Sylius Plus, the enterprise version of Sylius eCommerce

To those of you who don't know Sylius yet, it is THE open source eCommerce solution based on the Symfony framework.

• Sylius is modern: modular, stable, elegant and up-to-date on the latest innovations on the web.
• Sylius gives back the possibility to the seller to implement concepts with a maximum of freedom, excellent for setting the business apart from the competition.
• Sylius has an industrial quality: the solution has been tested and brings best practices to guarantee the sustainability of the project.

Today, Sylius offers a commercial licence: Sylius Plus.

With an entry ticket of 4900 euros per year, this can raise some questions which we will answer below.

Why a paid version?

The first question is simple: why pay for a solution that is free in open source?

Well, it is a common error that open source solutions are free: open source does have a price which can be seen in its implementation, its modification, maintaining updates, etc... And this is just the beginning.

Here, where the Sylius open source solution offers a licence which allows free use that can be adapted to your needs, the adaptation is the real cost of an eCommerce project. In contrast, Sylius Plus brings advanced features such as fine grain management of user rights, management of returns or multi-source Inventory right out of the box.

Beyond the new features, Sylius wants to support its customers with an advanced service: technical support with the core team and performance monitoring.

Based on the principles of "functionality + advanced level service " with an annual license, it strengthens Sylius' business model.

And this is good news because it means more means for the project team and, in return, more security for the future of the eCommerce solution.

This strategic choice will reassure companies wanting guarantees on the durability and maintenance of the solution as well.

Are the new features worth it?

Yes, definitely: for those who know the level of quality of the features provided by the Sylius parent company, there is no doubt about the added value of the features provided.

As a reminder, in this first version there are other functionalities that we have access to:

• Advanced multi-shop management
• Advanced Returns Management
• User permissions configuration
• Performance optimization and security

But do not see the commercial license of Sylius Plus as the price to pay for these features, because the license includes a live support function with the technical team of Sylius, as well as the presence of a Success Manager.

It is because of this that Sylius Plus allows an eCommerce company to secure its business and anticipate the risks of updates and developments that will be experienced by eCommerce.

Creating and running an eCommerce business is a multi-year adventure and having Sylius' expert team by your side is rather reassuring. ☺

Note that the commercial license retains what we think is essential for Emagma: the possibility of modifying the solution and adapting it to the real needs of your project. Indeed, the source code is available and can be modified by your devoted developer, that is. ☺

Is this the end of open source for Sylius?

Certainly not, in fact, it's quite the contrary.

Sylius would not be famous today without its open source model. It's a fundamental part of the project.

And without its dedicated and involved community, the solution would quickly join the ranks of other solutions that are propelled only by their internal teams with problems that we are all aware of. Magento and PrestaShop are experiencing difficult times following the dissatisfaction of their community of contributors.

It is therefore in Sylius' interest to rely on its commercial version to strengthen its participation of the community version and bring new features over time.

Of course, there is a fear for developers that the community solution will be abandoned, but it should rather seen as complementary: more resources for the Sylius parent company, and also more means to allow the core team be involved in the open source version.

Odoo made a similar choice a few years ago and is today a very powerful solution - its paid version as well as its open source version.

The choice even made it possible to strengthen the role of the contributors of the open source version thanks to the constitution of OCA, a structured equivalent of "Friends of Sylius", which works today hand in hand with the commercial publisher.

So, who is Sylius Plus for?

At Emagma, we see open source as a force, but we know that the freedom offered by an "open access" library is also a weak point, what happens if the maintainers have more or less means to contribute?

Sylius Plus provides guaranteed quality and monitoring for projects that cannot afford to simply be functional.

For more information, you can consult the post published on sylius.com

As a Sylius partner, do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about Sylius Plus!