Apex

Shape templates

Shape templates are pre-filled answers to the "how is your company structured" question. Each template picks a vertical, a conversion model, and stamps out the right number of workspaces. You can override any field the template chose on the next step.

Pick one on /dashboard/workspaces/new/template, or go directly to /dashboard/workspaces/new for the raw picker.

The eight templates

SaaS with a marketing site

  • Stamps: 1 workspace — b2b-saas / hybrid
  • Best for: Single-product SaaS with a marketing site, PLG or hybrid motion.
  • Integrations: Stripe, HubSpot, Google Ads
  • First experiment: hero copy on /pricing, signup CTA placement.

SaaS with a partner marketplace

  • Stamps: 2 workspaces
    • Platform — b2b-saas / hybrid — snippet lives on apex.inc + app.apex.inc
    • Partner Network — marketplace / two-sided — snippet lives on partners.apex.inc
  • Best for: SaaS products that also operate a partner marketplace. This is how Apex itself runs on Apex.
  • Integrations: Stripe, HubSpot, LinkedIn Ads
  • First experiment: pricing hero test on Platform; partner-onboarding copy test on Partner Network.

Pure e-commerce store

  • Stamps: 1 workspace — ecommerce / transaction
  • Best for: DTC commerce with a cart + checkout funnel.
  • Integrations: Stripe, Google Ads, Meta Ads, Google Analytics
  • First experiment: free-shipping threshold, product-page CTA copy.

Two-sided marketplace

  • Stamps: 1 workspace — marketplace / two-sided
  • Best for: Platforms balancing supply and demand.
  • Integrations: Stripe, Google Ads, Meta Ads
  • First experiment: supply-side onboarding simplification, demand-side trust-badge test.

Multi-brand ecommerce holding company

  • Stamps: 1 workspace — ecommerce / transaction — to start
  • Adds: the shape tag hints downstream surfaces that additional workspaces may come online.
  • Best for: Holding companies with multiple brands under one legal entity.
  • Integrations: Stripe, Google Ads, Meta Ads
  • First experiment: brand-specific hero, cross-brand loyalty email.

Agency managing clients

  • Stamps: 1 workspace — agency / sales-assisted
  • Tags the org with shape=agency so downstream routing keeps workspace-per-client isolation intact.
  • Integrations: Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Google Analytics
  • First experiment: client-specific landing vs agency template, Segment targeting.

Mobile app with a web funnel

  • Stamps: 1 workspace — b2b-saas / self-serve
  • Best for: Mobile-first products with a web marketing funnel; snippet tracks web, SDK tracks mobile.
  • Integrations: Stripe, Google Ads, Meta Ads
  • First experiment: App Store screenshot test, web-to-install hero copy.

Investor / portfolio viewer

  • Stamps: a Portfolio org — no workspaces.
  • Best for: VCs, PEs, holdcos observing other orgs' metrics via consent-based sharing.
  • Integrations: none at provisioning time.

None of these — configure manually

Drops you straight into the raw vertical + conversion-model picker with no pre-fill. For customers with bespoke setups.

What the template tags

Every non-manual template sets Organization.shape to one of: saas, saas_marketplace, ecommerce, marketplace, multi_brand, agency, mobile_first, portfolio_viewer. Downstream surfaces use this tag to specialize behavior — for example, agency orgs default to workspace-per-client isolation rather than collapse-friendly defaults.

The Apex-on-Apex design contract

The "SaaS with a partner marketplace" template specifically pressure-tests the Apex-is-its-own-customer case:

  • Platform workspace (vertical b2b-saas, conversion model hybrid) serves apex.inc + app.apex.inc
  • Partner Network workspace (vertical marketplace, conversion model two-sided) serves partners.apex.inc
  • Shared org brand + verified domain + Stripe
  • Snippet install instructions emitted for all three hosts

When Apex decides to run itself on Apex, this is the path. No code changes, no migrations, no bespoke scripts — the same template every customer uses.

Related

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