How I Built a Shopify Dropshipping Store Using Free AI Tools (Under $1 Budget)

Dropshipping is a business model where you don’t hold inventory. When a customer places an order, the product ships directly from the supplier. This means no inventory management, no packaging, and no delivery stress.

I wanted to test if it’s really possible to start a dropshipping store with almost no budget using free AI tools. Here’s my experience.

Step 1: Building the Shopify Store with Free AI Tools

I used a free AI tool called Build Your Store, which integrates with Shopify to help set up a basic dropshipping store.

Signed up with email
Selected a niche: Sports & Fitness
Picked AI-suggested banners and store design

In just a few clicks, I had a working Shopify store.

Step 2: Shopify Setup

Activated Shopify free trial
Selected the Basic plan ($1/month for the first 3 months)
Let AI handle most of the setup

Step 3: Adding Products

Finding the right products is crucial. I used AutoDS, a dropshipping automation tool, which suggested trending products.

Example products:

Breathing Trainer
Golf Club Clips
Resistance Bands
Winter Jogging Hat

The AI added product photos, descriptions, and pricing automatically.

Step 4: Store Customization

AI generated Terms & Conditions, Privacy Policy, and Shipping Policy pages
Added professional banners
Enabled PayPal as a payment method
Registered a free .store domain: TilburyFitness.store

The result was a professional-looking store ready to sell.

Step 5: Marketing with Micro-Influencers

To get traffic, I worked with micro-influencers (10K – 50K followers) instead of bigger influencers because:

Higher engagement rates
Lower cost
Often better conversion rates

Example: Paid $50 for a micro-influencer to promote one product.

Step 6: First Sales

The influencer posted an Instagram story promoting the breathing trainer.

Results after 24 hours:

12 orders (10 real + 2 test orders)
Product cost: $3.95 each
Selling price: $13.68 each

Total sales: ~$178
Expenses:

Products & shipping = $39.50
Influencer fee = $50
Shopify plan = $1

Profit: $87.50

Note: Earnings will vary. Initial profits may be small, but scaling with more products can increase revenue.

Key Takeaways

AI tools make starting a Shopify store fast and easy.
Success depends on choosing the right products and effective marketing.
Micro-influencers are cost-effective for beginners.
Real profits come from scaling your store.

✅ If you’re starting dropshipping, AI tools combined with Shopify are a low-cost, beginner-friendly option.