Buried in the avalanche of news about Shopify’s shares plunging last week was a new agreement between the Ottawa e-commerce firm and one of the world’s largest social media networks.
The same day that Citron Research released a report that argued the Ottawa-based company’s shares were overvalued, Shopify announced a new partnership with Instagram.
Under the agreement, Instagram will effectively become another sales channel for users of Shopify’s platform. Merchants selected by the two companies will be able to tag products in their posts, which enables users to tap on the product and buy it on the merchant’s checkout without ever leaving the app.
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The partnership comes just ahead of the holiday shopping season and follows similar partnerships with Buzzfeed and eBay.
Shopify isn’t the only Ottawa company to integrate its offerings with Instagram. CanvasPop, which creates canvas prints from its customers’ digital photos, lets users directly access and select their Instagram photos through the local firm’s website.
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Meanwhile, Shopify’s shares slid again on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday, falling 8.9 per cent to $112 by 1:48 p.m.
The company’s stock is down nearly $33, or more than 22 per cent, from its close on Oct. 3.
On Tuesday, Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke made his first comments on the controversy, saying he wouldn’t be elaborating for the time being:
