MidDevon Digital designs and builds e-commerce websites for businesses in Devon and across the UK. Payments, delivery, VAT and stock are set up properly from the first order, product pages are written to rank on Google, and the admin is simple enough to run yourself without it becoming a second job.
E-commerce website design for shops that are easy to run and easy to find
What makes an e-commerce website different
An e-commerce website is a site that sells directly: it takes the order, takes the payment, works out delivery and tax, and tells you and the customer what happens next. Everything a brochure site does, plus a shop that runs itself.
A normal business website has one job: get someone to call or email you. An online shop has a dozen. It has to show the product well enough to sell it, handle the basket, take the money securely, charge the right VAT, offer the right delivery options, update stock, send confirmation emails and give you somewhere to manage all of it. Get one of those wrong and you lose the sale, or worse, you make it and can't fulfil it.
Product pages that sell and rank
Each product gets its own page with a proper title, description, photos and structured data, so it can show up in Google and Google Shopping on its own. Category pages are written around what people search for, not just a list of what's in them.
Payments, VAT and delivery done right
Card payments through Stripe or PayPal, with Apple Pay and Google Pay, and the money going straight to your account. VAT rules set per product so the receipts are right. Delivery zones, rates and click and collect configured to match how you actually send things.
Stock and orders in one place
Stock levels that drop as you sell, low stock warnings, and an order list you can work through in the morning. If you also sell in a physical shop, we can keep the two in step.
Admin you can run yourself
Adding a product, changing a price or marking something out of stock should take minutes, not a phone call. We set the shop up that way and show you how, so you're not paying a developer every time something changes.
We build online shops for businesses in Cullompton, Tiverton, Exeter, Taunton and across Devon, Somerset and Cornwall, and for clients further afield over Zoom. Web design in Exeter →
Who we build online shops for
E-commerce comes in all sizes. These are the ones we build most.
A physical shop that wants to sell online too
Garden centres, farm shops, independents. Your range online, click and collect or delivery, and stock that stays in step with the shop floor. Warnes Garden Centre in Cornwall sells firewood for delivery through a shop we built alongside the rest of their site.
A business selling a small range of products
You don't need a huge platform for twenty products. A clean shop that's quick to run and cheap to maintain beats an enterprise system you'll never use.
A business selling time, not boxes
Not every shop sells products. Sell services, take deposits, accept donations or run appointments with payment at booking. If what you sell is your time, the shop handles that too, and it saves chasing.
A shop that's outgrown a marketplace
Selling through Etsy, eBay or Amazon works until the fees and the lack of control start to hurt. Your own shop keeps the margin and the customer.
What's in every online shop we build
The things that make a shop work day to day, not just on launch day.
- Card payments through Stripe or PayPal, with Apple Pay and Google Pay
- Delivery options, zones and rates set up
- VAT handled correctly on every product
- Stock levels that update as you sell
- Up to 100 products with 8 variants each, so sizes, colours and options are covered
- Product pages written and structured to rank
- Smart page rules that adapt by time, device or visitor
- Order emails to you and your customers
- Simple admin for adding products and prices
- Google Shopping and analytics connected
- Hosting, backups and support time on one monthly plan
0% platform transaction fee on everything you sell
Some website platforms take a percentage of every sale on top of what you already pay them each month. Ours does not. This is separate from card processing: your payment provider (Stripe, PayPal or your card merchant) still charges its own processing fee on each transaction, as it would on any website. Nothing extra comes off the top from the platform or from us.
Bigger catalogue, digital downloads or subscriptions? Stores running into the thousands of products, selling downloads, taking subscription payments, or needing automatic tax and shipping calculations sit on a higher plan. It costs a little more each month, and we quote it properly up front rather than letting you find the ceiling six months in.
Bookings and appointments, built into the same site
If customers book you rather than buy from you, the shop becomes a diary. Salons, clinics, tutors, trades that work by appointment: same platform, same monthly plan.
A calendar you control
A staff calendar with availability you set, connected to the calendar you already use so nothing gets double-booked.
Automatic reminders
Email and SMS reminders sent before each appointment, which cuts no-shows without you having to chase anyone.
Payment at booking
Taking payment or a deposit when someone books is available on a higher plan, and worth it if no-shows cost you money.
How an online shop comes together
Four steps, and you're adding products yourself by the end.
Step 1
Discovery call
What you sell, how you deliver it, how you want to run it day to day. That decides the platform and the plan.
Step 2
Plan and quote
Categories, product pages, payment and delivery mapped out, with a fixed price in writing.
Step 3
Build and load
We build the shop and load the first products with you, so the process is clear before you're on your own.
Step 4
Launch and support
Test orders, then live. Every shop runs on our Commerce plan: hosting, backups and two hours of support time each month, with a reply the same working day. Rolling monthly, 30 days' notice.
Recent work
Warnes Garden Centre: a new website for a Cornwall garden centre and landscaping company
Warnes is a garden centre and landscaping company in Cornwall that had outgrown its old WordPress and WooCommerce site. The new site covers everything the business now does: the garden centre and landscaping work, the newly opened cafe, the hand car wash, and an online shop selling firewood for delivery. One site, easy to keep up to date, with the shop running alongside the rest rather than bolted on.
E-commerce website questions
Can't see yours?
Give us a ring on
01392 346700.
How much does an e-commerce website cost?
More than a brochure site of the same size, because there's more to set up: payments, delivery, tax and the product pages themselves. The biggest factors are how many products there are and whether you need anything unusual, like personalised items or trade pricing. You get a fixed quote in writing after a short call.
Which e-commerce platform is best for a small business?
It depends on what you're selling and how you want to run it. A small range with simple delivery suits a lightweight platform. A large catalogue, trade pricing or stock shared with a physical shop needs something more capable. We'll recommend one after the discovery call and explain why, rather than pushing a platform because it suits us.
Can I add products myself?
Yes. That's the point. We set it up so adding a product, changing a price or marking something out of stock is a few minutes' work, and we show you how.
Can the website take bookings and appointments?
Yes. The same platform runs a booking calendar with availability you control, synced to the calendar you already use, with email and SMS reminders sent before each appointment. Taking payment or a deposit at the point of booking is available on a higher plan.
Do you charge a transaction fee on sales?
No platform transaction fee. The website platform and MidDevon Digital take nothing from your sales. This is separate from card processing: your payment provider, such as Stripe, PayPal or your card merchant, still charges its own processing fee on each transaction, as it would on any website. Very large catalogues, digital downloads and subscriptions sit on a higher monthly plan, which we quote up front.
Do you handle payments and VAT?
We set up the payment provider and the VAT rules so they're right from the first order. The money goes straight to your account, not through us.
What delivery options can the shop offer?
Flat rates, weight-based, free over a threshold, click and collect, local delivery zones. We set up whichever combination fits how you actually send things.
Can the shop stock stay in step with my physical shop?
Usually, yes. It depends on what till or stock system you use in the shop. We'll check what's possible during the discovery call.
How long does an online shop take to build?
Longer than a standard site, which takes two to four weeks. Most of the extra time goes on products: photos, descriptions and prices. The sooner those are ready, the sooner the shop is live.
Other ways we can help with your website
Ready to sell online properly?
Tell us what you sell and how you want to run it, and we'll come back with a plan and a clear quote.
