Ecommerce agency in Southampton: The shop, the photos and the packaging.
We design and build online shops in Southampton, and make the product photos, film and packaging that help them sell. New shops usually run on Shopify, with the pages your customers see designed and coded by us.
Trusted by Zouk, Summer Dreams Wines and Moor Hall
engineEcommerce web design in Southampton, from shop front to packaging
Beyond is an ecommerce agency in Southampton, Hampshire. Your online shop has two jobs: make people want what you sell, and make paying for it easy, especially on a phone. We design and build the shop, and make the things that sell a product online: the photos, the film, the illustration and, when you need it, the packaging.
We plan the shop around the numbers that matter to you, such as how many visitors buy, how much they spend and how often they come back. And because the person who photographs your products talks to the person who designs the product page, the two fit together.
Already selling on a standard Shopify theme? You don't have to start again. On a free call we'll go through your shop with you and show you what's holding it back, from the product photos to the steps at checkout. Sometimes new photos and better product descriptions are enough, and we can make both. If your brand needs a shop of its own, we'll design and build it.
Do you need a new online shop?
Not sure whether your shop needs a few fixes or a rebuild? These are the usual signs. Two or three of them together usually mean it's time.
Signs your shop is holding you back
- 01
People fill a basket, then leave
Customers add products but don't pay, often because checkout takes too many steps on a phone.
- 02
It looks like any other shop
A standard theme makes your products look like everyone else's, however good they are.
- 03
Your products can't tell their story
There's no room for the maker, the place or the recipe behind a product, so it ends up competing on price.
- 04
Running it takes too long
Adding products, changing prices or putting a gift set together means fighting the system or waiting for a developer.
- 05
You've outgrown it
New ranges, gift sets or a members' club don't fit the way the shop was set up.
What headless Shopify means for your shop
Shopify is the system that holds your products, stock, payments and orders. Most Shopify shops use one of its ready-made designs, called themes. In a headless build, Shopify still does all that work behind the scenes, but the pages your customers browse are a separate website that we design and code.
That gives you more room: film, illustration and the story behind each product, on pages that stay quick. Your team runs products and prices in Shopify, and the words and pictures in an editing system we set up.
It costs more to build than a theme, and it isn't right for every shop. On the first call we'll tell you which route we'd suggest for yours, and why.
Who does what
- 01
Shopify
Products, stock, payments, checkout, orders and customer accounts.
- 02
Beyond
The pages your customers see: design, code, product pages, the stories and the route to checkout.
- 03
Your team
Adds products, changes prices and writes the stories, without a developer.
- 04
A partner you already use
If another company already runs your checkout, we build the shop around them.
The photos, film and packaging that sell the product
A product page has a photo, a price and a few lines to make someone want it. We can take the photo, write the lines and build the page, and design the box it arrives in.
What we can make for your shop
- 01
Product photography
Your products, where they're made and the people who make them, shot around what each product page needs.
- 02
Film
A short film for a product or a range, shot by us or edited from footage you already have.
- 03
Packaging
Tins, jars, boxes and labels designed alongside the shop, so the box matches the page.
- 04
Illustration and animation
Drawn in the studio, so your shop, packaging and social posts share one look.
How we build an online shop
Zouk: an online shop for spices, gifts and experiences
Zouk is a Manchester restaurant known for Indian and Pakistani cooking. It wanted extra income from an online shop, but its website and its look didn't match the restaurant.
We gave it a new look, photographed the restaurant, made a film for the home page and drew the illustrations. Then we designed and built a website with a shop at its heart, selling gifts, experiences and ingredients, including spice tins and chutneys in packaging we designed.
“Before we started working with Beyond, we didn’t really have a cohesive idea of what we wanted to show. But the work they’ve done, it’s been really transformational. We haven’t just got this amazing online presence out of it – we have a real presence in our community as well. It’s been amazing, and we can’t thank the team enough!”
Shops, sites and the products behind them
Ecommerce and Shopify questions
Which ecommerce platform do you build on?
Usually Shopify, run headless. Shopify looks after products, stock, payments and orders, and we design and build the pages your customers see, in-house. If you already work with a company that runs your checkout, we can build the shop around them. Tell us what you use now on the first call.
Do you build on WooCommerce or WordPress?
No. We don't build on WordPress, so we don't build WooCommerce shops, and we don't use Drupal either. New shops usually go on Shopify with pages we code ourselves, which gives the design more room and keeps product pages quick. If you need a WooCommerce specialist, another studio will suit you better.
What is headless Shopify?
It's a way of building a Shopify shop where the pages your customers browse are made separately and linked to Shopify behind the scenes. Shopify still takes the orders and payments. Because the pages aren't tied to a theme, they can be designed freely and carry film and illustration while staying quick. It costs more to build than a theme.
When is headless Shopify worth it?
When your shop has to look and behave like your brand, tell product stories a theme can't, or sit inside a bigger website, such as a wine estate's or a hotel's. If a well-chosen theme already does what you need, it's the simpler route, and we'll tell you so on the first call.
Can we add products and run the shop ourselves?
Yes. On a Shopify build, your team manages products, prices and orders in Shopify, and the stories and pages in an editing system we set up for you. The Summer Dreams team, for example, adds products, updates its content and runs its own marketing through the system we built for its wine storefront.
Can you sell gift vouchers and experiences as well as products?
Yes. A shop can sell products, gifts, experiences and vouchers side by side, and if you also take bookings, vouchers can sit next to the booking button. Moor Hall's website, for example, gives vouchers and gift experiences their own clear link. If they matter to your business, we plan them in from the start, alongside gift sets and repeat orders.
Can you do the product photography and packaging too?
Yes, all in-house. We shoot product and food photography, make films, draw illustrations and design packaging, so the shop, the box and the photos are planned together. You brief one team, and the product looks the same on the page as it does when it arrives.
Do you handle ecommerce SEO?
Yes. SEO is the work that helps your products show up when people search on Google. We plan the shop's structure, page speed and product descriptions for search from the start, and we can run SEO for you after launch if you want more visitors from search.
Can you redesign an existing online shop?
Yes. We can redesign your shop, rebuild it, or both, and bring your products and the content worth keeping across. If your shop runs on another platform now, tell us which on the first call and we'll say plainly whether we're the right people for the move.
How much does an ecommerce website cost?
It depends on how many products you sell, what the shop has to connect to, and how much photography, film or packaging it needs. We don't publish prices. After a free call we write down what the shop needs and give you a price for it before work begins.
How long does it take to build an online shop?
It depends on your range, what the shop connects to and how much content it needs, so we set the timeline with you at the start. A product launch or the run-up to Christmas are common deadlines. Tell us yours and we'll plan the build around it.
Do you build online shops for Hampshire businesses?
Yes. We're an ecommerce agency with a studio in Southampton, so established Hampshire brands are close by. The shops we've built sell well beyond their own postcode, from a restaurant in Manchester to a winery in California. Tell us where your customers are and we'll plan the shop around them.
Ready when you are
Talk to us about your shop.
Tell us what you sell, who buys it and how you sell it now. We'll reply within one working day and set up a free call to talk it through.
What happens next
- 1You'll hear back from us within one working day.
- 2We'll set up a free, no-obligation call with the people who'd actually do the work. Everything is made in-house.
- 3You get a clear proposal with scope, timeline and cost, usually within a week of our call.
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