2. Starting a new FastStore project

Create and set up your FastStore project with WebOps.

In this step, you'll use the FastStore WebOps app to create your FastStore project, connect it to GitHub, and deploy a live preview.

This establishes your project's source of truth and CI/CD path — the foundation for all later steps in this track.

What you'll accomplish

By the end of this step, you will have:

Created your FastStore project with basic configuration (project name, SEO tags, GTM, catalog)
Connected your project to a GitHub repository for version control
Set up the Headless CMS integration for content management
Deployed your project and generated a live preview of your storefront

Your project will be accessible at https://{accountName}.vtex.app/ and ready for local development in the next step.

Getting to know the WebOps app

FastStore WebOps is the control plane for FastStore projects. It manages every stage of your storefront's lifecycle, from creation to deployment, and integrates with your GitHub repository and VTEX account to facilitate collaboration and automation.

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WebOps connects your storefront code (GitHub) with your VTEX infrastructure, enabling a branch-based workflow for development and production. Keep the following in mind:

Environment requirement: WebOps operates exclusively in the production environment. Install it only in your account's master environment.
Development workflow: FastStore uses a Git branching model for development and testing:
- The app is installed in the master environment of your VTEX account.
- Development and testing occur on Git branches.
- Approved changes are merged into the repository's main branch and automatically deployed to production.

Unlike VTEX IO workspaces, FastStore uses a Git-based branching workflow.

Before you begin

Check permissions

To start a FastStore project, users must have the Owner (Admin Super) role.

Create your store catalog

Create a catalog to populate and test your store. It should include essential components such as product listing pages, search, product details, and checkout. Developing without a catalog may result in incomplete testing, data integration issues, and rework later.

For more information, refer to the Catalog documentation.

Have a GitHub account

To complete the FastStore WebOps onboarding, you'll need a GitHub account to host your project. You can use either a personal account, a GitHub organization, or a GitHub Enterprise instance. If you use a GitHub organization or GitHub Enterprise, ensure you have admin access to it.

GitHub Enterprise support is currently in open beta. If you want to use a GitHub Enterprise instance for your FastStore project, please contact VTEX Support.

Step 1 - Setting up the project

Open the VTEX Admin and access Storefront > FastStore WebOps.
Click Start Project.
In the Setup & Create Project page, configure the following options for your store:

Project

Choose the option that best fits your project's purpose. This helps us understand what you're trying to achieve with FastStore and improve your experience.

Field	Description
Project name	Enter your FastStore project's name, for example, `Marcio Car store`.
Which option best describes the goal of your project?	Choose the option that best fits your project's purpose.

SEO Tags

Field	Description
Title Tag	Enter a keyword-optimized title for your store. For example: `Buy Online with the Best Game Store - GameStore`. In this example, we used a length limit of 50-60 characters to ensure it is fully displayed in search results without truncation.
Description Tag	Enter a brief description of your store, for example, `Shop online at GameStore, the best game store for PC, Xbox, PS4, and Headphones. Explore our wide selection and buy your favorite games today!`
Title Template	Enter a page title that helps search engines and users better understand the content of your store. For example, `The best game store - GameStore`.
Site Author	Enter the name of the agency or person responsible for the development of the storefront.

Google Tag Manager

Field	Description
GTM ID	Enter the Google Tag Manager ID (GTM ID) for the GTM container that manages and organizes the tags for your store.

Catalog

Field	Description
Catalog	Choose which catalog your store should be linked with.

Terms of use

If you already have content created in the Headless CMS, be aware that it will be automatically deleted during FastStore WebOps onboarding to avoid content duplication.

To proceed, please confirm that you understand by checking the Terms of use box.

After setting up the basic configuration for your store and reviewing it, click Continue to proceed to the next page.

Step 2 - Setting up integrations

On this page, you'll set up the native Headless CMS integration and connect to a GitHub organization.

CMS Integration

Configure the native Headless CMS integration and connect to GitHub.

Git Provider

To host the source code of your FastStore project, you can connect with a:

GitHub personal account or organization
GitHub Enterprise

If you choose to install the app in a GitHub organization or GitHub Enterprise, make sure you have admin access.

GitHub personal account or organization

To connect a GitHub personal account or organization to the FastStore WebOps app, follow these steps:

Click Connect with GitHub. A new browser tab will open on the side for you to integrate the app with GitHub.

If you are not logged in to your GitHub account, in the new tab, you will be asked to log in. Then, you can continue to the next step.
Once you are logged in to your GitHub account, choose the organization or your personal account you want to install the app. You will be redirected to the Settings page on GitHub.

Once you define the GitHub organization, you cannot change it later.
In Repository access, choose one of the following options: All repositories from the organization or Only select repositories.
Click Install.

The following successful message will appear on the page:


_10Success! You can now close this page and proceed with the onboarding process.

After seeing the success message, close the browser tab and continue the onboarding process in the VTEX Admin.

Now that the app is integrated with GitHub, select which repository you want to start the project:
- New repository: Create a repository from scratch, in this option, you only need to type a name for the repository, and after clicking Create, it will create the repository for you.
- Existing repository: Select an existing repository from the organization to start the project.
Click Create. The deployment process will begin, and once it is complete, you will be redirected to the Deploy Summary page.

GitHub Enterprise

GitHub Enterprise support is currently in open beta. If you want to use a GitHub Enterprise instance for your FastStore project, please contact VTEX Support. Once enabled, follow the instructions below.

In the Git Provider section of the Integrations tab, you'll see two options:
- Default (github.com): Select this to connect to a standard GitHub personal or organization account.
- Custom Domain: Select this to connect to a GitHub Enterprise instance with a custom domain. For example, {enterpriseName}.ghe.com, where {enterpriseName} is the name of your GitHub Enterprise account.
Once you define the Git Provider, you cannot change it later.
Click Connect with GitHub. A new browser tab will open on the side for you to integrate the app with GitHub.

If you're not logged in to your GitHub account, you'll be prompted to log in in a new tab. Then, you can continue to the next step.
Complete the GitHub app installation:
- For Default (github.com): Once logged in to your GitHub account, choose the organization or personal account where you want to install the app. You'll be redirected to the Settings page on GitHub.
- For Custom Domain (GitHub Enterprise): Once logged in to your GitHub Enterprise account, you'll be redirected to the app creation page for your custom domain. On the page, click Create GitHub App for Organization to complete the app creation process.
In Repository access, choose one of the following options: All repositories from the organization or Only select repositories.
Click Install.

The following success message will appear on the page:


_10Success! You can now close this page and proceed with the onboarding process.

After seeing the success message, close the browser tab and continue the onboarding process in the VTEX Admin.

Now that the app is integrated with GitHub, select which repository you want to start the project:
- New repository: Create a repository from scratch. In this option, you only need to type a repository name and click Create to create the repository.
- Existing repository: Select an existing repository from the organization to start the project.
Click Create. The deployment process will begin, and once it's complete, you'll be redirected to the Deploy Summary page.

Step 3 - Deploying the project

After completing the setup for your store, the deployment process will begin. This process involves creating a GitHub repository and a default domain for your project. Once the deployment process is complete, you should see the following:

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Option	Description
Your Repository	Access the store's GitHub repository and start setting up and customizing your store.
Documentation	Access the FastStore Portal Documentation.
Customization	Access the documentation for customizing your store.
View Dashboard	Access the Dashboard with the current status of your store, including its domains, deployed versions, store preview, and Lighthouse scores. For more information, please refer to the Dashboard guide.

If repository creation fails and no live preview is generated, click Retry to redeploy.

Next step

Now that your store is up and running with a live preview, set up your local development environment: 3. Running the project locally