Glimpse SEO Agency builds ecommerce websites in Durban on Shopify, WooCommerce and custom code, with South African payment gateways, courier shipping and SEO set up before launch. Online stores start at R7 999, and every store ships with product schema and a Google Merchant Center feed so your products can show up in Google Shopping from day one.
Recent stores include Pret Global Supply and Ternary, both on Shopify.
Tell us what you sell in the form and we'll come back with a scoped quote.
See Store PackagesAn ecommerce website developer builds the online store your customers browse and buy from: the product catalogue, cart, checkout, payment gateway, shipping rules and the admin you use to manage orders and stock. At Glimpse that includes the design, the product pages, the copy and the SEO setup, so the store can actually be found once it's live.
A store that looks good but can't be found sells nothing. One that ranks but makes checkout painful loses the sale at the last step. We build for both.
Both, almost always. Ecommerce web design is how the store looks and how easily shoppers find products and get through checkout. Ecommerce development is the build behind it: the platform, payment gateway, shipping logic, integrations and speed. We do both in-house, so the person designing your checkout knows exactly how it works.
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Every Glimpse store, from Starter to Enterprise, launches with the basics a South African store needs to take payment, ship orders and get found.
Custom design built around your products and tested on a phone first, where most South Africans shop.
PayFast, Yoco, Peach Payments or Ozow set up and tested, so customers can pay by card, instant EFT or the methods they already use.
Courier rates, flat-rate zones, free-shipping thresholds and local collection, configured to match how you actually deliver.
Clear photos, specifications, sizing and descriptions written in South African English, not copied from the supplier.
Page titles, meta descriptions, clean URLs, Product schema with price and stock, and an XML sitemap set up before launch.
Your product feed connected to Google so your items can appear in free Shopping listings and power Shopping ads later.
A dashboard where you manage orders, stock, discounts and customers, plus training on how to use it.
Google Analytics ecommerce tracking and Search Console, so you can see which products and channels make money.
Checkout and account forms that collect only what you need, link to your privacy and returns policies and run over SSL.
The platform decides your monthly running costs, how much control you have and who maintains the store. We recommend one after we understand your catalogue and how you sell. Here's the honest comparison.
| Shopify | WooCommerce | Custom build | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Most new and growing stores that want reliable checkout and little maintenance | Stores that want full control, lots of content or no platform subscription | Unusual pricing, B2B portals, complex integrations or very high volumes |
| Monthly platform cost | Shopify plan, billed by Shopify | None for the plugin, but you pay for hosting | Hosting only |
| Transaction fees | Extra fee when using a third-party gateway such as PayFast, plus gateway fees | Gateway fees only | Gateway fees only |
| Maintenance | Low, Shopify handles hosting and security | Higher, with plugin and WordPress updates | Depends on the build |
| SEO control | Good, with some fixed URL paths | Full control | Full control |
| Who updates products | You, in Shopify admin | You, in the WordPress dashboard | You, in a custom admin |
Already have a store that isn't selling? We can rebuild it on the same platform or migrate it, with 301 redirects so you keep your Google rankings. See our Shopify SEO page if your store is on Shopify.
Every gateway charges differently and suits a different kind of customer. Fees change often, so we check current rates with you during planning rather than quoting numbers here that may be out of date.
| Gateway | What it's known for | Good fit for |
|---|---|---|
| PayFast | Cards, instant EFT and several local payment methods through one account | Most small and medium South African stores |
| Yoco | Simple online card payments, plus card machines for in-person sales | Businesses selling both in-store and online |
| Peach Payments | Cards and a wide range of local and alternative payment methods | Growing stores wanting more payment options |
| Ozow | Instant EFT straight from the customer's bank account | Shoppers who prefer not to pay by card |
Many stores run two: one main gateway for cards and an instant EFT option alongside it. More ways to pay usually means fewer abandoned carts.
An online store from Glimpse costs from R7 999 for a Starter Store with up to 25 products, R12 999 for a Growth Store with up to 100 products and R19 999 for an Enterprise Store with unlimited products and custom integrations. All prices are once-off. Platform plans, payment gateway fees and hosting are monthly costs on top, listed below. We confirm your price in writing before any work starts.
| Package | From | Products | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter Store | R7 999 | Up to 25 products | New brands and small catalogues getting online for the first time |
| Growth Store | R12 999 | Up to 100 products | Established businesses moving sales online or replacing a store that doesn't sell |
| Enterprise Store | R19 999 | Unlimited products | Large catalogues, B2B pricing, stock or ERP integrations and international selling |
Every package includes the features listed above. Product uploading beyond the included number, extra integrations and copywriting for very large catalogues are quoted on scope. 50% deposit required on start date.
Get a Store QuotePublished 2026 price guides for Durban put a small-catalogue Shopify or WooCommerce store at roughly R8 000 to R20 000, with custom stores running from around R35 000 upwards. Our packages sit at the lower end of that range because each one is tightly scoped: you know exactly how many products you're getting set up and what's included before we start.
The build is a once-off cost. These are the running costs to budget for after launch, so nothing comes as a surprise.
| Cost | What to expect | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| .co.za domain | R100 a month, billed annually | Registered in your own name through Xneelo |
| Hosting (WooCommerce and custom) | R150 a month | SSL included. Shopify stores don't need separate hosting |
| Shopify plan | Paid directly to Shopify | Only for Shopify stores. Shopify often runs free or discounted trial periods |
| Payment gateway fees | A percentage per sale | Charged by your gateway, so check current rates |
| Apps and plugins | Varies | We only add what the store genuinely needs |
| Maintenance | Optional, quoted per store | Updates, backups, new products and fixes |
| Ecommerce SEO or ads | Optional monthly service | Separate from the build |
Baymard Institute's long-running research puts the average online cart abandonment rate at around 70%. Some of that is just window shopping. A lot of it is fixable, and these are the fixes we build into every store.
