Learn Shopify 10 Back to School Website Themes for Your Shopify Store

10 Back to School Website Themes for Your Shopify Store

GemPages Team
Updated:
5 minutes read
Back to School Website Themes

Back to school season is right around the corner, and as eCommerce hustlers, this is a golden opportunity to give your store a revamp just in time for this busy occasion. Instead of tweaking every tiny element to match the vibes, a simple solution is ever-present: back to school website themes. Discover the design that matches your brand the best and drive valuable sales; all can be found in this blog post.

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Why Do You Need Back to School Website Themes?

Online shopping has never stopped being the craze, as its unique convenience evidently trumps the traditional shopping method. For busy holidays, namely Christmas or Black Friday, eCommerce has completely transformed the way consumers shop, and businesses are seen switching up their storefronts’ vibes to match the appropriate occasions. Back to school is another crucial time that is proven to drive immense profits for those with eyes to see, as it proposes a plethora of opportunities for merchants to capture the excitement and urgency of this season.

The undefeated combination of a spot-on theme with clever marketing tactics, such as bundling, is a surefire pathway to take your website to the top during this hectic time. To alleviate unnecessary work, it is always a good call to opt for a theme with a strong navigation system, product filtering, and appropriate call-to-actions. By knowing when and how to capitalize on the current shopping trends, seemingly simple website themes can become robust tools to increase conversions and brand awareness.

More from GemPages: The Best Shopify Themes Your eCommerce Store Needs.

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5 Crucial Elements to Look for in a Back to School Website Theme

An example of a website using a back to school theme.

A well-rounded back to school theme smoothly guides customers toward conversion with strategic elements - the MVP that will determine your store’s performance.

A Clear-Cut Navigation System

As mentioned, a straightforward navigation system will be your best friend. If your target audience is parents and students shopping for a new school year, it is more important than ever to have a system that guides them to the right places while browsing. For instance, if your business carries a versatile array of products, a well-organized layout that exhibit items like backpacks, clothes, shoes, stationery, tech, etc., as different categories helps visitors find what they need quickly without distractions. 

Learn more: 15 Back to School Marketing Ideas Guaranteed to Captivate Gen Z

A Visually-Striking Hero Banner

A hero banner or anything above the fold is the focal point that draws attention the moment visitors land on your website. If you have any ongoing campaign or special deals for back to school season, this is the place to showcase them in all of their glory. The keywords are bold, eye-catching, and to-the-point. Thus, a theme that leaves room for a lot of creative freedom when it comes to the hero section could be worth a shot if you want to communicate deals and keep customers on the website longer.

Learn more: How to Master Website Hero Image for Your eCommerce Store.

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Vibrant and Playful Aesthetic

Knowing the general target group for this shopping season, most stores embrace a vibrant and exciting aesthetic to convey the spirit of a new school year. If you seek to emulate the same vibes, actively look for themes with bright colors, playful fonts, and user-friendly design details that pose to be most appealing among parents and their kids. Should you manage to score a positive first impression with your visitors with this aesthetic choice, they will feel more inclined to choose you over the competitors.

Exclusive Discount Badges

By partaking in the back to school season, it is vital to have exclusive discounts and promotions up your sleeves and ready to go. Customers not only need to know what type of products you offer, but also how much they could save by buying them as well. Make sure to highlight your deals with badges like “Buy One, Get One 50% Off” or “Exclusive Student Discount” to draw one’s attention quickly with minimal communication. Many themes on the market provide these small but highly effective visual cues to drive sales, so make sure to pay attention.

A Mobile-First Layout

People shop on their mobile devices all the time, so mobile optimization is non-negotiable. Before purchasing a theme, take a thorough look at their features to check whether its is compatible with mobile or not. As you configure the components, prioritize elements such as quick add buttons, fast-loading media, thumb-friendly layout, and the like. These details create a frictionless user experience to encourage more spending by customers.

