Online shops built to sell, not just to exist.
An e-commerce site has one job that most of them fail at: making buying effortless. I build shops the same way I build everything — bespoke, fast, hand-finished — sized to what your business actually needs rather than what inflates the quote.
E-commerce web design covers everything from a simple product-and-order-form setup to a full online store with payments, stock and delivery options. I build both, bespoke, for Essex businesses — always starting from what you sell and how your customers buy, not from a platform's template. Small shops fit the Business plan; full stores are scoped honestly on the Professional or Enterprise plans. Every build includes speed, security, structured product data and the SEO to get found.
What I actually build
Order forms and enquiry-to-buy flows for trades and food businesses; compact shops for makers and independents; full catalogues with payments, shipping rules and stock for retailers. Payments run through the proven providers (Stripe and friends), and product pages carry proper structured data so Google can show prices, availability and reviews in search results. What I don't do is force every business into a heavyweight store: sometimes twelve products and a clean checkout beats a platform with three hundred settings you'll never touch.
Platform, honestly
The right tool depends on the shop. For most small catalogues a hand-coded storefront is faster, safer and cheaper to run than a plugin-stack — no updates breaking at 2am, no monthly platform fees stacking up. For businesses that need heavy stock management or marketplace features, I'll say so and build on the platform that fits, including WooCommerce on WordPress where that's genuinely the right answer. The recommendation comes from your requirements, not my convenience.
Why speed decides sales
Every second of load time costs conversions — mobile shoppers are the least patient buyers on earth. Hand-coded shops carry none of the plugin weight that makes typical small-business stores crawl, and our 2026 audit of local business websites found the usual culprits everywhere: bloated themes, mixed-content warnings that kill trust at checkout, and mobile layouts that hide the buy button. A shop that loads instantly and works flawlessly on a phone outsells a prettier, slower one.
What it costs
Honestly scoped, like everything here: a compact shop or order system fits the Business plan (£499.99 build, then £49.99/month with updates and SEO included); fuller stores with payments, stock and integrations are quoted on the Professional or Enterprise plans once I understand the catalogue. Tell me what you sell and roughly how many products, and you'll get a straight answer — including "you don't need a full store" if you don't.
Common questions
How much does an e-commerce website cost in Essex?
A compact shop or order system starts on the Business plan at £499.99 + £49.99/month all-inclusive. Fuller stores with payments, stock and integrations are scoped on the Professional (from £1,499.99) or Enterprise (from £5,499.99) plans — always quoted before work begins, never padded.
Can you add a shop to my existing website?
Usually, yes — after a free health check to make sure the foundations can carry it. If they can't, I'll tell you honestly and quote a rebuild that can.
Do you build WooCommerce / Shopify stores?
Where they're genuinely the right fit, yes — WooCommerce especially, for stock-heavy shops. For smaller catalogues a hand-coded storefront is usually faster and cheaper to run, and I'll recommend whichever serves you, not me.
Will my shop show up on Google Shopping and in AI search?
Every product page ships with proper structured data — prices, availability, reviews — which is what Google Shopping listings and AI assistants read. It's included, not an add-on.
Related: WordPress · Redesigns · SEO services · Pricing plans
Selling online, done properly.
Tell me what you sell and who buys it. I'll reply within one working day with an honest scope — including whether you need a full store at all.