A website you own.
Built to convert.
Built to load fast, convert visitors, and stay completely in your hands, not ours, not a platform's. Built on React/Next.js or Astro (the two most widely-used web frameworks in the industry), so any developer you hire already knows how to work on it.
Most businesses end up dependent on whoever built their site.
The platform charges a monthly subscription you can't exit without losing the site entirely. The agency retains the codebase and uses ongoing maintenance as leverage. The WordPress install accumulates plugins until no one is sure what's holding it together.
None of this is disclosed upfront. It becomes apparent later, when you try to change something, move to a different provider, or hand the site to a new developer.
Our model is different
Scope agreed in writing before work begins. Code delivered to your GitHub repository. Deployed to your infrastructure. No monthly platform fee. No ongoing dependency on us for the site to keep running.
A website that looks professional is necessary. A website that converts is the actual goal.
Every page is designed around one primary action; the specific thing your visitor needs to do for your business to grow. That action is agreed at the start. The layout, the copy, the calls to action: all of it flows from that decision.
The result isn't a template that performs well in general. It's a site designed around your specific visitor, your specific offer, and the one moment that matters — when they decide to reach out.
Chris Sterkenburg, Sterk Labs“Templates and AI builders are optimised for what works in general. A conversion-led build is designed around what works for your business specifically — and that requires a technical eye, not a training dataset.”
The framework we choose determines whether a future developer can pick up your site without calling us — and whether you'll face a surprise update that breaks everything six months after launch.
We choose based on your scope and explain the decision in plain English before a line of code is written. Either way, the output is standard, documented code — any competent front-end developer can maintain, extend, or hand it to a new team without starting from scratch.
React / Next.js
For multi-page sites, contact forms, dynamic content, or anything you plan to expand over time. React and Next.js are used by millions of websites worldwide, so any competent developer can pick up and continue the work without starting from scratch.
- Pages that load fresh content without rebuilding the whole site
- Forms, bookings, and integrations that talk to other software
- Easy to add new pages or features later
- The most widely-supported web framework available
Astro
For business sites and landing pages where the priority is fast loading and clean, easy-to-maintain code. Astro-built sites are among the fastest available, because they only load what the page actually needs.
- Loads almost instantly: only the essentials reach the browser
- Simpler to update and hand to a future developer
- Ideal for service businesses, professionals, and marketing sites
- No ongoing framework updates that break things unexpectedly
Performance targets: guaranteed at delivery
Interactive elements
Accessible, standards-based components
All interactive elements (buttons, forms, menus) are built to accessibility standards, using open-source components you own outright. No proprietary software that creates an ongoing licence fee.
Images
Optimised images, every time
Every image is compressed and formatted before going live. Pages load quickly whether your visitor is on fast broadband or a mobile connection, without sacrificing visual quality.
At close of the engagement, you receive:
Your code, in your own account
Every line of code, fully documented, stored in your own GitHub account. GitHub is where developers worldwide manage their code; owning it there means any developer you ever work with already knows where to find it and how to use it.
Your hosting, on your own infrastructure
Deployed to your own infrastructure, not ours. You pay a few dollars a month to host it (or nothing on some free tiers for smaller sites), and you control it entirely. We're not in the chain.
Your domain, configured and live
Your web address, pointing to your new site, with an active security certificate. Visitors see the green padlock. You own it all.
Uptime alerts, sent directly to you
We set up automatic monitoring that checks your site every five minutes. If it goes down for any reason, you get an email before your customers notice. You own this monitoring; it runs independently of us.
A walkthrough video, so you're never left guessing
A 5–10 minute screen recording walking through your site, where your code lives, and how to make basic changes yourself. Something to refer back to, and something to hand to any future developer.
Setup documentation for whoever comes next
A plain-English guide covering how the site is structured, what it needs to run, and how to deploy an update. Written for a developer who has never seen the project, so you're never dependent on us to explain it.
We remove ourselves from the repository after you confirm receipt. The site runs without us from that point.
Which scope fits your situation?
Three build tiers. The same delivery standard, technical quality, and ownership terms across all of them. Scope and price confirmed in writing before work begins.
Presence
Going independent? Starting fresh?
One page. One conversion goal. Everything needed to present as a credible professional from day one — without a platform subscription, a retainer, or a template that looks like everyone else's.
- Conversion-led copywriting
- Brand guide (colour, type, visual direction)
- 2 revision rounds
- 30-day bug fix window
- CRM integration (HubSpot, GoHighLevel, or equivalent)
- Advanced animations and micro-interactions
- Emdash CMS — edit copy and manage content after handover without a developer
Authority
Site not converting? Locked into a platform or a developer you can't reach?
A complete business site rebuilt on a foundation you own. Every page structured to move visitors toward the one action your business needs. CRM integration included as standard.
- Conversion-led copywriting
- Brand guide (colour, type, visual direction)
- 2 revision rounds
- 30-day bug fix window
- CRM integration (HubSpot, GoHighLevel, or equivalent)
- Advanced animations and micro-interactions
- Emdash CMS — edit copy and manage content after handover without a developer
Flagship
Multiple services? Complex content? Preparing to scale or raise?
