An online store of your own, for small businesses and makers
For makers and small brands who've outgrown a marketplace listing or a link in their bio. We build your own online store, with your products, your checkout and your customer list, set up for made-to-order and seasonal selling.
How to sell online with your own store, step by step
Selling from your own store doesn't have to be complicated. These are the steps, in the order we work through them with you:
Get your catalog in order. Clear photos, descriptions with sizes and materials, and collections that make sense to a shopper.
Decide how you'll take payment. Card and PayPal are the base; depending on your customers, we look at which other methods are worth offering.
Set up shipping and delivery. Zones, costs, how long each piece takes to make and, if it fits, local pickup.
Prepare the order emails. Received, in progress and shipped, so nobody has to write to ask.
Make the store findable. Product structured data, clear pages and a catalog Google and AI assistants can read.
Look after past buyers. A newsletter, new-collection announcements and a review request after delivery.
Your own store or a marketplace? An honest answer
Marketplaces like Etsy and Amazon bring shoppers to you, and that's worth a lot when you're starting out. The trade-off is that you follow their rules, pay their fees, sit on the same page as similar sellers, and don't really own the relationship with your buyers.
An online store for a small business makes sense when people already look for you by name, when you sell custom or made-to-order pieces that don't fit a marketplace listing, or when you want to email past customers about new collections. You don't have to choose one. You can keep your marketplace shop, add your own store, and see over time which one earns its place.
Keep a marketplace if it brings steady sales you couldn't get elsewhere
Add your own store when repeat buyers and custom orders start coming to you directly
Run both, with your own store as the home for your brand and your customer list
Lena's Wreath Decor: a made-to-order store that ships nationwide
Lena's Wreath Decor sells handcrafted wreaths, made to order and shipped to all 50 states, with local pickup for nearby customers. We built the store and the back office behind it.
Shoppers browse by season (everyday, fall, winter and holiday, spring, summer), request custom designs, buy gift cards, and check out with card, PayPal, Venmo or Zelle. Customers can create an account with email or Google, see past orders and save addresses. Saved cards are stored by Stripe, so card numbers never touch the site, and prices are recalculated on the server at checkout. Shoppers who leave an email and don't finish get an abandoned-cart reminder.
Made-to-order changes how a store should work. Shoppers need to know when their piece will ship before they pay, and you need each order to arrive with everything required to make it. Seasonal makers also need to launch collections on time and retire them quietly afterward.
Collections by season or occasion, published and hidden on your schedule
Lead times shown on product pages and in order emails
Custom order requests with the details you need to quote
Shipping zones plus local pickup or delivery options
Order emails at each step: received, in progress, shipped
Getting found: Google and AI shopping answers
A store nobody finds doesn't sell. We add Product and Offer structured data to every product page (name, price, availability, images, and reviews where you have them) so search engines read your catalog correctly. From there we can set up a Google Merchant Center product feed, which makes your products eligible for Google's free shopping listings. And because AI assistants now answer shopping questions like “handmade fall wreath for a front door,” we make sure your product pages give them clear, specific text to work with.
One of the biggest differences between your own store and a marketplace is the customer list. We connect your store to email and marketing automation: a welcome email for new subscribers, launch emails for each new collection, reminders before seasonal order deadlines, and a thank-you after delivery that asks for a review.
Hosting and upkeep you don't have to think about
Stores need SSL, backups, updates and someone to call when a payment provider changes something. With our managed hosting and maintenance, we handle the domain, DNS, SSL, email records and nightly off-site backups, and you have one contact when something breaks. The store itself is built through our e-commerce website development and website design work. Selling signed books or creative work? See our page for authors and creators.
Not necessarily. If a marketplace brings you steady sales, keep it. Your own store adds a place you control, with your customer list and no marketplace listing fees. You can run both and point repeat buyers to your own site.
Can I sell made-to-order items with different lead times?
Yes. Each product can show its own lead time, and order emails tell the customer what to expect. Custom requests can come in through a form that asks for the details you need to quote.
What payment options can I offer?
Card payments through Stripe and PayPal are the usual base, and we can add options like Venmo or Zelle. Lena's Wreath Decor offers card, PayPal, Venmo and Zelle. Card numbers are handled by the payment provider and never stored on your site.
Can customers pick up locally?
Yes. You can offer local pickup or delivery alongside shipping, with rules for which areas qualify.
Can I manage orders from my phone?
Yes. The admin works on a phone, so you can check new orders, update their status and send shipped emails from your workshop.
Will my products show up on Google Shopping?
We set up Product structured data and a Merchant Center feed, which makes your products eligible for Google's free listings. Google decides what to show, so no one can promise placement, but a clean feed and clear product pages put you in a strong position.
