Do you need a custom store, or is a platform enough?

Most small shops should start on a platform such as Shopify or WooCommerce. A custom store makes sense only when your rules do not fit a platform without constant workarounds: complex product configurations, trade and retail prices for different customers, unusual shipping rules, or order workflows that must connect to your own systems. The deciding factor is not the number of products but how far your catalogue, pricing, shipping and order handling differ from a standard shop.

When is a platform enough?

A platform is the better choice when most of these are true:

• Products are simple: a few variants such as size or colour, a fixed price.
• One price list for everyone.
• Standard shipping: a few zones and rates by weight or order value.
• Orders are handled the same way every time: pay, pack, ship.
• You want to start selling within weeks and keep monthly costs predictable.

Platforms are mature, secure and well documented. A good theme, carefully configured, with clear product pages and real photos will outsell a custom store built in a hurry.

When do you need a custom store?

• Configurable products. Made-to-measure items, product builders, prices calculated from dimensions or options.
• Different prices for different customers. Trade accounts, volume pricing, quotes that become orders.
• Complex shipping. Pallets, local delivery slots, installation, pickup points with their own rules.
• Integration with your own systems. Stock from an ERP, orders straight into production, invoices generated by your accounting software.
• The platform's limits cost you sales. You have tried apps and plugins, and the workarounds now cost more in fees and time than a build would.

What should you check before choosing?

1. Catalogue. How many products, how many variants, and how often do they change?
2. Prices. One list for everyone, or rules per customer?
3. Shipping and taxes. Where do you sell, and with which carriers?
4. Orders. What happens after payment, and who does it?
5. Integrations. Which tools must receive orders, stock or invoices automatically?

Write the answers down. If all five fit on half a page, use a platform. If question four alone needs a page, consider a custom store.

What Spanish shops often forget

• The Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla are outside the EU VAT area. Orders shipped there do not carry Spanish VAT and go through customs, which many default checkout settings get wrong.
• Selling to consumers in other EU countries. Above €10,000 a year in cross-border sales to consumers, VAT is charged at the customer's country rate, usually declared through the EU One-Stop Shop (OSS).
• Accessibility. Since 28 June 2025, online shops selling to consumers in the EU must meet the European Accessibility Act. Micro-enterprises are exempt for services, but an accessible checkout is also simply a better checkout.

What does each option cost?

• Platform store, set up and designed: from about €4,500, plus the platform's monthly fee and payment fees.
• Custom store: usually €10,000–15,000 and up, depending on the rules described above, with lower ongoing fees and no per-sale commission to the platform.

You can see what our e-commerce projects include on the capabilities page.

FAQ

Is Shopify or WooCommerce better for a small shop in Spain?

Shopify is easier to run and needs almost no technical maintenance; WooCommerce gives more control and no platform fee but needs updates and good hosting. Both work well for a standard catalogue. The right one depends on who will maintain the shop.

How many products justify a custom online store?

None by itself. A shop with 5,000 simple products fits a platform well; a shop with 20 configurable products and trade pricing may not. Complexity of rules matters more than catalogue size.

Can I move from a platform to a custom store later?

Yes. Products, customers and orders can be exported, and old product URLs redirected so you keep your search rankings. Starting on a platform and moving when the limits are real is often the cheapest path.