Build
Sensaria builds online shops for retailers and brands and connects them to the systems behind the sale: CRM, inventory, accounting and customer messaging. We work with Shopify and WooCommerce, build custom apps and integrations where the platform stops, and automate the messages that bring buyers back, from order confirmations to abandoned-cart reminders.
The storefront is the visible part of an online shop, and often the smaller part of the work. The rest is data flow: orders reaching the warehouse and accounting, stock and prices staying in sync, customers arriving in the CRM with their purchase history, and the right message reaching a buyer at the right moment. We build the shop and those connections as one project, because most e-commerce problems sit between systems, not on the product page.
| Platform | Fits when | Trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify | You want a hosted platform, a fast launch and a large app ecosystem | Deeper checkout customization requires Shopify Plus; payment providers other than Shopify Payments add Shopify transaction fees |
| WooCommerce | You already run WordPress or want full control of hosting and data | Plugin updates, security and performance are your responsibility |
| Custom or headless | Pricing, product configuration or B2B logic doesn’t fit a standard shop | Higher build and running cost; every feature is yours to maintain |
For most retailers a standard platform with a few well-chosen integrations is the right start. We recommend custom development where the platform genuinely stops, and we prefer a small custom app to bending a theme until it breaks.
Product data first. Variants, languages, price lists, tax categories and media are modeled before the theme, so filters, product feeds and translations all work from one clean source.
Checkout on the payment provider. Card data is handled by the platform’s payment provider, never by your servers, which keeps your PCI DSS scope small. The payment methods you can offer depend on that provider, so we confirm the combination before committing to it.
Integrations that tolerate duplicates. Platforms such as Shopify deliver webhooks at least once, so the same order event can arrive twice. We verify each webhook’s HMAC signature, record its ID and process it idempotently in a job queue with retries, so a repeated event never creates a second order in your ERP.
One owner per field. For stock, prices and customer data we decide which system is authoritative and in which direction data flows. Most sync bugs come from two systems editing the same field.
Messages based on real events. Order, shipping and account emails are transactional. Abandoned-cart, review and win-back messages are marketing: they require consent and re-check the order status right before sending, so nobody gets a reminder for a cart they already paid for.
For customer data processed in Switzerland, the revised FADP (Art. 19) requires the privacy notice to name the countries to which the data is disclosed, which matters when the shop platform and marketing tools run abroad; the GDPR has a similar duty for transfers out of the EU. Under the Swiss Unfair Competition Act (UCA Art. 3 para. 1 let. o), marketing emails and SMS sent in bulk need prior consent, correct sender identification and an easy opt-out, and EU countries set similar rules; we treat abandoned-cart reminders as marketing and ask for consent at checkout. If you sell to consumers in the EU, the European Accessibility Act has applied to e-commerce services since 28 June 2025, with an exemption for microenterprises. We build storefronts to WCAG 2.1 AA.
| Driver | Effect on effort |
|---|---|
| Catalog size and variants | Import, data cleanup and filter logic grow with the catalog. |
| Languages and markets | Each language and currency needs content, SEO and checkout testing. |
| Payments and shipping | Providers, rates and rules differ by market. |
| Integrations | ERP, inventory, CRM and accounting connections are usually the largest block. |
| Custom apps | Behavior the platform lacks needs its own development and upkeep. |
| Migration | Products, customers, orders and URLs from an old shop must be moved and checked. |
| Message flows | Each automated sequence needs copy, rules, consent handling and tests. |
After discovery we send a fixed-price proposal for a defined scope, or a phased plan that launches the shop first and adds integrations and automation in order of payback. The general cost drivers of web projects are covered in our website cost guide.
A shop produces the most useful customer data you have. We connect it to CRM and sales automation, to email and SMS automation for post-purchase flows, to chatbots that answer order questions on WhatsApp, and to accounting and logistics through API integrations. The end-to-end setup is described under e-commerce automation.
Our e-commerce work sits where platforms meet other systems. We have built a Shopify app on Remix and Polaris with 11 Shopify Flow extensions, a theme app extension, app billing and Shopify’s mandatory GDPR webhooks. It sends WhatsApp messages through a provider’s Business API, with message templates, chatbot triggers and cart recovery. We have also built a WooCommerce integration inside a WordPress plugin that turns new orders into CRM deals. Sensaria AG is based in Lugano, Switzerland, and works in English, Italian, German and French.
