Your store can open to everyone only when everything on the Before You Launch card is Done: store details, a way to get paid, tax, all six policies, a paid plan, and no sample data left. Mercayo checks the same list again the moment you press LAUNCH MY STORE, so the store never opens half-ready. This page explains each item, what exactly makes it Done, and the reasons an item can stay open after you think you finished it.
Symptoms
On Settings › Launch:
- Before You Launch shows "Still to do: 2" and items with FIX THIS.
- "Only the store owner can launch." under the LAUNCH MY STORE button.
- After pressing LAUNCH: "There is still something to finish: Create and Publish Your Store Policies."
- "That did not work just now. Nothing was changed; please try again."
- Pay for a Plan stays open, with "Plans are paid by bank transfer or UPI for now: see Settings, Billing. As soon as we record your payment, you can launch."
The Six Items
| Item | Done When | Where to Fix It |
|---|---|---|
| Fill In Your Store Details | Every field marked Needed is filled in | Store Details |
| Choose How You Get Paid | Cash on delivery is on, or Razorpay is connected | Checkout and COD, Payments |
| Set Up Tax | Your GST registration type is saved | Taxes |
| Create and Publish Your Store Policies | All six policies are Published | Policies |
| Pay for a Plan | Your plan is paid up to a date in the future | Plans and Billing |
| Delete the Sample Products | No sample data is left (shown only while there is some) | Home, setup guide, DELETE SAMPLE DATA |
Each open item has FIX THIS, which opens the right screen. Come back to Settings › Launch afterwards; the list is read fresh each time the screen opens.
Causes and Fixes
A Needed Store Detail Is Missing
Fill In Your Store Details stays open while any of these is empty: Legal Name, Type of Business, the address (Address Line 1, City, State and PIN Code count as one), Customer Care Email, Customer Care Phone, Customer Care Hours, Grievance Officer, Their Role, Days to Dispatch and Delivery Time. The grievance officer's email and phone are needed only when the customer care email or phone is missing too.
How to check: open Settings › Store Details. The top says "Still needed before you can launch:" with the missing items, and each section with a gap carries a pill such as 2 needed. Fill them in and press SAVE.
Neither Cash on Delivery nor Razorpay Is On
Choose How You Get Paid is done when Cash on Delivery is switched on in Settings › Checkout and COD, or a Razorpay account is connected in Settings › Payments. If you sell online only, connect Razorpay; if you switched COD off and disconnected Razorpay, this item opens again. See Set Up Payments.
Tax Is Not Saved, or Waits for Mercayo
Set Up Tax is done once you have saved your Registration Type in Settings › Taxes, even "Not registered for GST". Two things keep it open:
- You chose a type but did not press SAVE ("GST settings saved. New bags and orders use them now." confirms it).
- You entered a GSTIN that another store on Mercayo already uses. Nothing is saved until Mercayo approves it: the card shows Waiting for Mercayo. Use Tell Mercayo why (optional) and SEND to explain (for example a second brand of the same company). The item turns Done when Mercayo approves.
Tax rules are general guidance, not tax advice; ask your CA which registration type applies to you.
A Policy Is Still a Draft
Create and Publish Your Store Policies needs all six policies (Terms of Sale, Privacy Policy, Shipping Policy, Returns, Exchanges and Refunds, Contact and Grievance, Cancellation Policy) to be Published. Five published and one draft is not enough.
How to fix:
- Open Settings › Policies.
- If the page says "Fill in your store details first. Still needed: …", finish Store Details first: policies cannot be created or published until then.
- If there are no policies yet, press CREATE MY POLICIES. They start as drafts.
- Read them, then press PUBLISH ALL. "All your policies are published."
A policy unpublished later (in another tab, or by a colleague) opens the item again.
The Plan Is Not Paid Yet
Pay for a Plan is done only when Mercayo has recorded a payment that covers today. Being on the free trial, or choosing a plan, is not enough on its own.
- Paying online by subscription, you chose When my free trial ends: the first payment is taken on the trial's last day, so you cannot launch before then. To launch now, choose Today, so I can launch my store now instead; the trial days left come off as credit.
- Paying by bank transfer or UPI: the item turns Done as soon as Mercayo records your payment. If you have paid and it is still open, write to Mercayo's billing address from Settings › Billing with your payment reference.
- A payment failed: Settings › Billing shows what is due. Pay it or change the payment method.
When the plan is paid before launch, Billing says "Your plan is paid. You can launch your store." with GO TO LAUNCH. See Plans and Billing.
Sample Data Is Still in the Store
If you loaded Mercayo's sample products when you started, Delete the Sample Products appears and blocks launch, so a shopper can never order a sample. It also covers the sample details that came with them.
How to fix: on Home, in the setup guide, press DELETE SAMPLE DATA. It removes the sample products with their sample category and collection; products you added yourself are not touched. This cannot be undone. See Setup Guide.
You Are Not the Store's Owner
"Only the store owner can launch." Others on the team can work through the list as far as their rights allow, but only the owner can press LAUNCH MY STORE. Ask the owner to sign in and launch, or to hand ownership over if that is what you agreed (see Staff and Roles).
Something Changed While the Page Was Open
The Before You Launch card shows what was true when you opened it. If something changed since (a policy unpublished in another tab, a plan payment that lapsed), pressing LAUNCH finds it, changes nothing, and says "There is still something to finish: …". Reload Settings › Launch to see the current list and fix what is open.
The Store Is Suspended or Already Launched
"That did not work just now. Nothing was changed; please try again." also appears when the store cannot launch for a reason not on the list: it is suspended or closed (the admin then shows "This store is suspended. You can look, but changes are switched off."), or it was launched already, for example by the owner in another tab. Reload the page: a launched store shows Your Store Is Live. For a suspended store, see Plans and Billing or write to support.
Before You Press Launch
Launching cannot be undone from the admin. Use the password page to show your store to a few people first, and check:
- Products are Active, with the right prices, MRP and stock.
- Delivery charges and PIN codes are right in Shipping and Delivery.
- A test order goes through, with COD and with online payment if you take it.
- Your policies read the way your business works.
Still Stuck?
Open Help from your account menu and write to Mercayo's team. Include your store's handle, a screenshot of Before You Launch, and for a plan payment, the date and reference of your transfer. See Contact Mercayo Support.
Questions
Can I launch during the free trial?
Yes, once the plan is paid. With an online subscription, choose to start the plan today; the trial days left come back as credit.
Does launch need my own domain?
No. Your store can launch on its free Mercayo address and you can connect a domain later. See Domains.
Does launch need products?
The list does not check products, but a store with no active products has nothing to sell. Add your first products before launching.
Why does Choose How You Get Paid say Done when shoppers cannot pay online?
The item is done with COD on or Razorpay connected. Online payment at checkout also needs the Online Payments switch in Settings › Checkout and COD.
Can I hide my store again after launching?
Not from the admin. If you need your store closed, write to Mercayo's support.