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Storefront Shelves Guide

Business overview​

Shelves are the primary way we curate the storefront homepage and filter pages. Store administrators design discovery experiences by combining multiple filters per shelf (language + format + genre, for example), choosing ordering, and controlling visibility without writing queries. The builder lives in Dashboard → Settings → Shelves and now supports the new multi-filter design shipped in DEV-4444.

Access and roles​

  • Who: Store administrators with dashboard access.
  • Where: Dashboard → Settings → Shelves (/dashboard/settings#shelves).
  • When to use: To launch thematic rows (e.g., “Fantasy audiobooks”, “Discounted Spanish releases”) and keep homepage merchandising consistent with storefront filter pages.

Modes​

  • Automatic: System-generated shelves for My Issues, Latest Issues, and BISAC-based categories; minimal configuration.
  • Custom: Full control with drag-and-drop ordering, per-shelf titles, visibility toggle, and multi-filter definitions.

Custom shelf builder (new)​

  • Create/edit: Use “Add new” or the gear icon on a shelf card. The modal opens instantly (skeleton) and loads content in parallel.
  • Filters: Combine multiple filter types in a single shelf; all conditions apply with AND logic. Duplicate filter types are blocked to avoid conflicting rules.
    • Static: Free issues, Latest issues, Discounted.
    • Taxonomies: Collection, Publisher, Publishing group, Keyword (shown when enabled for the tenant).
    • Categories: BISAC subject headings.
    • Contributors: Author, illustrator, translator, narrator (searchable).
    • Audience: Uses configured audience options.
    • Format: File type (pdf, epub, audio; physical when enabled).
    • Language.
    • Year (publication).
  • Value entry:
    • Searchable combobox for taxonomies and contributors (starts after 3 characters).
    • Select inputs for BISAC, year, audience, language, and file type.
    • Each filter requires a value; the save action blocks incomplete filters.
  • Ordering inside a shelf:
    • Sort options: Newest first, Most popular, Alphabetical A–Z.
    • Sort selector hides when a filter enforces its own order (Latest issues, Discounted) to keep results consistent.
    • Default ordering uses Newest first to keep freshness without extra setup.
  • Shelf actions:
    • Inline rename, visibility toggle (eye icon), delete.
    • Drag handle to reorder shelves on the page; pending order is saved when you click “Save configuration”.
    • “View more”/filter links use the same query parameters as the shelf, keeping the library filter page aligned with the homepage shelf.

Appearance and content controls​

  • Color theme: Set the shelf accent color (hex) at the top of the Settings card; applies to all shelves.
  • Adult content exclusion: Toggle to hide “Adults only” products from shelves while keeping them discoverable via search/filter pages (see adult-content-filter.md for behavior details).
  • Shelf type selector: Switch between Automatic and Custom modes; saving persists the choice and resets order flags.

Operational notes​

  • Shelf definitions now drive storefront filter URLs and sitemaps (shelf_* entries). After migrating or bulk-updating shelves, regenerate sitemaps with pla:force-generate-sitemaps to refresh search engines.
  • Shelves use the same filter params as the library filter page, ensuring “View more” stays in sync with homepage merchandising.

FAQ / troubleshooting​

  • Cannot save shelf: Add at least one filter, set required values, and avoid duplicate filter types.
  • Sort picker disabled: Expected when using filters that bring their own order (Latest issues, Discounted).
  • Combination with no results: The shelf hides automatically on the storefront until matching products exist.
  • Visibility vs. deletion: Use the eye icon to hide temporarily; delete removes the shelf and its order entry.
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