What's included
Shopify themes or WooCommerce builds with product pages, filters and search designed around how your customers choose, in every language you sell in.
Checkout on the platform's payment provider, so card data never touches your servers. Which methods you can offer, such as cards, TWINT or invoice, depends on the provider you choose.
Orders and customers flow into your CRM as deals and contacts with order value, products and source, so sales and service see the purchase history.
Stock, prices and order status synchronized with your inventory or ERP system, with a clear rule for which system wins when both sides change.
Order, shipping and account emails in your brand, and WhatsApp notifications through a provider's Business API where customers prefer it.
Reminder sequences based on real cart events, gated on marketing consent, with the order status re-checked before every send so buyers who already paid are never chased.
Review requests, replenishment reminders and win-back messages triggered by purchase data rather than a fixed newsletter calendar.
Orders and revenue tracked from server-side events, tracking that respects consent, and reports that tie campaigns to orders instead of sessions.
Shipping, accounting and marketing tools connected through signature-verified webhooks, and custom Shopify apps or Flow extensions where the app store has no fit.
Typical scenarios
A shop that started on a site builder now has hundreds of products and several languages. We migrate products, customers and URLs to Shopify or WooCommerce and redirect every old address.
Each new order creates or updates a CRM deal with products and value, so the sales team sees what B2B customers buy online and can follow up on repeat orders.
Order confirmations, shipping updates and cart reminders go out over WhatsApp using approved message templates, and customer questions start a chatbot flow.
When no app covers a process, such as a B2B approval step or a sync with an in-house system, we build one with its own admin screen, Flow triggers and billing.
Storefront, checkout and emails prepared for EU buyers: accessibility to WCAG 2.1 AA, consent for marketing messages and privacy notices that name every country where data is processed.
FAQ
The main factors are catalog size and variants, the number of languages and markets, payment and shipping setup, integrations with ERP, CRM and accounting, custom apps, and migration from an existing shop. Integrations are usually the largest block. We don't publish prices; after discovery we send a fixed-price proposal or a phased plan that launches the shop first and adds automation afterwards.
Shopify suits companies that want a hosted platform, a fast launch and a large app ecosystem; deeper checkout customization requires Shopify Plus, and payment providers other than Shopify Payments add Shopify transaction fees. WooCommerce suits companies already on WordPress or those that want full control of hosting and data, in exchange for looking after updates and security themselves.
Usually. Local methods such as TWINT in Switzerland or iDEAL in the Netherlands are offered by several payment providers, but availability depends on the combination of shop platform and payment provider, and on the contract you sign with the provider. We check the options for your platform in discovery and configure the checkout accordingly.
Yes. Orders, customers and stock can be synchronized through the platforms' APIs and webhooks. We decide which system owns each field, verify every incoming webhook's signature and process events idempotently, so a repeated event never creates a second order or a wrong stock level. For older systems without an API, a scheduled file exchange is a workable fallback.
Yes, with consent. In Switzerland the Unfair Competition Act (UCA Art. 3 para. 1 let. o) requires prior consent, correct sender identification and an easy way to opt out for mass advertising by email or SMS, and EU countries set similar rules. We treat abandoned-cart reminders as marketing, ask for consent at checkout, identify the sender clearly and include an opt-out in every message.
If you sell to consumers in the EU, the European Accessibility Act has applied to e-commerce services since 28 June 2025, with an exemption for microenterprises (fewer than 10 employees and annual turnover or balance sheet of no more than EUR 2 million). Swiss law currently binds mainly public bodies. We build storefronts to WCAG 2.1 AA regardless.
A shop on Shopify or WooCommerce with a custom theme, standard payments and shipping typically takes six to twelve weeks. Integrations with ERP or inventory systems, product data cleanup and migration from an old shop add time, so we often launch the shop first and add integrations in a second phase.
Yes. We have built a Shopify app on Remix and Polaris with Shopify Flow extensions, a theme app extension, app billing and Shopify's mandatory GDPR webhooks. A custom app makes sense when a workflow isn't covered by existing apps or when you need a reliable connection to an in-house system.
Technology we use
TechnologyOnline shops on Shopify or WooCommerce connected to the systems behind the sale: checkout and payments, CRM, inventory, customer messaging, abandoned-cart automation and analytics.