How much does it cost to redesign an e-commerce site that isn't converting?

At Sonho, redesigning a Shopify store that isn't converting costs **€8,000 to €25,000 excl. VAT** depending on scope (number of sections, catalog size, languages), a price fixed after a discovery call rather than an estimate that drifts as the project goes on. That budget covers custom-built code, brand identity work when it needs reworking, and a checkout flow designed for mobile from the start. The average timeline is 6 to 10 weeks. For a full build with a catalog, content and tools built from scratch, the range moves up to €15,000 to €40,000 excl. VAT. In both cases, there's no recycled theme and no page builder: the code is written for that specific catalog, not adjusted from a generic template bought elsewhere and dressed up in the brand's colors.

How do you know if the problem is traffic or the site itself?

The most reliable signal is the gap between traffic and the conversion rate measured in your Shopify stats: if visitors keep arriving in stable numbers but the conversion rate stays low, the problem is rarely acquisition. Next, look at where visitors actually drop off. On the product page, it's often brand identity or loading speed raising questions; at checkout, it's a flow with too many steps to get through. Also compare mobile conversion rate to desktop over the same period: a clear gap points to a site made responsive rather than actually designed for mobile. This diagnosis takes about an hour and saves you from spending an ad budget that will never fix a problem sitting on the site itself, not in the campaigns.

Should you add more apps before redesigning the site?

Adding one more app to push conversion on a theme that's already slow, or an identity that's already missing, treats a symptom, not the cause. Every extra app loads a script on every page, often for a marginal gain, while the real problem sits in the foundations: a recycled theme, loading speed, a checkout flow with too many steps. A store built with custom code rarely needs more than two or three targeted apps that actually get used. Before adding one more tool, it's worth measuring where visitors actually drop off (product page, cart, checkout) and fixing that specific cause. The right instinct is often the opposite: removing apps that no longer serve a purpose before considering a full redesign of the store. A quick audit usually spots the two or three apps weighing most on speed.

Six to ten weeks for a Shopify redesign, does quality suffer?

The fixed **6 to 10 week** timeline is a framework that keeps the project scope from drifting, not a shortcut on quality. Combined with a price fixed from the start, this framing avoids the silent trade-offs (speed, custom work, brand identity) that end up costing sales every month after launch. The result checks out against a concrete measure: **mobile LCP**, the loading time of the page's main element, needs to stay under **2.5 seconds**, a threshold Google has used as a ranking signal since 2021. A shorter timeline builds neither a solid brand identity nor a reworked checkout flow: a project poorly scoped from the start often takes longer to fix afterward than to build correctly the first time, and costs more overall.

What happens if my contact at the agency isn't available later on?

At Sonho, one team follows the project from the first call to launch, which keeps communication simple during the redesign: no handoffs between departments, no new contact at each stage. After delivery, the client's team is trained to edit the site's content on their own (text, photos, colors), which reduces how dependent you are on the agency's availability for everyday needs. If a bug comes up, the response arrives within 48 hours. For bigger changes, monthly support exists starting at €800 excl. VAT per month, with no commitment. That continuity matters most in the months right after launch, when the first adjustments to the checkout flow or the content are the most useful to make fast, without waiting on uncertain availability.

E-commerce site not converting: 7 common causes (and how to fix them)

Traffic shows up, sales don't: the 7 causes we see most often when we take over Shopify stores, and the fix for each one.

The short answer

An e-commerce site that gets traffic but doesn't sell almost always has a foundation problem, not an acquisition one. The most common causes: a recycled theme, a pile-up of paid apps slowing down every page, and a checkout flow that's too long on mobile. At Sonho, a custom-built Shopify redesign costs €8,000 to €25,000 excl. VAT and takes 6 to 10 weeks.

Traffic shows up, sales don't: where to look instead of Google Analytics

Campaigns are running, rankings are improving, visitors land on the product page and leave without buying. It's the most frustrating situation for a brand selling online: the problem shows up nowhere in the traffic stats, it's in the site itself. We see this often when we take over existing Shopify stores.

