A store that sells and a catalog you can manage without spending your days on it.
A high-performing store depends on more than a nice theme. Catalog, product pages, apps, analytics, SEO, and product data (PIM, DAM) all need to work together. We scope the risks before we execute, then verify everything before you go live.
E-commerce in detail.
Shopify stores, custom e-commerce, PIM and DAM to sell more and manage your catalog without friction.
Shopify Agency
Shopify and Shopify Plus store builds, redesigns, and migrations.
Learn moreCustom E-commerce and B2B
Custom, headless, and B2B e-commerce for complex catalogs and selling models.
Learn moreProduct Catalog Management
E-commerce product catalog structuring and quality.
Learn morePIM: Product Information Management
PIM software setup and integration for your product data.
Learn moreDAM: Digital Asset Management
DAM setup to manage your product visuals and media.
Learn more
A fast, easy-to-manage e-commerce site with clean product data and a funnel built for conversion.
Benefits
A store that is straightforward to operate
Reliable product data (PIM, DAM)
Scoped migrations that keep sales running
A CRO and SEO foundation built for margin
Deliverables
Catalog architecture and theme
Product, customer, and order migration
PIM and DAM setup
Product page, collection, and checkout optimization
Use cases
DTC launch
Shopify Plus redesign
PrestaShop / WooCommerce / SFCC migration
B2B e-commerce
Your store needs to convert better, migrate cleanly, or handle a catalog that your current platform is struggling with.
Smartshift builds, redesigns, and migrates e-commerce stores (Shopify, custom-built, B2B) and makes product data reliable with PIM and DAM tools, so you can sell more and manage your catalog without friction.
Which e-commerce platform fits your project?
The French e-commerce market surpassed 175 billion euros in 2025 (Fevad). Behind that number, three project types stand out: a DTC launch on Shopify, a redesign of an existing store, and B2B e-commerce with a complex catalog or customer-specific pricing. These three cases carry different technical constraints, timelines, and budgets.
A serious e-commerce agency runs the right diagnosis before recommending a tool. Shopify covers 80% of use cases with reliability and a predictable total cost of ownership. Custom builds (Adobe Commerce, Djust, headless) address the remaining 20%: B2B logic, catalogs with tens of thousands of SKUs, complex ERP workflows. Forcing either option outside its scope gets expensive.
What building an e-commerce site actually involves
An e-commerce project is more than a theme and a store. Product data (PIM), visuals (DAM), the catalog, the checkout funnel, ERP integrations, and SEO redirects form a single system. Neglecting any one element creates production problems: incomplete listings, lost organic traffic after a migration, and a team spending hours fixing catalog errors.
| Need | Recommended solution | Indicative budget | Typical timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTC launch, catalog under 5,000 SKUs | Shopify (standard or Plus) | 15,000 to 60,000 EUR | 6 to 12 weeks |
| Redesign / migration from PrestaShop or WooCommerce | Shopify + redirect plan | 20,000 to 80,000 EUR | 8 to 16 weeks |
| B2B e-commerce, customer-specific pricing | Shopify Plus B2B or Djust | 40,000 to 150,000 EUR | 12 to 20 weeks |
| Complex catalog, headless, Adobe Commerce | Custom / headless | 80,000 to 400,000 EUR | 16 to 40 weeks |
| Centralized product data (PIM) | Akeneo, Plytix, Catalist | 10,000 to 50,000 EUR | 6 to 14 weeks |
| Visual asset management (DAM) | Bynder, Canto, Widen | 8,000 to 30,000 EUR | 4 to 10 weeks |
The four workstreams that make the difference
- Clean product data: an incomplete or inconsistent listing drives returns, cart abandonment, and lost SEO visibility. Structuring the catalog always comes before going live.
- Migration without SEO loss: every platform change breaks URLs. Without a comprehensive 301 redirect plan, a site can lose 30 to 50% of its organic traffic within a few weeks.
- Optimized checkout: every unnecessary step costs revenue. On Shopify, Checkout Extensibility and Shopify Functions let you customize without touching core code.
- ERP / PIM / DAM integrations: an out-of-sync stock level or a wrong price on a product listing erodes customer trust. These integrations get scoped before development, not at the end of the project.
How Smartshift scopes an e-commerce project
Every project starts with an audit: existing platform, product data, indexed organic traffic, integrations already in place. That work produces three deliverables before a single line of code is written: the data migration plan, the SEO redirect plan, and the integration architecture. These documents allow precise quoting and prevent surprises.
Smartshift works with SMEs and mid-size companies in the Paris region (Versailles, Ile-de-France) and supports them through 90 days of post-launch monitoring. SEO surveillance and integration stability after cutover are part of the standard scope, not an add-on.
E-commerce performance metrics to watch
| Metric | French market benchmark | Alert signal |
|---|---|---|
| Conversion rate (desktop) | 2.5% to 4.0% | Below 1.5% |
| Conversion rate (mobile) | 1.5% to 2.5% | Below 0.8% |
| Cart abandonment rate | 65% to 75% | Above 80% |
| LCP score (Core Web Vitals) | Under 2.5 s | Above 4 s |
| GSC indexation rate | Above 90% of product pages | Below 70% |
| Time to publish a new listing | Under 24 h with PIM | Above 72 h without PIM |
E-commerce agency or freelancer?
A freelancer works for a simple, well-defined project. An e-commerce agency provides full coverage: scoping, design, development, migration, SEO, integrations. On a project that touches data, redirects, and ERP integrations, methodical experience matters as much as technical skill.
How much does building an e-commerce site cost?
For a standard Shopify launch, budget 15,000 to 60,000 euros depending on catalog complexity and integrations. A redesign with migration from PrestaShop or WooCommerce falls between 20,000 and 80,000 euros. A custom or headless B2B e-commerce project typically exceeds 80,000 euros.
Can you migrate without losing sales or SEO rankings?
Yes, if the migration is properly prepared. The 301 redirect plan, the product data migration, and the DNS cutover plan must all be validated before go-live. Well-prepared migrations recover 90 to 95% of organic traffic within 30 days.
When should you set up a PIM?
As soon as your catalog exceeds a few hundred SKUs, you sell on multiple channels, or listing quality is a recurring problem. Below that threshold, a well-structured CSV file is often enough. We will tell you straight at the scoping stage.
Frequently asked questions.
Shopify or custom-built?
Shopify covers most needs, quickly and reliably. Custom-built (headless, Adobe Commerce, B2B) is justified for complex catalogs, B2B pricing logic, or specific constraints.
Can you migrate without losing SEO rankings or data?
Yes. Products, customers, orders, 301 redirects, and SEO priorities are all scoped before the cutover, then monitored for 90 days.
What are a PIM and a DAM for?
A PIM centralizes product information; a DAM centralizes visuals and media. Together they make your catalog reliable and speed up your go-live.