SecurEcommerce Got Curated on The SaaS Hub. Here’s How It Happened.

Last week, SecurEcommerce officially got curated on The SaaS Hub. For those unfamiliar, The SaaS Hub is a discovery platform built specifically for the Shopify ecosystem. Unlike the main app store where you’re competing with thousands of other apps for attention, The SaaS Hub takes a different approach. They actually vet the apps they feature.

I wanted to share what the process looked like because we’re super proud of getting curated so early on in our app’s journey!

The Overcrowded Shopify App Store

There are currently over 12,000 apps in the Shopify App Store. That number fluctuates as Shopify removes apps that don’t meet their quality standards, but we’re still talking about a massive catalog. And while having options is generally a good thing, for merchants trying to find the right tools for their store, it can be overwhelming. With the emergence of AI tools, its become even easier to create apps and publish them. But with that comes AI slop - low quality apps that are made without care for merchants.

Consider this: 87% of Shopify merchants rely on apps to run their businesses, and the median merchant has about three apps installed. That means most store owners are going through the process of evaluating and selecting apps multiple times. Each time, they’re wading through pages of search results, trying to distinguish between apps that look similar on the surface.

The problem gets worse when you look at the quality spread. In Q4 2024 alone, Shopify removed 419 apps from the store. Of those, 41% had received zero reviews. Not a single one. These apps were sitting in the store, showing up in search results, and taking up space without ever providing value to a single merchant who bothered to leave feedback. Another 13% had just one review. Approximately 75% of apps have zero installs…

For merchants, this means that a significant chunk of what they’re scrolling through has never been validated by anyone. They’re essentially doing the filtering work themselves, trying to separate the signal from the noise.

Why Curated Platforms Matter

This is exactly why platforms like The SaaS Hub exist.

The SaaS Hub was founded by Yuvraj Kewate, who has spent years in the Shopify ecosystem helping apps scale. He’s seen firsthand how hard it is for quality apps to get discovered and how frustrated merchants get when they install something that doesn’t deliver.

The whole premise of The SaaS Hub is to cut through that noise. Instead of listing every app that applies, they’re selective. They interview founders, dig into what makes each app different, and only feature apps they believe will actually help merchants. It’s a quality filter that the main app store can’t really provide at scale.

For merchants, this means they can browse knowing that someone has already done the initial vetting. For app developers, it means getting in front of people who are specifically looking for quality recommendations rather than just scrolling through endless search results.

The Curation Process

So what does it actually take to get curated? Here’s what it looked like for SecurEcommerce.

Step 1: The Application

It started with a standard application. You fill out details about your app, what it does, who it’s for, and why merchants should care. Nothing too unusual here, pretty typical if you’ve ever applied to be featured anywhere.

Step 2: The Video Interview

This is where things got interesting. After the initial application, I hopped on a video call with Yuvraj. He’s got a background in scaling Shopify apps, so he knows what questions to ask.

We talked about the vision for SecurEcommerce, what makes it different in a crowded space, and where we’re headed. It wasn’t a sales pitch. It felt more like a genuine conversation about the app and the problem we’re trying to solve for merchants. Yuvraj clearly cares about understanding the apps he features rather than just checking boxes.

This step alone sets The SaaS Hub apart from most directories. Taking the time to actually talk to founders means they can evaluate things that don’t show up in an application form. Are you actually committed to this product? Do you understand your customers? Is there a real vision here or is this just another app hoping to grab some installs?

Step 3: The Follow-Up Questionnaire

After the call, there was one more questionnaire to complete. This one dug deeper into the specifics of the app. The kind of detailed stuff that helps them write accurate descriptions and really understand what SecurEcommerce brings to the table.

What This Means for Us

Getting curated somewhere like The SaaS Hub matters more for smaller apps than it might for established players.

If you’re Judge.me with hundreds of thousands of installs and thousands of reviews, you’re going to show up in search results no matter what. Your social proof speaks for itself. But if you’re a newer app or a more specialized tool, competing for visibility is genuinely hard.

The Shopify App Store algorithm favors apps with more installs and more reviews. That makes sense from a relevance perspective, but it also creates a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem for newer apps. You need installs to get visibility, but you need visibility to get installs.

Curated platforms offer a different path. You’re being evaluated on the quality of what you’ve built and your vision for where it’s going, not just on metrics you haven’t had time to accumulate yet. And you’re being seen by merchants who are actively looking for quality recommendations rather than just typing a keyword into a search bar and hoping for the best.

The Bigger Picture

The Shopify ecosystem is massive and continues to grow. That’s great for everyone involved. But size creates its own challenges, and discovery is one of the biggest.

Shopify has been working on this. Their “Built for Shopify” program highlights apps that meet certain quality standards (we’re working towards this). They’ve been more aggressive about removing low-quality apps. But with over 12,000 apps and new ones being added constantly, there’s only so much the official app store can do.

Platforms like The SaaS Hub fill an important gap. They’re doing the kind of manual, human-driven curation that doesn’t scale easily but provides real value. Talking to founders, understanding products, and making judgment calls about what deserves to be featured.

For merchants overwhelmed by choice, that’s valuable. For app developers trying to stand out on merit rather than just marketing budget, it’s valuable too.

You can check out our listing here: SecurEcommerce on The SaaS Hub