Aghaz Docs

What is Aghaz

Aghaz is a complete online-store platform built for selling in Pakistan — cash-on-delivery first, with WhatsApp order updates, courier booking, and analytics built in. You get your own store, your own dashboard, and your own themes; we run the servers.

Think of it as your own Shopify: a storefront customers buy from, and a dashboard where you manage products, orders, customers and everything else.

What every store gets

• A storefront on your own web address, with themes you can fully customise.
• Cash on Delivery and optional Bank Transfer checkout — 4 fields, no account needed.
• WhatsApp order confirmations, delivery updates, and an optional AI assistant that answers customers.
• Courier booking from inside an order (Oshi, InstaCourier, Leopards, PostEx, BlueEx, TCS, Trax).
• Analytics — live visitors, sales by channel (Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Google), best sellers.
• A read-only API and a command-line tool for developers.

Getting started

Getting a store live takes a few minutes and no payment.

1. Go to aghaz.pk and press Create your store.
2. Pick a store name and your store address (the part before .aghaz.pk).
3. Enter your email — we send a 6-digit code to verify it.
4. Type the code. Your store is provisioned instantly and you land in the dashboard.

Signing in later

Your dashboard lives at admin.aghaz.pk/store/your-store. Bookmark it. You can also sign in from the Log in link on aghaz.pk.

First things to do

• Add your first product (see Products).
• Pick and publish a theme (see Themes).
• Connect WhatsApp so customers get order updates (see WhatsApp).
• Set your payment methods in Settings → Payments.

The dashboard

The dashboard is organised down the left sidebar. Here is what each area does.

Products

A product is one thing you sell. Open Products → Add product.

1. Give it a name and a price (and an optional compare-at price to show a discount).
2. Write a description. Add photos — drag to reorder; the first is the cover.
3. Set stock. When an order is delivered, stock goes down automatically.
4. Add a slug and SEO title/description if you want (defaults are generated).
5. Press Save. Your product is live at /products/your-slug.

Photos and video

• Photos and video live in one ordered gallery — drag the tiles to set the order customers see.
• Video is supported (mp4/webm). A .mov you upload is converted to MP4 automatically.
• The cover image is always a photo (it shows in the cart, checkout and orders list), never a clip.

Variants & options

Variants are the versions of a product — sizes, colours, or packs (e.g. Single / 2-Pack / 3-Pack). Each variant can carry its own price and its own stock.

1. Open a product and go to its Variants section.
2. Add an option (e.g. Size) and its values (e.g. S, M, L).
3. For each variant, set a price and stock if it differs from the base.
4. Save. The storefront shows a picker, and stock tracks per variant.

Bundles

A bundle sells several products together at one price — a deal like "Buy 3, save 20%".

1. Go to Products and add a Bundle.
2. Give it a name and a bundle price.
3. Choose the products (and quantities) that make up the bundle.
4. Save. It gets its own product page and checks out like any product.

Orders & checkout

Customers check out with just 4 fields (name, phone, city, address) — no account needed. Email is optional.

Payment methods

• Cash on Delivery — the default. Pay when the parcel arrives.
• Bank Transfer — optional (Settings → Payments): add Meezan / Easypaisa / JazzCash etc., with an optional extra discount. The discount is re-checked on the server, so the total is always trustworthy.

The order pipeline

Every order moves through a set of statuses. Each change emails the customer (if they gave an email) and is logged.

Adding an order by hand

Taking an order over the phone? Use Orders → New order — a full page (not a popup). If the phone already belongs to a customer, it tells you and links to them; it never silently overwrites a profile.

Tracking

Add a tracking id and link on the order page. Customers can follow it at /track-order.

Customers & anti-fraud

Every order builds a customer profile keyed on the phone number, so repeat buyers and their history are one click away.

Reducing returns (RTO)

• Phone blacklist — block a number from ordering.
• Repeat-offender flag — a phone with too many returns is flagged automatically.
• RTO report (Orders → Returns) — return rate by courier, city and month.
• Order rate-limit per IP, honeypots, and repeat-phone history all run quietly in the background.

