USE CASE · E-COMMERCE

Build an e-commerce agent that handles customer email

e2a helps developers build e-commerce agents that receive customer and vendor email, look up order context, send threaded updates, and route refunds or sensitive actions through human approval.

Build your e-commerce agent →See the runnable example ↗

THE WORKFLOW

What the agent does

  1. 01A customer emails about an order, delivery, return, or product question.
  2. 02e2a delivers the message with structured sender-authentication evidence.
  3. 03The agent looks up the order or customer context in the commerce system.
  4. 04It answers routine questions and keeps the reply in the same thread.
  5. 05Refunds, replacements, and unusual requests are held for human approval.
  6. 06The agent follows up with the customer or coordinates with a vendor.

WHY E2A

  • ✓Dedicated inboxes for customer service or vendor agents
  • ✓Inbound authentication evidence and signed delivery
  • ✓Threaded replies for order and return conversations
  • ✓MCP, SDK, webhook, WebSocket, or REST integration
  • ✓Human approval for refunds, replacements, and sensitive sends

START BUILDING

The integration stays small

E-commerce support workflow ↗
event = await client.inbound.next("[email protected]")
order = await shop.lookup_order(event.data["text"])

reply = await commerce_agent.answer(
    email=event.data["text"],
    order=order,
)
await client.messages.reply(
    event.data["delivered_to"],
    event.data["message_id"],
    {"text": reply},
)

The agent owns the business logic. e2a handles the email identity, delivery, authentication evidence, and reply routing.

KEEP GOING

Connect the pieces

Quickstart →
Create an inbox and send your first message.
MCP server →
Give a local or hosted agent an inbox without an API key.
API reference →
Explore the stable /v1 operations.
Blog tutorials →
Follow framework-specific integration guides.

FAQ

What can an e-commerce agent do with email?

An e-commerce agent can answer order-status questions, explain shipping updates, collect return details, coordinate with vendors, and keep customers informed in persistent email threads.

Can an e-commerce agent handle returns or refunds?

Yes. The agent can gather the request and call the commerce system, while e2a's human-in-the-loop approval gate can require a person to review a refund, replacement, or other sensitive outbound action before it is sent.

Can the agent connect email to order data?

Yes. e2a delivers the email event and conversation context; the agent connects that input to the store, order-management, shipping, or CRM APIs that contain the business data.

Can an e-commerce agent coordinate with vendors?

Yes. A dedicated vendor or procurement inbox can receive supplier messages, route them to the right workflow, and send threaded follow-ups through e2a.

Build your e-commerce agent

Open-source, free to start, and ready for your first agent workflow.

Get started →