, or a Custom Page. You stay in control of pricing, customisation, and the close — same as you do today, just with a much more credible catalog at the front instead of forwarded photos and ad-hoc PDFs.
How it works
- Build your catalog — categories, items, photos, descriptions, optional prices or "enquire for price".
- In Settings > Operation Mode pick Online Catalog. The cart button, checkout flow, and payment selectors disappear automatically across the storefront.
- Make your contact channels easy to find. Add a phone or WhatsApp link to your storefront header (Settings > Branding) and create an About or Contact Custom Page surfaced in the footer. Customers browse, like what they see, and reach out through whichever channel suits them.
Who picks this mode
Real estate agencies showing properties with floor plans and tour photos. Car dealerships listing inventory with specs. Wedding photographers with package examples. Architecture and interior design portfolios. B2B suppliers selling configurable equipment. High-end florists doing bespoke arrangements. Tour operators where every booking gets quoted. Anyone whose products are too bespoke, too high-ticket, or too consultative for self-checkout — but who still needs a professional online catalog to send leads to.
Pairs well with
Online Catalog mode pairs well with these features:
Custom Pages
Add an About page, a FAQ, your refund policy, terms of service, or a story behind the brand. Customers want to...
Learn more →Digital vCard
Hand someone a paper business card and 80% of the time it ends up in a drawer. A WhatsMenu vCard is a shareabl...
Learn more →Customer Reviews
Every signed-in customer whose order is delivered or closed can leave a star rating and a written review. Buil...
Learn more →Custom Item Fields
Engraving on a watch. Allergies for a meal. Date for a delivery. Patient name for a pharmacy order. Add a cust...
Learn more →Frequently asked questions
Can I show prices but still take enquiries by phone or WhatsApp?
Yes. You can display prices openly on every item and still route enquiries through your contact channels. Showing prices upfront often qualifies leads better — by the time a customer reaches out, they've already accepted the price.
Can I switch between Catalog and Ordering modes later?
Yes. Operation Mode is a single setting. Run Online Catalog during launch to validate demand, then flip to Online Ordering once you're ready to take payments. No data is lost in the switch — your catalog, customers, and storefront settings all stay.
Can I have some items as "showcase" and others as "buy now"?
Operation Mode is per-storefront, not per-item. If you need a hybrid (e.g. ready-stock items buyable online + bespoke items contact-only), use Online Ordering mode and label the bespoke items "enquire only" in their description with a clear contact CTA — or split them into a separate category.
Where do my contact details live?
Wherever customers will look. Common placements: storefront header (a clickable phone or WhatsApp icon configured in Branding), footer text, an About Custom Page, a Contact Custom Page surfaced in the footer link list, or even a Pop-up shown to every visitor. The key is that your phone or WhatsApp link sits where the cart button would normally be — that's the primary call-to-action for a catalog storefront.
Does this work for service businesses, not just products?
Yes. Photography studios showcase package examples, tutors list course outlines, clinics show treatments, agencies show services, real estate agents show properties — anyone whose offering is "a thing to discuss" rather than "a thing to add to cart" fits the showcase pattern.
Can my customers leave reviews even without an order?
WhatsMenu reviews are tied to placed orders, so a showcase storefront doesn't collect on-storefront reviews automatically. If reviews matter to your category (real estate, photography, services), embed a third-party widget (Google Reviews, Trustpilot) on a Custom Page, or move to Online Ordering for purchases that warrant the full order-and-rate flow.
Other ways to sell on WhatsMenu
Online Ordering
Customers browse, build a cart, pay online, you fulfil. Same flow as Shopify or WooCommerce — but no per-order...
Learn more →WhatsApp Ordering
Customers tap your storefront link, browse your catalog, build a cart, and check out. The cart converts into a...
Learn more →QR Ordering
Print a QR on every table. Customers scan with their phone camera, browse the menu, build the order, and submi...
Learn more →Showcase your catalog. Close in conversation.
Build your catalog, surface your contact channels, and let interested customers reach out.
Create your storefront