BigCommerce Development Agency
Senior engineers building and scaling BigCommerce stores — custom Stencil themes, Catalyst headless storefronts, API integrations, and B2B Edition builds. Multi-platform agency, so the advice on BigCommerce is honest, not pushed.
Our BigCommerce development process
- Discovery. Engineer-led brief. We pull your catalogue, integrations, B2B requirements, and growth goals into a written scoping document, and decide Stencil vs Catalyst on the brief — not on whichever the agency happens to know.
- Build. Custom Stencil theme work, a Catalyst headless storefront (Next.js + React on the GraphQL Storefront API), Management API v3 integrations, B2B Edition, or multi-storefront — picked to the requirement.
- QA + UAT. Side-by-side regression on representative orders, integration replays, and a performance-budget check before any DNS swap or release to your live channel.
- Launch + support. Cutover during low-traffic hours, a monitoring window, and a scoped post-launch support period agreed in writing before the engagement closes.
What's included
- Custom Stencil theme development — bespoke design, performance tuning, and Handlebars/JS work beyond what a stock theme allows
- Catalyst headless storefronts — composable front ends on Next.js and React, powered by the BigCommerce GraphQL Storefront API
- API integrations via the Management API v3 and Storefront GraphQL — ERP, PIM, accounting, and marketing systems wired with retries and idempotency
- B2B Edition builds — company accounts, customer-specific price lists, quotes, and net terms
- Multi-storefront setups for multi-brand or multi-region merchants on one BigCommerce account
- A senior engineer on every project — no junior-only teams, no offshore sub-contracting, with written architecture briefs you own
Project timeline
Scoped per project
Project shape decides duration. A Stencil theme customisation in 2-4 weeks; a full custom theme in 6-10 weeks; a Catalyst headless build in 10-18 weeks depending on integrations and B2B scope. We confirm a window in writing once the discovery scan surfaces the real shape — quoting a fixed day-count beforehand is how scope creep starts.
FAQ
- What kind of BigCommerce development do you do?
- The full surface: custom Stencil themes, Catalyst headless storefronts, API integrations via the Management API v3 and the GraphQL Storefront API, B2B Edition builds, multi-storefront setups, and custom apps. Most engagements mix two or three of these — a custom theme plus an ERP integration, or a headless Catalyst front end with a B2B catalogue — and we scope what the brief actually needs rather than selling a single template.
- Stencil or Catalyst — which should I use?
- Stencil is BigCommerce's traditional theme framework — Handlebars templates with a CLI and local dev server, ideal when you want a fast, well-built storefront on BigCommerce's hosted front end. Catalyst is the modern composable path: a headless storefront built on Next.js and React that talks to the GraphQL Storefront API, giving you full front-end control and React tooling at the cost of more engineering. We pick based on your need for customisation, performance, and team capability — and we'll tell you when Stencil is the cheaper right answer.
- Can you build a headless BigCommerce storefront?
- Yes. Catalyst is BigCommerce's composable headless framework — Next.js and React storefront components on top of the GraphQL Storefront API, scaffolded via its CLI so we are not wiring up every ecommerce primitive from scratch. We build the storefront, connect it to your catalogue and checkout, and handle the integrations and performance work that a production headless build needs.
- Do you do BigCommerce B2B?
- Yes. BigCommerce B2B Edition adds company accounts, customer-specific price lists, quote workflows, and net payment terms, and we build against it for wholesale and trade merchants. B2B work needs care in the catalogue and pricing model, which is exactly what the discovery and UAT stages are built to de-risk.
- Should I stay on BigCommerce or move to Shopify?
- Honest answer: it depends, and because we build on both we have no reason to push you either way. If BigCommerce fits your catalogue, B2B model, and team, we'll build and grow your store on it. If you are fighting the platform, our Platform Comparisons and the BigCommerce → Shopify migration path lay out the trade-offs without spin. We'd rather scope the right platform than win a project on the wrong one.
- What does a typical BigCommerce engagement cost?
- Stencil theme customisation typically £8K-£30K; a full custom theme build £30K-£90K; a Catalyst headless build £40K-£200K depending on integrations and B2B scope. We share firm pricing in writing once the discovery scan is complete — quoting before we have seen the brief is unfair to both sides.