An independent grocer opening his shop for the day

Everything it takes to open, at one published price.

Most people in this market quote by the meeting and never put a number in writing. Here is the number. Formation, brand, website, storefront and getting found — and at the end of it you own the domain, the site, the data, and the right to walk away.

Photograph: Kampus Production

First, what this normally costs

So the number below has something to sit against. These are published 2026 market rates for the same scope, gathered from agency price lists and freelance marketplaces.

Where you might get itTypical costWhat you end up with
A marketing agency$10,000 – $35,000A capable build, a long timeline, and a team you rarely speak to directly.
A freelance designer$1,500 – $8,000Usually the website only. Formation, brand, storefront and search are yours to arrange.
A subscription website builder$16 – $75 / month, foreverA template you rent. It cannot be exported, so leaving means paying to build it twice.
An all-in-one platform reseller$5,000 – $10,000 + $97–$297/moA configured account on software they license from someone else. Your site lives inside it.
SynthBridge, everything included$7,000Built for you, owned by you, portable on the day you ask.

Rates as of August 2026, from public agency and marketplace pricing. Your own quotes will vary with scope — these are the ranges to compare against, not promises about anyone else's work.

Three ways to start

Every price here is fixed and written down. Half on signature, half when the site goes live. Nothing begins until you have the full scope in writing.

Presence
You already have a business. You need a real website instead of the one you're renting.
$2,500
One time. Typically live in 2–3 weeks.
  • Custom website, designed for your brand rather than picked from a template
  • Photography sourced and licensed for you, never generic filler
  • Written and structured so search engines can actually read it
  • Professional email on your own domain
  • Works properly on a phone, and for visitors using a screen reader
  • Privacy, terms and security pages published from day one
  • You own every file. Exportable, always
Start with Presence
Most complete
Launch
You are opening, reopening, or finally doing it properly. Everything from the paperwork to the first order.
$7,000
One time. Typically live in 4–6 weeks.
  • Your business, registered. Filing, tax ID, and the paperwork done with you
  • A real brand. Logo, colours, type and a short guide for using them
  • Everything in Presence, built on that brand
  • A storefront or catalogue so people can order or browse what you sell
  • Follow-up that runs itself. Confirmations, receipts and reminders
  • Plain-English insights. What sold, what people looked at, where they came from
  • Getting found. Google Business Profile, map listings and local search set up properly
  • First month of Care included
Start with Launch
Build
You need software, not a website. Something a template cannot do and a platform will not build.
$15,000 and up
Quoted per project after a scoping call.
  • Booking and scheduling with real availability rules
  • Ticketing, passes, check-in and door operations
  • Inventory, rentals and delivery scheduling
  • Member, client or staff portals with proper permissions
  • Multi-location and multi-brand operations
  • Payments, deposits, split payouts and invoicing
  • Audit logging, access control and a documented security posture
Scope a Build

What the $7,000 is actually made of

Launch is not a round number someone picked. It is seven pieces of work, each of which we sell on its own, bundled at a discount because doing them together is faster than doing them apart.

Business formationFiling prepared and submitted, tax ID, founding documents. State fee billed at cost.$600
Brand identityLogo, colour, type, and a one-page guide so it stays consistent.$1,500
Custom websiteDesigned and built for you, with licensed photography.$2,500
Storefront or catalogueProducts or menu, online, with real checkout where you sell.$900
Automatic follow-upConfirmations, receipts and reminders sent without you.$800
Business insightsYour own numbers, in plain language, not a traffic dashboard.$700
Getting foundBusiness profile, map listings, local search and indexing.$900
Bought separately$7,900
Launch package$7,000

Prices for each piece are set against published market rates for the same work and reviewed every year. Ask and we will show you the comparison for any line above.

Then someone keeps it running

A website is not furniture. Things expire, break, and drift. Care is the standing arrangement that keeps yours healthy, current and watched. It is optional, month to month, and you can stop it without losing anything you paid for.