Traffic is rarely the real problem: it's the store that wasn't built to convert it. The causes aren't always the ones in generic guides, they're often deeper, and each one shows up as a measurable symptom. Here are the 7 most common causes, in the order they weigh on conversion, with the signal to look for and the fix that follows.

First finding: the store runs on a recycled theme, not custom-built code

A free or purchased theme was designed to suit thousands of different stores. The result: it doesn't perfectly suit any of them. The sections are generic, the visual hierarchy doesn't put the product first, and the theme carries code for features never used on this particular store.

That dead code weighs down every page and dilutes the brand's identity. A visitor who recognizes a theme they've seen elsewhere sees no differentiation, when that's exactly what triggers a purchase over a cheaper competitor. We code each section for the specific catalog: the detail is in the custom code versus theme comparison.

Second finding: a pile-up of paid apps is dragging down speed

It's the most common cause we see when auditing existing stores, and the least often acknowledged by the agencies that built them. Every installed app (pop-up, upsell, reviews, page builder) loads its own script on every page, even when it isn't used on that particular page.

The symptom is measurable: a mobile LCP (the loading time of the page's main element) beyond 2.5 seconds, and apps that often add up to €100 to €300 a month. The fix: build the recurring features directly into the code. The detail is in Shopify without paid apps and in diagnosing a slow Shopify store.

Third finding: brand identity is missing or inconsistent

A visitor who doesn't know the brand decides within seconds whether to trust it. Without a distinct color palette, chosen typography, a recognizable tone, the store looks like an anonymous storefront among thousands of others. The product can be excellent: if the presentation says nothing, trust never builds.

The symptom shows up in the return-visitor stats: few visitors come back before buying, and the brand doesn't stand out at a glance. Fixing this happens upstream of development, not by swapping two colors on a theme after the fact. The service details are on /services/branding.

Fourth finding: the checkout flow has too many steps

Every step between “add to cart” and “confirm order” is an exit door. A mandatory account, a lengthy form, no one-click payment: these frictions look minor, they aren't. The symptom shows up in the abandonment rate measured at checkout.

An efficient checkout flow fits in 2 to 3 steps, offers guest checkout, and includes Apple Pay and Google Pay. On a recycled theme, this flow can rarely be changed at depth. On custom-built code, each step gets reworked based on the friction actually observed in the store's traffic.

Fifth finding: the site was made responsive, not designed for mobile

Most e-commerce traffic comes through mobile, and yet most sites are “responsive” only in the technical sense (the content adapts to the screen) without being designed for actual mobile use: buttons sized for a thumb, simplified forms, images framed so they never spill past the visible frame, whatever the screen size.

The symptom shows up in the by-device stats: a mobile conversion rate well below desktop, on the same store. This gap between “responsive” and “designed for mobile” explains most of that difference. The fix happens at the design stage, not by adjusting a desktop layout afterward.

Sixth finding: nobody can edit the content without going through a developer

This isn't a cause of low conversion by itself, it's an accelerator of the five before it. When every text or section change requires contacting the agency again, urgent fixes (a message that doesn't reassure, a poorly worded product page) drag on for weeks. The symptom is measurable in the time between a request and it actually going live.

A store built for the team's independence lets you fix in hours what would otherwise take weeks of back and forth. That's why, at handover, the client's team is trained on the sections coded to be edited without a developer: text, photos, colors, whole blocks, without risking a broken layout.

Seventh finding: the initial scope didn't cover what needed building

Many stores that don't convert started from a vague quote, revised upward along the way, where trade-offs got made on speed, custom work or brand identity to stay within the initial budget. The symptom: a measurable gap between the quoted price and the final invoice.

A price fixed from the start, on a clear scope defined after a discovery call, avoids those silent trade-offs on speed, custom work or brand identity, the kind that end up costing sales every month. For an honest picture of real budgets, see the guide on Shopify site pricing.