A store with a small catalogue usually goes live in about three weeks once we have your products, photos and logo. Larger catalogues and integrations take longer, and we give you a timeline with your quote.
| Stage | What happens | What we need from you |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Discovery | We learn what you sell, who buys it, how you deliver and who you compete with | A call and a list of your products |
| 2. Planning | Platform choice, category structure, payment gateway and shipping rules | Your delivery areas and prices |
| 3. Design | Store design in Figma, reviewed and revised with you | Your logo, brand colours and feedback |
| 4. Build and products | Store build, product upload, copy, schema and Merchant Center | Product photos, prices and stock levels |
| 5. Testing | Test orders on every payment method, mobile checks and speed tests | A test purchase from your side |
| 6. Launch and training | Go live, connect your domain and walk you through orders and stock | An hour for training |
A few recent ecommerce builds. Open them on your phone, which is where your customers will see yours.
A premium Shopify store for a South African supplier of fibre optic and solar accessories, built so trade buyers can find exact parts and order quickly.
Visit StoreA Korean skincare store rated 4.8/5 by over 5 000 customers, with product pages and structured data built for search.
Ask About This BuildA Shopify store for a South African gut-health brand, with a launch waitlist, trial applications and product education pages.
Visit StoreA wellness store that now ranks first on Google for "healthy rusks to buy", with sales up 384% in six months.
Ask About This BuildDurban businesses selling everything from skincare to industrial parts. Each kind of store needs something slightly different.
Strong product photography, size and shade variants, and reviews front and centre.
Clear product information, subscription or repeat-order options and careful, compliant claims.
Detailed specifications, part numbers, bulk pricing and quote requests alongside online checkout.
Delivery zones, cold-chain or local-only shipping rules and gift options.
Stock that matches your physical store, plus click-and-collect from your Durban shop.
Waitlists, pre-orders and launch pages that build demand before day one, like the Ternary build.
Questions worth asking any developer before you pay a deposit.
We're a Durban team, and a lot of the stores we build are for KwaZulu-Natal businesses selling nationally. That brings some local details worth getting right: courier rates that work from Durban to Gauteng and the Cape, click-and-collect from a shop in Pinetown or Umhlanga, and delivery zones for businesses that only deliver around eThekwini.
We also build for brands elsewhere in South Africa and internationally, mostly over video calls and WhatsApp. Pret Global Supply, for example, sells nationwide. If you'd rather meet in person in Durban, we're happy to.
Once your store is live, our ecommerce SEO and Google Ads services can bring in the traffic, and the web design team can build any supporting pages your brand needs.
The people who will actually work on your project.
Plans each store around how its customers search and buy, from category structure to launch.
Leads the build: platform setup, payment gateways, integrations, speed and structured data.
Writes product and category copy that ranks and sells, in South African English.
What a few of our clients have said. You can read more, or leave your own, on our Trustpilot page.
Practical guides from our Durban team, plus our round-ups of the agencies and developers working in the city.
Durban companies that build online stores, compared on platforms, payment gateways and what's included.
Read ArticleThe Durban agencies that build Shopify stores, and how to pick the right one for your catalogue and budget.
Read ArticleEcommerce SEO agencies working with Durban online stores, compared on platforms, services and approach.
Read ArticleReal South African website prices, what drives them and the monthly running costs to budget for.
Read ArticleWhat hosting and a .co.za domain cost, who should own them and what to check before you sign up.
Read ArticleTen Durban web development companies compared on services, platforms and the kind of businesses they suit.
Read ArticleAn online store from Glimpse costs from R7 999 for up to 25 products, R12 999 for up to 100 products and R19 999 for unlimited products with custom integrations. Prices are once-off. Platform plans, gateway fees and hosting are monthly costs on top.
Expect your domain at R100 a month (billed annually), hosting at R150 a month for WooCommerce or custom stores, or a Shopify plan paid to Shopify, plus payment gateway fees on each sale. Maintenance, ecommerce SEO and ads are optional extras.
Shopify suits most new and growing stores that want reliable checkout and little maintenance. WooCommerce suits stores that want full control, lots of content or no platform subscription, but it needs more upkeep. We recommend one after understanding your catalogue.
We set up South African gateways such as PayFast, Yoco, Peach Payments and Ozow, and test every payment method with a real order before launch.
A store with a small catalogue usually goes live in about three weeks once we have your products, photos and logo. Larger catalogues and integrations take longer, and you get a timeline with your quote.
Yes. Each package includes uploading a set number of products with photos, prices and descriptions. Larger catalogues are quoted on scope, and we can import products from a spreadsheet.
Yes. We write product and category copy in South African English, built to rank and to sell, instead of using copied supplier descriptions.
Every store launches SEO-ready with product schema, clean URLs and a Merchant Center feed. Ranking for competitive categories takes ongoing ecommerce SEO, which we offer as a separate monthly service.
Yes. We can rebuild your store on the same platform or move it, for example from WooCommerce to Shopify, using 301 redirects so you keep the Google rankings you've already earned.
Often, yes. Shopify and WooCommerce connect to many stock, accounting and courier systems. We check your systems during discovery and quote any integration work upfront.
You do. Your domain is registered in your name, and you get full admin access to your store from launch.
We build checkouts that collect only the information you need, link to your privacy and returns policies and run over SSL. Your privacy policy should still reflect how your business handles customer data, and we can point out where it needs updating.
Yes. We build trade pricing, account-only products, bulk ordering and quote requests, usually on our Enterprise Store package.
No. We're based in Durban and build online stores for businesses across South Africa and internationally.
Tell us what you sell and we'll recommend a platform and a package, with every monthly cost on the quote.
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