Top 10 Back to School Shopify-Compatible Themes that Drive Conversions

Themes from the Shopify Theme Store

PlaytimePlaytime back to school website theme

Ignite created the perfect website theme to make your Shopify store stand out during the busy back to school season.

Price: $340.

Best for: Kids’ clothing, backpacks, and toy stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Bold color scheme
  • Playful typography
  • Multi-sectioned page layout
  • SEO-focused design
  • Quick shop features

Playtime is a part of Ignite - a flexible Shopify theme with an impressive 100% positive rating. Not only does it look the part, but the strategic features are made to help you create a fully functional website to match your brand as well. With a classic red-white combo, the theme gives out a vibrant aesthetic, whereas a versatile product grid makes shopping easier than ever. For a foolproof back to school theme, Playtime is an excellent choice.

Giggles

Giggles back to school theme

This Shopify theme highlights your toddler toy collection with an intuitive navigation system and a bright color scheme.

Price: $150.

Best for: Toddler and pre-schooler toy stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Family-friendly visuals
  • Eye-pleasing color combo
  • Storytelling layout
  • Product color swatches

Giggles is another outstanding theme option for merchants in the toy store niche. Its colorful and soft color scheme makes shopping for pre-schoolers and toddlers exciting, with family-friendly visuals to encourage purchases from parents. The theme allows a full range of customization so that you can tailor it to your liking, all at a reasonable price of $150.

Notes

Notes theme

Notes gives your store a breath of fresh air among other similar websites that gear toward the back to school spirit.

Price: $160.

Best for: Stationery and notebook stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Clean, minimalist design
  • Content-rich page layout
  • Clutter-free navigation
  • Smart product filtering

Standing at $160, Notes is another top pick from us for a back to school website theme. At first glance, this theme seems like an odd one out due to its contemporary appearance. That said, back to school is not limited to one theme style, so for sellers who seek a sleeker layout, Notes fits perfectly. Whether you are an online bookstore or a modern stationery and study gear shop, it won’t hurt to give this theme a shot.

Learn more: Seasonal Landing Pages: What Are They & Best Practices

ScribblyScribbly theme

Explore a different vibe for your back to school eCommerce store with this sleek and minimal Shopify theme.

Price: $270.

Best for: Creative supplies stores for art students.

Feature highlights:

  • Elegant aesthetic
  • Creative design
  • Flexible product grid
  • Sales-driven elements

Owning a creative brand or an office supply store that possesses a modern feel? The Scribbly theme will further enhance your brand identity through a slew of clever elements during this back to school season. Everything from user-first navigation, alluring announcement banners, to the sticky add-to-cart bar, are made to let your products shine and fly off the shelves in no time.

Origami

Origami theme

Origami is a versatile theme that aims to showcase your stationery collection in its best light with a simple yet eye-pleasing layout.

Price: $360.

Best for: Minimalist office and tech supplies stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Mega menu
  • Product discovery options
  • Sticky cart and header
  • Fast loading speed
  • Branding possibility

Got a large-scale business? Origami will be the ideal contender to empower your website, whether with its smart predictive search, advanced product filtering, or flexible product cards. Back to school this year will feel different for your Shopify store by using Origami’s original design. If you desire more customization, this theme has got you covered as well to let your imagination run wild.

Themes from Third-Party Platforms

Holiday Back to School

Holiday Back to School

Put on a classic back to school look for your Shopify store by using his foolproof theme from GemPages.

Price: from $23 per month.

Best for: Fashion, accessories, and school supply stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Head-turning hero banner
  • Conversion-focused landing page
  • Bundling sections
  • Hard-to-miss CTAs

The Shopify theme store is not short of amazing themes, but sometimes you need another source for refreshing and equally efficient themes. From the GemPages template library, there is an abundance of templates that cater to the back to school season, namely this one pictured above. If you are scouting the web for a template that assists you in building the perfect seasonal landing page, look no further. The pre-built layout clears the way to promote product bundles like stationery combos, backpack and bag kits, and more, while the bold hero section is reserved to showcase your most professional product images.

