With so many online shopping cart options, finding what is best for your business can be overwhelming.  Each week ShopTab features one online shopping cart to help you learn about why their cart may be right for your business.

This week ShopTab had a chance to talk with Matt Wigham co-founder of Big Cartel, an online shopping cart that is dedicated to providing a simple application for artists.

Big Cartel was launched in 2004 as a service of Indie Labs, a small software company founded by Matt and his partner Eric. Big Cartel provides clothing designers, bands, jewelry makers, crafters, and other creative types with their own customizable store to sell their products online. They are a completely remote and reliable company that has employees throughout the US.

Q: Why did you launch Big Cartel?

A: The idea for Big Cartel came from me needing a simple way to sell my band’s merchandise online. I soon realized that a lot of my other friends could use this for their bands, tee shirt designs, art, etc.

Q: What features or benefits make Big Cartel stand out?

A: Big Cartel’s biggest feature is its simplicity. Nearly all eCommerce platforms today are made for bigger businesses, and are a bloated mess of bells and whistles. Artists don’t need that. We’ve instead created a very stripped down, beautifully designed, and incredibly usable system for artists to setup their own online shop with ease.

Q: How many products will your eCommerce platform allow?

A: We currently support up to 100 products (though things like sizes and colors don’t count). The reason for this is because Big Cartel was designed for smaller shops. A store with 500 products has significantly more complex needs than one with 50, and there are plenty of services out there to accommodate them.

Q: What is the cost for Big Cartel’s service?

A: We offer three different pricing plans right now, depending on your needs and budget: Free, $9.99/mo, and $19.99/mo. You can see a breakdown of the features available to each plan at: http://bigcartel.com/signup

Q: What are Big Cartel’s future plans for development or additional features?

A: We’re very selective about the features we add, because adding too many features is what complicates and ultimately ruins good products. That said, we’re looking to improve and refine a lot of our existing features (store customization, discount codes, shipping, etc.) and we’ve got some great new stuff on the way too, like the ability to sell digital products.

Q: How is support handled for Big Cartel customers?

A: We go out of our way to provide quick and personal support to our stores. Our support guru Karen answers most e-mails within minutes, and based on what people are saying on Twitter, they really appreciate it.

Q: Do you have any other comments about Big Cartel for ShopTab readers?

A: If you’ve been banging your head against the wall trying to setup an online store and you’d rather spend your time doing more important things for your business, check us out at http://bigcartel.com

Check out Big Cartel to simplify your online cart experience and ShopTab to expand your business through social media by having a shopping cart directly on your Facebook Fan Page.

If you are currently using Big Cartel please share your experience below in the comments area.

Want to have your company’s eCommerce shopping cart featured or have a Shopping Cart Recommendation for a ShopTab Cart of the Week? Contact us with your suggestion.