Care Essential
Keep it online, safe and current.
$97 / month
Month to month. Cancel any time.
  • Hosting, domain renewal and certificates handled
  • Professional email on your domain
  • Contact and order forms monitored
  • Security updates and daily backups
  • Uptime watched around the clock
  • A full site audit every quarter, in plain English
Add Essential
Most chosen
Care Growth
Keep it running and keep it moving.
$297 / month
Month to month. Cancel any time.
  • Everything in Essential
  • Two content updates a month — prices, hours, menu, photos, a new page
  • A full audit every month, with the report sent to you
  • Listings and local search kept accurate
  • Review requests sent to customers automatically
  • Answered next business day
Add Growth
Care Managed
Treat it like you have someone on staff.
$597 / month
Month to month. Cancel any time.
  • Everything in Growth
  • Unlimited small changes, no ticket counting
  • A working session with me every month
  • Email campaigns written and sent for you
  • Quarterly review of what is working and what to change
  • Same-day response
Add Managed

Care is not required to work together, and nothing stops functioning if you end it — the site is yours either way. It exists because the businesses that keep someone looking after this end up ahead of the ones that do not.

The part nobody explains before you sign

Most website subscriptions cannot give you your website. The pages exist only inside the system that made them, so changing providers means paying to build the same thing a second time. It is worth knowing which side of that line you are on.

Renting it

  • The design lives inside one company's system and cannot be exported
  • Leaving means rebuilding from nothing
  • The monthly price is theirs to raise
  • You get the features they ship, on the schedule they ship them
  • Their outage is your outage, and you cannot escalate
  • Your customer list sits in an account you do not control
  • Anything the tool cannot do is not expensive — it is impossible

Owning it

  • The domain is registered to you, in your own account
  • The site's files are yours, handed over on request, no notice needed
  • Your customer and order data exports whenever you ask
  • A flat monthly price for care, or none at all
  • Anything can be built, because it is being built rather than configured
  • Privacy, terms, accessibility and security published as standard
  • If you ever replace me, the next person inherits working code

Or take only the piece you need

Nothing here is only sold in a bundle. If you already have a website and need the booking system, buy the booking system.

What it isWhat it does for youPrice
Custom websiteA site built for your brand, written to be found.Replaces a rented template.$2,500
Booking & paymentCustomers book real openings and pay a deposit.Availability rules, reminders, no double-booking.$3,500
Inventory & availabilityTrack what you have, what is out, and when it comes back.Rentals, stock, delivery scheduling.$3,500
Quotes & contractsSend a priced quote, get it signed, turn it into a job.No per-signature fee.$2,000
Brand identityLogo, colour, type and a guide for using them.Made for you, not chosen from a gallery.$1,500
Getting foundBusiness profile, maps, local listings and indexing.So people looking for you actually find you.$900
Storefront or menuYour products or menu online, browsable and orderable.$900
Automatic follow-upConfirmations, receipts and reminders that send themselves.$800
Business insightsWhat sold and where customers came from, in plain language.$700
Business formationRegistration filed, tax ID obtained, documents in order.State filing fee billed at cost.$600
InvoicingDeposits, balances and paid status tied to the actual job.Sold as part of a larger system.$1,200
Owner dashboardOne screen for your bookings, orders and customers.Sold as part of a larger system.$1,200

Two of these are honest about their limits. Invoicing and the owner dashboard are worth building when they sit on top of a system we are already making for you; on their own, ordinary accounting software will serve you better and I will say so.

Questions worth asking first

Do I need to have a business already?

No. Launch includes registering it — the filing, the tax ID, and the founding documents, prepared and submitted with you. The state charges its own filing fee, which is billed at cost with the receipt attached.

What if I already have a website?

Then you probably want Presence, or a single piece from the list above. If your current site is on a platform that will not release it, we rebuild rather than migrate, and you will be told that plainly before you spend anything.

Am I required to take a Care plan?

No. The site is yours whether or not you keep me involved, and it will not stop working if you cancel. Care is for people who would rather not think about renewals, backups and broken links.

Can I really take my site somewhere else?

Yes, and you do not have to ask nicely. The domain is registered in your name, the files are handed over on request, and your customer and order data exports in a standard format. Nothing is held to keep you.

Who actually does the work?

I do. You will not be handed to an account manager, and there is no team between you and the person building it. That is the reason the timelines are short and the prices are what they are.

How do payments work?

Half to begin, half when the site goes live. Care is billed monthly and can be stopped at any time. Everything is invoiced, and nothing is charged that was not agreed in writing first.

Why is coaching not included?

Because I would rather build you something that works than sell you calls about it. If you want to be taught the marketing side, say so and I will point you somewhere honest.

What if my project does not fit any of this?

Then say what you need. These prices exist so you can compare before a meeting, not to decide for you. If the answer is that you should buy ordinary software instead of hiring me, that is what I will tell you.

Bring the quote you already have

Send me what someone else proposed, or just describe what you are trying to open. You will get a straight answer about what it should cost and whether you need me at all.

Start the conversation