Couriers & shipping

Book a shipment straight from an order — no separate courier portal.

1. Turn on the couriers you use in Settings → Couriers (each has its own on/off and API fields).
2. Open an order and press Book courier; pick a courier and confirm.
3. The tracking number comes back onto the order, and status updates flow through the pipeline.

Adapters available: Oshi, InstaCourier, Leopards, PostEx, BlueEx, TCS, Trax. Oshi and InstaCourier are verified live; the rest activate once you add API keys.

Payments & discounts

Payments live in Settings → Payments: enable Cash on Delivery and any Bank Transfer methods, each with an optional extra discount for prepaid orders.

Themes

Your storefront's look is a theme. Open Themes to install, preview, customise and publish.

Two engines

• Classic — Aghaz's own themes, fast and fully supported.
• Liquid — import a Shopify-style theme (Dawn and others). Great if you are moving from Shopify.

Editing a theme

• Customize — a visual editor: click a section in the preview, change its settings, save. Changes go live for a published theme.
• Edit code — a full code editor (like Shopify's "Edit code") for anyone who wants the files directly.

1. Pick a theme and press Customize to style it, or Edit code for the files.
2. Use Preview to see changes before they are public.
3. When happy, press Publish. That theme becomes your live storefront.

Editing theme code

The code editor is a VS-Code-style editor built into the dashboard. It saves safely — broken PHP or broken JSON is refused before it can reach your live store, and every save is kept in a timeline you can roll back.

Prefer to work on your own computer? Use the CLI (see the Developers section) to pull the theme down, edit it in your own editor, and push it back.

WhatsApp

Aghaz can send order updates over WhatsApp and — if you switch it on — let an AI assistant answer customer messages.

Connecting a number

1. Open WhatsApp in the dashboard.
2. Scan the QR code with the phone whose number you want to send from.
3. Once linked, notifications start flowing.

What it sends

• Order confirmation, dispatch and delivery updates, and more — all editable templates.
• Follow-up messages and polls you design (any depth).
• Optional AI assistant that replies to customer questions and can even take an order — prices always come from your catalogue, never invented.

Pausing

Two independent switches: pause customer notifications, or pause the AI assistant, without touching the other. A pause can be "until I resume" or auto-expire after a set time.

Analytics

The dashboard home is your analytics view.

• Live visitors right now.
• Sales by channel — Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Google, Direct, Referral, WhatsApp.
• Orders by status, conversion rate, delivered sales, best sellers.

API (v1)

A read-only JSON API, one key per store. Turn it on and generate a key in Settings → API.

Authenticating

Send your key as a Bearer token. Keys are never stored on our side — only a fingerprint — so keep yours safe.

curl https://your-store.aghaz.pk/api/v1?r=ping \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

Endpoints

Call as /api/v1?r=<endpoint>. All are GET. Rate limit: 120 requests per minute.

Example

# last 10 delivered orders
curl "https://your-store.aghaz.pk/api/v1?r=orders&status=delivered&limit=10" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

{
  "ok": true,
  "page": 1,
  "limit": 10,
  "orders": [
    { "order_no": "AB-76", "name": "…", "total": 1199, "status": "delivered", … }
  ]
}

Command-line tool (Aghaz CLI)

The Aghaz CLI lets you work on your theme from your own computer — pull it down, edit it locally, and push it back. It works the way Shopify's CLI does: a secure browser login, no key ever pasted.

Run it without installing Aghaz CLI

There is no CLI folder to download, extract or find, and no npm link. You only need Node.js 18 or newer. npx downloads Aghaz's small official package when the command runs and keeps a local cache for next time.

Sign in

Copy this command into PowerShell or Terminal. You do not type your store name — Aghaz uses the dashboard already signed in in your browser.

npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz auth login
# browser opens → review access → press Connect → done

Working on a theme

npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz theme list       # every theme
npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz theme pull       # download the live theme
# edit the files in your editor
npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz theme push       # upload your changes
npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz theme dev        # push each save automatically

• Commands act on your live theme unless you pass --theme=<id>.
• Only files that actually changed are transferred, so pull/push are fast.
• push --delete also removes files you deleted locally.

