How we build
Hand-coded, hosted by us, and yours to take.
Every site we make is written by us, in our own code. No Squarespace, no Wix, no page builder, no template. That has real consequences — good ones and a few limits — so here they are plainly, before you book a call.
Our own code, every time
No platform, no page builder, no template.
Most small business websites are built on somebody else's platform, which means somebody else sets the rules, the monthly price, and what's possible. We don't work that way.
No monthly platform fee
You're not renting a website builder. There's no subscription that creeps up every year for software you barely touch.
Nothing we can't change
Because we wrote it, there's no "the platform won't let us do that." If you want the page to say something different, it says it.
Genuinely fast
Hand-written pages are a fraction of the weight of a builder's output. That matters for how it feels on a phone, and for how Google reads it.
It doesn't rot
There are no plugins to update and nothing to be left behind by a platform that changes direction or shuts down.
No lock-in
You own the code. All of it.
We host what we build, because that's the arrangement that works best for almost everyone. But hosting it doesn't mean holding it hostage.
The code is yours
Not licensed, not leased. If you ask for a copy of your website, you get one — no exit fee, no awkward conversation. Your domain is registered in your name the whole time, not ours.
It's 100% transferable
Because it's plain code rather than a platform's private format, it can be picked up and run by anyone — us, you, or whoever you hire in ten years. That's the thing you can't get from Wix or Squarespace.
You can host it yourself
If you'd rather run it, you can. You'll need to set up your own hosting and domain accounts, and we'll walk you through the steps rather than leaving you to work it out.
In practice, most people look at what self-hosting involves and decide they'd rather we kept handling it — it's cheaper, faster, and one less thing to think about. That's fine. The point is that it's your choice, and it stays your choice.
Being straight with you
What we don't do.
Every shop has edges. Knowing ours now saves us both a call — and if you recognise yourself on the left, we'll happily say so early rather than three weeks in.
We don't
- Build on website builders. No Squarespace, Wix, Shopify, Weebly, or GoDaddy's site builder.
- Work inside a platform we didn't build. We won't log into your Squarespace account to patch a page or wrestle a template into shape.
- Take over vibe-coded websites. If you built something by prompting an AI tool and it's now broken or half-finished, we're not the right people to inherit it.
- Resurrect a site on a retired platform. Yahoo Small Business, AOL-era hosting, and their relatives can't be brought back to life, and pretending otherwise wastes your money.
What we do instead
- Write it ourselves, so nothing about your site depends on another company's roadmap or pricing.
- Replace rather than repair. You get a new site in our code, and your existing web address points at it — so visitors and customers notice nothing but the improvement.
- Start clean. A fresh build is almost always faster and cheaper than untangling something half-finished.
- Bring your content across. The platform gets left behind; your words, images, services, and web address don't.
One thing worth saying plainly: if your current site is on Wix, Squarespace, Yahoo, or anything else on that list, you're still exactly who we work with. That's most of our clients. We just replace what you've got rather than trying to keep it alive.
Stuck with something you vibe-coded?
This one comes up constantly now. You got a site more or less working by prompting an AI tool, and then hit the wall nobody warns you about: you can't work out how to actually get it hosted, or how to get at the code so you can change something. Then it just sits there.
We won't adopt that codebase. But look at what you're actually missing — code you can get at, hosting that's handled, and the freedom to change anything. That's the whole job here. So the answer is nearly always to build it properly, and that tends to move faster than people expect, because you've already worked out exactly what you want it to say.
Still wondering
A few direct answers.
Do you build on Squarespace, Wix, or Shopify?
No. We write every site ourselves in our own code. We don't build on website builders, and we don't work inside a platform we didn't build — so we won't log into your Squarespace account to patch things up. If your site is on one of those, what we offer is a replacement, not a repair.
Do I own the website you build me?
Yes, completely. The code is yours, it's 100% transferable, and you can have a copy whenever you ask — no exit fee and no negotiation. Your domain stays registered in your name throughout.
Could I host it myself instead?
Yes. You'd need to set up your own hosting and domain accounts, and we'll walk you through the steps. Most people look at what's involved and decide they'd rather we kept handling it, which is usually cheaper and faster — but the option is genuinely open, and it stays open.
Will you fix a vibe-coded website?
No. If you vibe-coded something — built it by prompting an AI tool — and it's now broken or half-finished, we're not the right people to inherit it. We'd be starting over anyway, so we'd rather be honest about that up front than bill you to untangle it.
No cost, no pitch
Sound like the right fit?
Thirty minutes on a call. Tell us what's wrong with it, and we'll tell you straight what it would take to fix — whether that's a small repair or starting over. If it's not a fit, we'll say so.