My journey to Generatepress started about 12 years ago, I built my first online store using BigCommerce — one of the major all-in-one ecommerce platforms at the time. It was fast to set up, but I quickly realized I was boxed in. I had very little control over design, speed, or SEO. Everything felt locked down and rigid.
Eventually, I moved to WordPress and built my first ecommerce site with Elementor. It was a step forward in flexibility, but the site was bloated and slow — partly due to my design inexperience at the time, and partly due to Elementor’s heavy output. That said, thanks to discovering Perfmatters back then, I was able to squeeze decent performance out of it.
Still, I kept searching for something better — a stack that was leaner, cleaner, and more focused on performance for ecommerce. That’s right around the time Bricks Builder launched.
Bricks Builder vs GeneratePress (and Other Builders)
Bricks, ACSS, and Frames became my go-to tools. They’re incredibly powerful — perfect for developers and freelancers building dozens of sites, or for people who want pixel-perfect control.
But I’m not a developer.
I’m a creator and ecommerce business owner. I build my own stores. I care about clean performance, SEO, and a maintainable site — not learning frameworks or managing dev-level complexity for every layout tweak.
And that’s what led me to try GeneratePress (GP) — and this post is my honest GeneratePress review for ecommerce users like me.
From Bricks to GeneratePress: A Better Fit for WooCommerce
This site — WPQuickStack — is the first project I’ve built with GP, and from day one, it just clicked. GP isn’t flashy. It doesn’t try to wow you with animation builders or complex UI gimmicks. It’s just clean, minimal, and fast — exactly what I need for ecommerce.
Before making the switch, I even reached out to the Perfmatters team — since they live and breathe WordPress performance. I asked how GeneratePress stacks up against other popular builders. Their response? They’ve seen excellent results with GP across their own sites and their customers’ projects — thanks to its clean output and minimal footprint.
That gave me confidence I was heading in the right direction.
I wanted:
- A lightweight foundation with no bloat
- A theme that respects core WordPress functionality
- Clean output, excellent accessibility, and zero surprises
- Something that works with WooCommerce and performance tools, not against them
And GeneratePress checked every box.
A nice clean and clear interface of GeneratePress
From Bricks to GeneratePress: A Better Fit for WooCommerce
Coming from Bricks and Elementor, it took a moment to get used to the GenerateBlocks workflow. But once I did, I found it refreshing. No extra fluff, no heavy page builder wrapper — just blocks that do what you need.
It feels like GP and GenerateBlocks were built for people who want fast ecommerce websites without the usual builder bloat. And when you’re running a store, every bit of performance matters — from load times to checkout smoothness.
The UI is smooth. The customization options are logical. And because it’s built for speed, everything I build feels instantly fast, even before optimization.
What I’m Building With GeneratePress (This Site)
WPQuickStack is where I share the tools I use to build fast, secure, SEO-friendly ecommerce websites — without coding. It’s aimed at creators, solopreneurs, and business owners like me who want a faster, easier way to build and grow stores without hiring developers.
And GeneratePress is the perfect foundation for it.
I don’t need to build complex WooCommerce filtering systems or advanced animation layouts. I need ecommerce sites that load instantly, look clean, and are dead-simple to maintain. And that’s exactly what I’m getting with this lightweight WordPress theme for online stores.
What I’ve Gained So Far With GeneratePress
Here’s what changed when I moved to GeneratePress:
- Speed: Page loads are faster out of the box, even before optimization
- Simplicity: No plugin clashes or complex builder bloat
- Focus: I spend less time fighting my tools and more time building real ecommerce content.
Testing this page whilst being built. No optimization yet!
And the best part? I don’t feel like I need a dozen performance hacks or design tutorials to make things work. It just works.
- GeneratePress Premium – Unlocks layout control, sticky nav, hooks, and more ($59/year)
- GenerateBlocks Pro – Gives you advanced blocks, templates, and effects ($99/year)
You can start with the free versions, but if you’re serious about performance and want full control over your layout and WooCommerce integration, I recommend going premium.
Is GeneratePress the Best WordPress Theme for Ecommerce?
If you’re a developer building highly customized client sites, Bricks + ACSS + Frames is still a fantastic stack — and I’m still a fan.
But if you’re like me — a one-person team running or launching ecommerce stores, and you care about speed, SEO, and simplicity — then GeneratePress might be the best WordPress theme for ecommerce in your toolkit.
You don’t need to be a dev. You don’t need to spend hours tweaking every margin and breakpoint. You just need a solid base that performs and lets you get on with growing your business.
Want to Try GeneratePress?
I’m using the GP Premium version (affiliate link), which includes everything I needed to build this site — and none of what I didn’t.
If you want to see the rest of the tools I use to run and optimize ecommerce stores, check out my full stack here. And if you’re curious how I keep them running lightning-fast, stay tuned for the next post in this series — a deep dive into Perfmatters.
This is the first of four posts I’m publishing to show exactly how I build fast WordPress ecommerce sites — no fluff, no filler. Just real tools, real results.
FAQ: Bricks Builder vs GeneratePress
Q: Is GeneratePress better than Bricks Builder?
A: For non-developers like me, yes. GP is lighter, easier to maintain, and integrates seamlessly with WooCommerce and performance tools like Perfmatters.
Q: Can I switch from Bricks Builder to GP easily?
A: If you’re using Bricks with ACSS and Frames, there will be a learning curve. But the simplicity and speed of GeneratePress is worth the shift.
Q: Is GeneratePress good for SEO and performance?
A: Absolutely. It outputs clean code, loads fast, and plays nicely with SEO plugins like Rank Math — making it ideal for ecommerce SEO.