A high-quality marketing site with advanced interactions and full content control after handover. Built for established businesses and founders who need more than a brochure, and want to manage it themselves without calling a developer.
- Conversion-led copywriting
- Brand guide (colour, type, visual direction)
- 2 revision rounds
- 30-day bug fix window
- CRM integration (HubSpot, GoHighLevel, or equivalent)
- Advanced animations and micro-interactions
- Emdash CMS — edit copy and manage content after handover without a developer
Add-ons (all tiers)
| Add-on | Price | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emdash CMS integration | +$500 | Edit and manage copy after handover; included in Flagship | |
| Google Analytics setup | +$200 | Tag install + goal configuration | |
| Hotjar integration | +$200 | Heatmaps and session recording | |
| Analytics bundle (GA + Hotjar) | +$350 | Saves $50 vs separate |
Every build includes a free 30-day bug-fix window from the date of launch.
After that, you own the code outright; you can self-manage, hand it to your own developer, or take one of the optional maintenance packages below. The bug-fix window covers functional bugs, broken links, form errors, and deployment issues: what was built, not new features or changes outside the original scope.
Optional technical maintenance
Essentials
- Monthly dependency updates
- Security patch monitoring
- Uptime monitoring via Checkly
- Email support
- 1 content change per month
Growth
- Everything in Essentials
- 4 content changes per month
- Quarterly Lighthouse performance review
- Priority response
These tiers cover ongoing technical upkeep: dependency updates, security patch monitoring, and uptime alerting. Content changes and priority support are included in higher tiers. Full tier details are provided at the proposal stage; you're never locked in, and you can always manage the site independently or with your own developer.
On-demand support
Available for anything outside routine maintenance (new features, design changes, integrations), scoped and quoted when needed.
How it stacks up
Over three years, a custom build typically costs less than a platform subscription, and always gives you more control.
| Wix / Squarespace | Webflow Agency | Sterk Labs | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Code ownership | Platform owns the site | You own design assets; platform owns hosting | You own 100%: code, repo, deployment |
| Monthly cost (ongoing) | $200–$400/year, forever | $16–$74/month Webflow + agency retainer | Your own hosting (~$0–$20/month on Vercel/AWS) |
| 3-year total cost | $600–$1,200 + lost opportunity cost | $3,000–$15,000 build + $576–$2,664 ongoing | Build cost only, no platform subscription |
| Customisation ceiling | Template-limited | High within Webflow constraints | Unlimited: any feature, any integration |
| SEO ceiling | Platform-constrained | Good | Full control: Core Web Vitals optimised from build |
| Developer portability | Zero: can't extract code | Low: Webflow-specific, migration is painful | Full: any React/Next.js or Astro developer can take over |
| Post-launch lock-in | Platform dependency forever | Webflow subscription + agency relationship | None: operate independently from day one |
Ready to proceed?
Quoted upfront. Full ownership. No ongoing dependency.
A 30-minute scoping call to work out scope, timeline, and fit. If we're not right for your project, we'll say so.
Book a scoping callResponse within one business day
Straight answers
You do, from day one. Every line of code, every design asset, yours from the start. Your code goes to your own repository and the site is deployed to your own infrastructure. Your domain and hosting were always yours; we configure and point them at handoff. There is no ongoing dependency on us for the site to keep running.
Every project includes a free 30-day bug-fix window after launch: functional issues fixed at no charge. It covers what was built: broken links, form errors, layout bugs, deployment issues. It doesn't cover new features, design changes, or integrations added after launch. After that, you choose: one of our optional maintenance packages, or self-manage using your own developer. The code is standard React/Next.js or Astro, so any competent frontend developer can work on it.
Presence: ~2 weeks. Authority: ~4–5 weeks. Flagship: ~7–10 weeks. Final timeline confirmed at scoping.
You can, but you'll pay $200–$400/year indefinitely, with no ability to customise beyond templates, no code ownership, and SEO limitations baked into the platform. Over 3 years, a custom build typically costs less and always gives you more control. More importantly: you can leave whenever you want, taking everything with you.
A redesign is a visual refresh on the same technical foundation: new colours and layout, same WordPress install or website builder. A rebuild replaces the foundation: new tech stack, new performance baseline, new ownership structure. If the existing site is slow, platform-locked, or architecturally limiting, a redesign won't fix it.
The question isn't whether a site exists, it's whether it's winning business. If yours is slow, hard to update, not ranking, or simply not converting visitors into leads, the existing investment is already costing you more than a rebuild would.
Yes. Both React/Next.js and Astro are well-documented, widely-used frameworks, so any competent frontend developer can pick up the output, maintain it, and extend it. We also hand over clean documentation so whoever comes after us isn't starting from scratch.
If you start with Presence and proceed to Authority or Flagship within 90 days, the Presence fee is credited toward the total.
Three things: the free 30-day bug-fix window (functional bugs, broken links, form errors: what was built, not new scope), optional ongoing maintenance packages with defined SLAs, and the fact that you own all the code from day one. If we parted ways tomorrow, you'd have everything needed to continue independently or with another developer. No dependency, no leverage.