What do we fix at Sonho, and what's the next step?

We rebuild Shopify stores from code, not from a theme: no pile-up of unnecessary apps, a brand identity defined before development starts, a checkout flow designed for mobile. One team, one point of contact follows the project from the first call to launch, for a price fixed after the discovery call between €8,000 and €25,000 excl. VAT, on a fixed timeline of 6 to 10 weeks.

The results show up afterward: Bleu Mon Jules saw orders grow 28% after a redesign like this (see), Yade Paris gained 38% in average order value over 6 months (see), Grillé multiplied sales by 3 with +60% average order value on the reseller side (see). The team is trained to edit content, with a response within 48 hours for any bug. A store audit can be discussed via /contact.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to redesign an e-commerce site that isn't converting?: At Sonho, redesigning a Shopify store that isn't converting costs €8,000 to €25,000 excl. VAT depending on scope (number of sections, catalog size, languages), a price fixed after a discovery call rather than an estimate that drifts as the project goes on. That budget covers custom-built code, brand identity work when it needs reworking, and a checkout flow designed for mobile from the start. The average timeline is 6 to 10 weeks. For a full build with a catalog, content and tools built from scratch, the range moves up to €15,000 to €40,000 excl. VAT. In both cases, there's no recycled theme and no page builder: the code is written for that specific catalog, not adjusted from a generic template bought elsewhere and dressed up in the brand's colors.
How do you know if the problem is traffic or the site itself?: The most reliable signal is the gap between traffic and the conversion rate measured in your Shopify stats: if visitors keep arriving in stable numbers but the conversion rate stays low, the problem is rarely acquisition. Next, look at where visitors actually drop off. On the product page, it's often brand identity or loading speed raising questions; at checkout, it's a flow with too many steps to get through. Also compare mobile conversion rate to desktop over the same period: a clear gap points to a site made responsive rather than actually designed for mobile. This diagnosis takes about an hour and saves you from spending an ad budget that will never fix a problem sitting on the site itself, not in the campaigns.
Should you add more apps before redesigning the site?: Adding one more app to push conversion on a theme that's already slow, or an identity that's already missing, treats a symptom, not the cause. Every extra app loads a script on every page, often for a marginal gain, while the real problem sits in the foundations: a recycled theme, loading speed, a checkout flow with too many steps. A store built with custom code rarely needs more than two or three targeted apps that actually get used. Before adding one more tool, it's worth measuring where visitors actually drop off (product page, cart, checkout) and fixing that specific cause. The right instinct is often the opposite: removing apps that no longer serve a purpose before considering a full redesign of the store. A quick audit usually spots the two or three apps weighing most on speed.
Six to ten weeks for a Shopify redesign, does quality suffer?: The fixed 6 to 10 week timeline is a framework that keeps the project scope from drifting, not a shortcut on quality. Combined with a price fixed from the start, this framing avoids the silent trade-offs (speed, custom work, brand identity) that end up costing sales every month after launch. The result checks out against a concrete measure: mobile LCP, the loading time of the page's main element, needs to stay under 2.5 seconds, a threshold Google has used as a ranking signal since 2021. A shorter timeline builds neither a solid brand identity nor a reworked checkout flow: a project poorly scoped from the start often takes longer to fix afterward than to build correctly the first time, and costs more overall.
What happens if my contact at the agency isn't available later on?: At Sonho, one team follows the project from the first call to launch, which keeps communication simple during the redesign: no handoffs between departments, no new contact at each stage. After delivery, the client's team is trained to edit the site's content on their own (text, photos, colors), which reduces how dependent you are on the agency's availability for everyday needs. If a bug comes up, the response arrives within 48 hours. For bigger changes, monthly support exists starting at €800 excl. VAT per month, with no commitment. That continuity matters most in the months right after launch, when the first adjustments to the checkout flow or the content are the most useful to make fast, without waiting on uncertain availability.