Managing your catalogue

A connected computer can also create, edit and delete products, variants and bundles — the same actions the dashboard's product editor performs. Every write goes through the exact same rules the editor enforces (prices are validated, a product with sizes/options can only be priced through those options, and a delete goes to the recycle bin, never a permanent wipe).

These run against POST /api/cli.php on the admin host, using the token from aghaz auth login as a Bearer header. The actions:

The same actions are available as CLI commands. Put npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz before product list|create|update|delete, variant add|update|delete, or bundle set. Run npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz with nothing after it for the full reference.

Letting an AI assistant do this for you

Everything above — and a great deal more — can also be driven from Claude Desktop, Claude Code or Codex in plain English, through Aghaz MCP. See AI assistant (MCP) for the full guide.

What a CLI connection can reach

A connection can only ever reach the one store you approved it for, and only the areas your own account holds. A normal login asks for everything your account can grant; use --scopes= only when you deliberately want less. Existing connections never gain new permissions on their own. Deletes go to the recycle bin, broken PHP or JSON is refused before it can reach your live storefront, and disconnecting the computer in Settings → API stops it immediately.

AI assistant (MCP)

Aghaz MCP lets an AI assistant — Claude Desktop, Claude Code or Codex — run your store in plain English. "Show me this week's unbooked orders." "Restock the foot pads to 40." "Write SEO titles for my winter products." The assistant does the clicking; you stay in charge of the decisions.

It is not a chat window that guesses. Every action runs through the same guarded workflows the dashboard uses — the same price rules, the same order pipeline, the same recycle bin — so an assistant cannot do something the dashboard would refuse.

The safety boundary, in one paragraph

When you connect a store, Aghaz issues a token for that one store. It is not a master key: a connection to one store cannot see, change or even confirm the existence of anything in another store, including your own other stores. On top of that, every single request re-checks your account's live role and permissions — so if your access is reduced, or the account is suspended, or you disconnect the computer, the assistant loses that access on its very next action. There is no cache to wait out.

• One connection = one store. Connect each store separately.
• The assistant can never exceed your own permissions in that store.
• Your token is stored only on your computer; Aghaz keeps only a fingerprint of it.
• You approve exactly what the connection may do, in your browser, before it works at all.

Let Codex or Claude Code connect itself

No Aghaz CLI install, folder download, file path or manual config is needed. If you are already chatting in Codex or Claude Code, paste the matching instruction below into that chat — the assistant has a terminal and should run the command itself.

Paste into Codex:

Run this command yourself in your terminal:
npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz connect codex

Do not ask me to install anything, edit a config file or run the command for you. It waits for me to approve in the browser, so allow it up to 5 minutes and do not cancel it — run it in the background if your own time limit is shorter. If no browser window opens, show me the link the command prints so I can open it myself. If the command cannot run at all — no network, a blocked sandbox — say so in one plain sentence and give me the command to run myself. Keep every update and the final answer short, simple and non-technical. Ask me only to press Connect in the browser, then restart Codex.

Paste into Claude Code:

Run this command yourself in your terminal:
npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz connect claude

Do not ask me to install anything, edit a config file or run the command for you. It waits for me to approve in the browser, so allow it up to 5 minutes and do not cancel it — run it in the background if your own time limit is shorter. If no browser window opens, show me the link the command prints so I can open it myself. If the command cannot run at all — no network, a blocked sandbox — say so in one plain sentence and give me the command to run myself. Keep every update and the final answer short, simple and non-technical. Ask me only to press Connect in the browser, then restart Claude Code.

1. Paste the block for your assistant. It runs the command itself.
2. Your browser opens. Sign in if needed, review the permissions and press Connect.
3. Start a new session in that assistant. The Aghaz tools are ready.

Want read-only or narrower access? Add the exact scopes to the command:

npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz connect codex --scopes=catalog:read,orders:read

The approval page shows only permissions your account can actually grant. A staff member without Products access cannot approve product tools.