Back to School - Stationery

Back to School - Stationery theme

Different clever elements are what make this GemPages theme a gem for your Shopify store during this crucial time of the year.

Price: from $23 per month.

Best for: Fashion and accessories stores for teens.

Feature highlights:

  • Countdown timer
  • Customization freedom
  • Product grid layout
  • Sections for stylish images

While this template has stationery in its name, it can be used for all things surrounding back to school, including clothing and accessories for teens. With a versatile interface, this GemPages template can handle all your requests: back to school outfits, campus essentials, school gear must-haves, and so on. The drag-and-drop editor will give you a helping hand should there be any custom sections while integrating the theme with your store.

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Back to School

Back to School theme

Promote your sale campaigns effectively with a conversion-centric template like this one from GemPages.

Price: from $23 per month.

Best for: Tech and gadget stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Product-first layout
  • Comparison chart
  • Eye-catching color scheme
  • Countdown timer
  • Social proof

Another gem from GemPages is none other than this classic back to school template. With an arresting design, this template grants your products the attention they deserve. Made specifically for tech gear like tablets, calculators, headphones, and other smart learning devices, this could be the enhancement needed to advance your business. For these types of products, parents will be the main shoppers, so the comparison section is the MVP in helping them compare product prices, features, pros and cons, and benefits with ease. Leaning toward highschool and college students, this template could be the add-on you need to elevate your website.

AP StationeroAp Stationaro theme

AP Stationaro is made to create the most brilliant eCommerce stores that aim to promote all things about learning and education.

Price: from $56 per month.

Best for: Office supply stores.

Feature highlights:

  • Large catalog support
  • Versatile layout
  • Mega menu
  • Advanced product filtering
  • Bulk order option

AP Stationaro from ThemeForest not only works seamlessly with your Shopify store but also possesses unique personalization liberty to set your store apart from the rest. This theme is built to support large-scale catalogs, so office supply retailers with extensive product collections will be the most fitting match. Since it is made to house a lot of items, features like mega menu and advanced filtering are highly appropriate to help parents and even schools buy gear and supplies quickly.

A for Apple

Apple theme

Build a professional learning hub by utilizing this well-designed theme for the education niche.

Price: from $14.50 per month.

Best for: Educational programs and online courses.

Feature highlights:

  • Design for education and online courses
  • Family-friendly layout
  • Different sections to advertise events and workshops
  • Simple but effective navigation

The last one on the list falls into the education sector more than school supplies, meaning that any educational center or online tutoring service can make use of this well-rounded theme. This Shopify-compatible theme has various elements to highlight one’s educational programs, which differ from the usual product-selling businesses. If building trust is your goal, this theme will help you do just the thing with friendly visuals and customer testimonial segments. As a new academic year begins, having a theme like this in your possession is the key to increase conversion as well as to maintain a long-lasting brand image.

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Key Takeaways

The themes from our list above contain different elements to shed light on the best angles of your business, while all having similar qualities that gear toward the busy back to school season. No matter which niche you are operating in, we are sure that you will find one that matches your goals to properly prepare yourself during this hectic holiday time.

FAQS

What are some third-party sources to find back to school themes?
Back to school themes can be found across different platforms.
For Shopify-based stores,; there are several third-party sources where you can download the themes and use them directly with your website.
Some household names for your consideration are GemPages,; ThemeForest,; Envanto Elements,; and Out of the Sand Box.
How long does it take to set up a new theme on my Shopify store?
Setting up a Shopify theme can generally take a few hours if you’re sticking to the default design.
If you opt for heavy customization that calls for unique product layouts,; custom graphics,; advanced integrations,; etc.,; it may take a few days.
Will switching to a back to school theme affect my store’s SEO?
Quite the contrary!
As long as you refresh your design with seasonal elements (with the same URL structure and product listings),; coupled with a theme optimized for speed and mobile performance,; this actually encourages more clicks and longer browsing sessions ‐ both of which support better SEO rankings for your store.
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