The short answer
An online shop is no longer a major project. Payment methods and shipping can be connected securely, and you can even sell products without holding stock yourself. What makes a shop successful is something else: clear product pages, a brand people trust and a checkout without obstacles.
Then there is a part nobody can take off your hands. Anyone who sells is a retailer – with all the obligations that come with it. Both belong in the plan from day one.
Three routes to your own shop
Your own products. You make or buy them, store them and ship them yourself. You keep full control over quality, packaging and delivery times. Typical for small producers, wineries, farm shops or businesses extending their high-street shop online.
Print-on-demand. You design the artwork, and a service such as Printful prints it on T-shirts, mugs or posters only when an order comes in, then ships it. No warehouse, no upfront stock. Printful offers an API for custom shops, so we connect it directly. Ideal for merchandise, collections with illustrations or brands that want to test what sells first.
Dropshipping. You sell a supplier’s goods and the supplier delivers directly to your customers. One example is BigBuy, a wholesaler with warehouses in Spain and France and an API for its catalogue, orders and shipment tracking.
For print-on-demand and dropshipping, we connect your shop directly to the supplier’s API – no Shopify needed. This is how it works:
- An order comes in and is paid.
- The shop passes it on to the supplier automatically.
- The supplier ships directly to your customer.
- The tracking number comes back to the shop and is emailed to your customer.
We sync products, prices and stock levels with the supplier regularly, so you never sell anything that is currently unavailable.
Which shop system fits?
Which system your shop gets depends on your products and your day-to-day work. Two common routes:
- Shopify is a hosted system: hosting, security and updates are included, and you pay a monthly fee, often plus charges for apps. A good fit if you want to manage a lot yourself through ready-made extensions.
- WooCommerce is an extension for WordPress. It suits you if your website already runs on WordPress. You need your own hosting and regular maintenance.
What suits your products, your existing website and your day-to-day work is something we clarify in the initial consultation.
What we take care of
- Design of the shop in your brand’s look, built for the smartphone, where most purchases begin.
- Product pages that sell: clear images, good copy, sizes, variants and everything buyers want to know before ordering.
- Payment methods such as card, PayPal or Apple Pay, plus shipping settings with your rates and countries.
- Connections to print-on-demand services or dropshipping suppliers via their API: orders go out automatically, tracking numbers come back, and products, prices and stock stay in sync.
- Images and content if you wish: product photos, short videos for social media and packaging design through our print design.
What you are responsible for as a retailer
We want to be honest here: we can explain these points and prepare them technically, but responsibility stays with you. The examples below follow German rules, since our clients often sell from Germany; other EU countries have comparable obligations.
- Business registration. Anyone selling regularly registers a business (in Germany a “Gewerbe”) and clarifies tax questions with their accountant.
- Legal notice, terms and cancellation policy. A shop needs complete legal texts that match what you sell. More on this in Legal notice and privacy policy.
- Product safety (GPSR). The EU General Product Safety Regulation has applied since December 2024. Even with dropshipping, you must ensure the goods comply and obtain evidence from your suppliers, such as CE marking where it is required, as well as manufacturer details and safety information.
- Packaging register LUCID. In Germany, anyone shipping goods in packaging to consumers must register with LUCID before the first sale and join a take-back scheme.
- Delivery times and customs. If a supplier is based outside the EU, delivery takes longer and customs duties and import VAT may apply. Your customers need to know what to expect before they buy. Suppliers with EU warehouses make many things easier.
- Warranty and returns. Your customers’ contractual partner is you, not your supplier. Complaints come to you.
This article does not replace legal advice. Have your legal texts and obligations checked before launch, for example by a law firm or a specialist service for online retailers.
What does an online shop cost?
A shop starts at €2,490 with us: product management, basket, payment via a provider such as Stripe, order emails, shipping rules and your legal texts built in. Connecting print-on-demand or dropshipping suppliers is priced by scope, as are new images and copy: your price is set out in the quote after the initial consultation. Running costs on top: the payment provider’s fee per payment, with print-on-demand and dropshipping the supplier’s charge per order (some wholesalers charge a monthly fee), and with Shopify the monthly fee and any apps. We show you which costs apply to you in the intro call. For an overview of website costs, see How much does a website cost?.
After launch: bringing visitors to the shop
A shop doesn’t sell by itself. Most buyers discover new brands on Instagram, TikTok or through Google search. If you wish, we build the right presence alongside it, from your profile to social media and ads. What suits your business is explained in Google Ads or Instagram ads?.
How to get started
Bring these answers to your free initial consultation: what do you want to sell, to whom and in which countries? Do you already have a website, photos, a logo? From that we create a clear plan with timeline and price. And if you need brand and website together, take a look at our packages.