Claude Desktop or manual setup

Claude Desktop cannot run a terminal command before Aghaz is connected. For Claude Desktop — or if you prefer to do it yourself — open PowerShell or Terminal and run only the one command for your assistant. The approval, the permissions and the disconnect are exactly as above.

Codex:

npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz connect codex

Claude Code:

npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz connect claude

Claude Desktop:

npx --yes --package=https://aghaz.pk/downloads/aghaz-cli-1.1.1.tgz aghaz connect claude-desktop

ChatGPT

Aghaz does not currently offer a ChatGPT connector. ChatGPT needs a remote MCP service; Aghaz currently uses a local connection for Codex and Claude. Use Codex, Claude Code or Claude Desktop for now. Do not try to connect ChatGPT with an API key — the API is read-only and is separate from MCP.

Working with more than one store

Connect each store separately: run the same connect command again with --store=another-store-slug added — or paste the block again, telling your assistant to add it. In the conversation, the assistant can then list what you connected and pick one to work in:

• stores_list — the stores this computer is connected to (and nothing else).
• store_context_select — choose the one to work in.
• store_context_get — check which one is selected right now.

What your assistant can do

Grouped the way you actually work. Each row is a real capability with the permission it needs — if a permission was not approved, that row simply does not work for that connection.

Money and deletion — how you stay in control

• Anything destructive must be confirmed. The assistant has to name the store and pass an explicit confirmation, after showing you what will be affected. It cannot delete as a side effect of some other request.
• Deletes are recoverable. A product, collection or customer profile goes to the recycle bin, not away. Removing a photo from a product leaves the file in your media library. Orders are never deleted at all.
• Nobody overwrites your newer edit. If you changed something in the dashboard after the assistant last read it, the assistant's write is refused rather than silently replacing your work.
• Retries are safe. If a connection drops mid-request, retrying does the work once — it does not create a second product or move an order twice.
• Bulk SEO is preview-then-apply. The assistant shows you exactly what would change, and can then apply only that. Change one word of the plan and it is refused.
• Prices keep their guard rails. A product with sizes is priced only through those sizes, and a pack tier can never be Rs. 0 — the same rules the dashboard editor enforces.
• Busy connections are throttled, per connection — so one runaway assistant cannot slow down anyone else.

Not supported through MCP

These are deliberate. Each one is either a decision that belongs to a human, or something Aghaz does not do at all — none of them is an unfinished feature.

Things you can just say

All fictional — swap in your own store and products.

"Show me my products in Sunrise Bazaar."
"Create a draft product called Lemon Hand Cream at Rs. 1,299."
   → the assistant names the store and confirms before creating

"Restock Lemon Hand Cream to 40."
"Which orders are still unbooked?"
"Book order SB-1042 and add tracking number XY1234567."

"Upload C:\photos\lemon.jpg and make it the cover for Lemon Hand Cream."
"Preview better SEO titles for my hand-cream products."
   → it shows the plan; you say yes; it applies exactly that

"What did I delete this week?"
"Restore the Lemon Hand Cream product."

"Delete the Winter Clearance collection."
   → it must show you the collection and ask before anything happens

When something does not work

FAQ

Is it really free?

Yes, while we are in early access. Paid plans come later; your store keeps working.

Can I use my own domain?

Yes — add it in Settings → Domain. SSL is issued automatically.

Can I change my free Aghaz address?

Once. In Settings → Domain → Your Aghaz address, type the new name and save. Your old address keeps working and sends visitors to the new one, so links you have already shared do not break. You only get one change, so pick carefully.

Do customers need an account to buy?

No. Checkout is 4 fields; email is optional. That is what keeps COD conversion high.

I deleted something by accident.

Check Super Admin → Recovery — customers, orders, products and media are all recoverable from the recycle bin.

I moved from Shopify — can I bring my data?

Yes. Import orders, products and customers from a Shopify CSV in Settings → Backups & Data / Import. You can import a Shopify-style (Liquid) theme too.

How do I get help?

Use the Store Assistant in your dashboard — it answers questions and can file a support ticket for you. Or email us from the aghaz.pk contact page.