How to make an app for a stationery shop

A stationery shop's year turns on the new school term, when hundreds of parents want sets at once, while offices buy on credit every month. An app keeps school set orders by class, each office's account and your stock for the term in one place, and can let customers order from a catalogue on WhatsApp.

Updated 2026-11-09

Who uses the app

The owner and counter staff, plus customers if you want a catalogue. A shop-only app can keep its data on the counter phone. A customer catalogue, or staff on their own phones, needs your own Supabase database.

The screens a stationery shop app needs

Catalogue: Notebooks, pens, art material and office items with prices, searchable by name
Cart: Chosen items and quantity; 'Order on WhatsApp' sends the list and total to the shop
School set orders: Orders by class with the parent's name, phone, set, extra items, advance, and status: packed, collected
Office accounts: Each office that buys on credit, its purchases this month, payments and balance
Print jobs: Today's printing and binding jobs with the customer, pages, copies and status, entered by the counter
Stock: Items with quantity and a low-stock list, with a pre-term list of what to order

Features worth asking for

School sets defined by class, so an order is one tap plus extras
A 'your set is packed' WhatsApp message to the parent
A monthly statement per office as a PDF to share on WhatsApp
Print jobs with a ready message, so students don't keep calling
A low-stock list sent to your wholesaler on WhatsApp
Online payment with your own Razorpay account, if you want it

Where the data lives

If only the counter phone uses the app, the data stays on that phone. A customer catalogue or a second staff phone needs your own Supabase database, connected from the chat; to take payments in the app, connect your Razorpay account too.

How to make it with AppCub, step by step

Decide what the app does. List the screens you need, for example: Catalogue, Cart, School set orders, Office accounts, Print jobs.
Describe it to AppCub. Paste the request below, changed to your own business and details.
Check the plan. AppCub shows the screens and features it will build. Change them in the chat until they are right; seeing the plan is free.
Try it on your phone. The app runs live next to the chat. Scan the QR code to install it, and ask for changes.
Share it. Share it as a web link, an APK file, or publish it on Google Play from your own developer account.

Copy this request, change the details to match your stationery shop, and paste it into AppCub:

Make an app for my stationery shop, Vidya Stationers in Nagpur. Screens: catalogue, cart, school set orders, office accounts, print jobs and stock. Customers browse items with prices and send their cart to my WhatsApp. School sets are defined per class with a list of items and a price; an order has parent, phone, class, extras, advance and status, with a WhatsApp 'packed' message. 12 offices buy on credit; keep each account and make a PDF statement monthly. Print jobs with pages, copies and a ready message. Low-stock list. Blue and orange colours.

Tips for a stationery shop app

Set up school sets for each class before April, so the rush is one tap per order.
Start office accounts with the offices that already owe you; that is the money that slips away.
Keep the catalogue to items people order ahead, like sets, registers and art kits, rather than every pen.
Students still send files on WhatsApp; the print jobs screen is for tracking, not for receiving files.
Run the term rush with a test class first, from order to 'packed' message, before opening it to all parents.

What it costs

Describing your app and seeing AppCub’s plan for it is free.
A new app usually takes 60 to 110 credits. Start with the 2-day trial for ₹99 (150 credits, enough for one app and a few changes) or the one-time App Pack for ₹499. Starter is ₹1,599 a month for 700 credits.
Google Play needs a paid plan (it includes the Play Store bundle and your app’s signing key) and your own Google Play developer account, a one-time US$25 fee to Google.
Work that fails or is rolled back costs no credits.

See all plans

Good to know

AppCub doesn't connect to printers, photocopiers, barcode scanners or billing machines, and doesn't send messages by itself. Customers can't send print files through a WhatsApp link from the app; they attach them in the chat.
AppCub builds Android apps. You can also share the app as a web link that opens on any phone; for the iPhone App Store, AppCub’s team can do it for you.

Questions

Can parents order a school set in the app?

Yes. Define a set for each class, and parents order it in the app; the order reaches your WhatsApp or your order list if you use an online database.

Can the app keep credit for offices that buy every month?

Yes. Each office has its purchases, payments and balance, with a PDF statement and a WhatsApp reminder.

Can the app receive files for printing?

No. Students send files on WhatsApp as they do now; the app keeps the job, the pages and the status.

Can the app help me stock up before the school term?

Yes. Ask for a pre-term list from last term's school set orders and the current stock, to share with your wholesaler.

Can customers pay for orders in the app?

Yes, with a pay button using your own Razorpay account; connect Razorpay and Supabase from the chat first.

Can my staff mark sets as packed on their own phone?

Yes. Connect a Supabase database and share the app with them as a web link or APK, so every phone shows the same status.

Make your stationery shop app

Seeing the plan is free. Building starts with a 2-day trial for ₹99.

Start building