Get an online shop built · Guide
Get an online shop built without nasty surprises
An online shop is not a website-builder project but a piece of software that has to process revenue. Here we explain honestly what a professional shop costs, what the process looks like and how to recognise a good agency – and we're happy to make you a concrete offer at the end.
The range is absurd: the freelancer offers the shop for 3,000 euros, the agency quotes 80,000, and Shopify advertises 39 euros a month. All three are right for certain cases – and that is exactly what makes the decision so hard. What counts in the end: does the shop system fit your business model, does the shop carry your growth, and do you have a partner afterwards who keeps it running?
What matters when you get an online shop built
The shop system has to fit the business model, not the agency's portfolio. A D2C start with twenty products has different requirements than a B2B wholesaler with 50,000 SKUs, tiered pricing and ERP integration. Anyone recommending a system before understanding your business is optimising for their own revenue.
The interfaces decide the follow-up costs. Product data, stock, prices and orders flow between shop, merchandise management and shipping – manually maintained data is the most common reason shops become expensive to operate. A clean integration costs more in the project and saves from the first month.
A fixed price without discovery is a warning sign. Nobody can seriously estimate what a shop costs before requirements, data quality and interfaces are clarified. Serious vendors make the requirements phase part of the offer – and also tell you what the first version deliberately won't do.
Operations after launch belong in the offer. Updates, security, monitoring and further development cost predictable money – anyone hiding that is selling you a shop that will be outdated in eighteen months. Ask every vendor what maintenance and support cost per year before you sign.
Our shop experience in numbers
- 6,000
- orders/day at peak in our largest managed shop
- Silver
- Official Shopware partner
- 4 phases
- Clearly structured project process
- 1 team
- Concept, development & operations
How a shop project runs with us
1. Discovery & requirements
Assortment, target group, merchandise management, payment methods, shipping logic: we clarify what your shop has to do – and what deliberately doesn't belong in the first version.
2. Concept & design
Information architecture, category structure and a design that sells instead of just looking good. You see clickable prototypes before development starts.
3. Development & integration
Implementation on Shopware 6 including interfaces to ERP, merchandise management, payment providers and shipping carriers. Development in transparent sprints.
4. Launch & operations
Cutover with monitoring, then maintenance, updates and further development with fixed contacts. A shop is never finished – we stay on board.
Why an online shop from nextlevels
We build shops as a software agency, not a web design studio – with everything that belongs to revenue-grade software.
Shopware Silver Partner
Certified Shopware development for B2C, B2B and D2C – from standard setups to enterprise projects with multi-tenant architecture.
Integration competence
ERP, PIM, SAP, payment and shipping providers: we build integrations that run stably in production – not only in the demo.
Honest estimates
Transparent sprints, prioritised by revenue impact. We also tell you what the first version deliberately shouldn't do.
Operations included
Hosting, monitoring, updates and support with SLA after launch. Your shop still has a contact person in three years.
Data & Insights
All postsRelated services & tools
Related goal: More shop revenue
FAQ: getting an online shop built
Your question isn't here? Ask us directly
What does it cost to have an online shop built?
A professional Shopware 6 shop with custom design and standard integrations typically starts in the mid five-figure range. B2B features, ERP interfaces, multi-tenant setups or migrations push the effort into the six-figure range. Simple setups on builder systems are cheaper – but quickly hit limits with growth, interfaces and B2B. Our Shopware price calculator gives you a first ballpark.
How long does it take to have an online shop built?
A focused shop takes roughly three to six months from discovery to launch. Migrations and projects with many interfaces take longer. More important than the end date is the scope: better to launch a clean first version and grow it based on data than to wait twelve months for the perfect shop.
Which shop system do you recommend – Shopware, Shopify or WooCommerce?
It depends on the business model. Shopify is strong for fast D2C starts with standard processes, WooCommerce for small content-driven shops. Shopware 6 is our recommendation when B2B features, ERP integration, complex pricing logic or full data sovereignty are required. We specialise in Shopware – and we'll tell you if another system fits you better.
What do we have to provide as the client?
Product data and images, access to your merchandise management or ERP, a decision on payment methods and shipping logic – and time for feedback during the sprints. Everything else we structure: we lead you through discovery and concept so that 'we need a shop' becomes a solid set of requirements.
What happens after the launch?
The launch is the beginning, not the end. Updates, security patches, monitoring and further development are part of operations – we offer support with SLA and, if you like, hosting via our partner maxcluster. That keeps the shop fast, secure and current.
Is an agency worth it, or is a freelancer enough?
For a clearly scoped project with few interfaces an experienced freelancer can be enough. As soon as ERP integration, B2B logic, performance under load or long-term operations come into play, you need a team with different competencies – and a partner who is still reachable in three years.