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Birmingham is more than just the heart of the Midlands, it’s become one of the largest eCommerce hubs in the UK. Home to more than 3.5 thousand eCommerce businesses, Birmingham began building an ecosystem for eCommerce success in the early 2010’s and it continues to grow each year!
But how did we get here?
Birmingham has a strong university presence and a growing tech ecosystem that has created a skilled workforce from across many different industries.
Birmingham is centrally located within the UK and well-connected transport links make it ideal for all kinds of business logistics including eCommerce.
Birmingham has significant investment in digital infrastructure and support for startups has fuelled rapid growth in the industry.
Be it fashion, fitness, food, beauty, or homeware, brands can thrive no matter where they are based in the country thanks to the rise of online shopping.
With a strong support network for digital businesses, the number of successful Birmingham-based eCommerce businesses online continues to grow. Birmingham has become the home to some of the most exciting online brands, from globally recognised names to rising independent labels.
Lets take a look at 5 of the best Birmingham-based eCommerce sites that are leading the way with their strong brand identities, innovative customer experiences, and impressive growth.
It’s almost impossible to talk about Birmingham's eCommerce success without mentioning Gymshark, with them playing a key role in putting Birmingham on the global eCommerce map. Founded by then University student, Ben Francis, in 2013 from a garage in Bromsgrove, Gymshark has since grown to become a rapidly growing global fitness brand. Most known for their influencer marketing and strong social media presence, it's no doubt that you will have seen Gymshark pop up on your social media at some point! But behind all the social buzz is an equally strong eCommerce website.
eCommerce platform, Shopify, have made efforts to market Gymshark as one of the primary businesses to have made the successful migration from Magento to the platform, and we can see that they’re reaping the rewards.
Their sleek, easy to navigate and seamless customer experience is a key reason for why we are featuring it as one of the top eCommerce sites based in Birmingham. And Shopify’s fast to deploy interface is a major reason why they have been able to be so successful.
For a long time, the only way you could buy Gymshark’s products was through their eCommerce site, so it’s a huge part of their success. Gymsharks’s eCommerce site reflects the brands fitness-first ethos with a site that’s clean, minimalistic, and easy to shop. From the homepage, which features high-quality imagery, product launches, campaigns, and a clear brand identity, to the well organised and structured product pages it’s extremely easy for a user to navigate through the site all the way to the checkout page.
Some key standout features across Gymshark’s eCommerce site include:
Gymshark’s ability to combine visual identity with technical efficiency is what makes the site not just a storefront but a key part of the customer experience to drive users to convert.
Lingerie and loungewear brand, Lounge, was founded in 2016 by husband and wife duo Melanie and Dan Marsden and has become a key player in the global lingerie market. Not only is Lounge based in the same Solihull retail park as Gymshark, but - just like Gymshark - their eCommerce site has played a massive part in their success. Lounge’s eCommerce site is rich in lifestyle imagery to bring their focus of premium comfort and body positivity to life through a site that is both visually rich and technically seamless.
Lets deep dive into the key features across the site that has pushed them to be such a successful brand and one of the major Birmingham-based eCommerce businesses.
Lounge’s ability to blend brand identity with technical efficiency creates a site that not only looks good but converts. By combining the clean design, fast performance, and smart personalisations, Lounge has created a site that elevates the brand's sales and reflects its premium positioning.
A brand that has built a strong reputation and has an ever growing community within Birmingham is P&Co. Founded in 2013, P&Co started as a small design-focused business that has now evolved into a global lifestyle label with a huge loyal customer base. As the brand has evolved, so too has their eCommerce site, and it is now one of the biggest keys to their success. P&Co’s eCommerce site - which we built by the way - captures the essence of the brand's identity - minimalist, functional and sharp. But that's not the only key features that make the site and brand so successful.
From eCommerce best practice to accessibility and design cohesion, every element works together to guide users from browsing to checkout.
P&Co’s loyalty programme is also a huge part of the site and a key player in keeping returning and loyal customers coming back. With exclusive drops, points to earn discounts, and a tiered reward system, it encourages the user to come back and purchase again, all through a seamless and well designed rewards hub. No wonder it’s on our list of top Birmingham-Based eCommerce businesses.
Looking at successful activewear brands founded in Birmingham, ABYL stands out as a newer player. Known for their sleek, high performance and affordable products, AYBL has now grown a huge online presence. Like with others on this list, beyond a great product library, the success of AYBL as a brand lies in their eCommerce site, which combines seamless functionalities with a clean and modern aesthetic. The products are showcased at center stage across the site, and they follow a very minimalist design across the board. The muted colours and clear product imagery create a smooth and effortless shopping experience that feels premium without the premium price tag.
A clean, well-structured product page is essential for guiding the user toward the checkout, and AYBL gets it spot on. Their product pages are designed with simplicity and efficiency in mind, creating a smooth, distraction-free shopping experience that encourages conversions.
Rounding off our list of the top Birmingham-based eCommerce sites is Lifting Equipment Store (LES), a B2B wholesale store that specialises in a wide range of lifting, rigging and material handling equipment. Whilst this might not sound like the most exciting category, LES has built a highly successful site by focusing on usability, a smooth purchasing process, and clear navigation. LES is a favourite of ours to showcase as a huge B2B brand who has succeeded on Shopify, which many merchants view as a B2C-only platform. LES eCommerce site - which, just like P&Co, we built - is a masterclass of how complex functionalities can be presented in simple to understand ways. Despite the vast product catalogue, the site feels easy to navigate and user-friendly, the key to driving conversions in the B2B space.
Despite the vast product catalogue, the site feels easy to navigate and user-friendly, the key to driving conversions in the B2B space. The key features of LES's site are.
LES proves that even in the B2B space, a well-designed site with strong usability is the foundation for eCommerce success.
Birmingham’s eCommerce scene is the home to a wide range of standout and successful brands, each with unique and completely different websites to create a seamless shopping experience for their customers. The key to each of these sites is the focus that is put upon the user experience, the visual appeal, and the ease of navigation to drive the user from the landing page all the way to the checkout. These Birmingham based eCommerce brands continue to capture the attention of customers both locally and globally. It’s a true reflection of the city's adaptability and innovative spirit in the ever evolving eCommerce market.
If you’re based in Birmingham and want to build an industry leading eCommerce site to compete with the five featured here, contact us. Cake Agency is a leading Shopify plus partner, and we’d love to hear about any project you have in mind. Let’s Talk!
Olivia joined Cake as a Junior Account Executive fresh off from the oft travelled digital marketing fast track course at Birmingham City University.
Bringing with her a wealth of experience working in social media management and client facing content creation, Olivia has got stuck right into the world of eCommerce and delivering projects for our vast range of clients. Assisting in managing some of our toughest projects from ideation through to completion across the full mix of digital marketing channels, Olivia ensures that our work is to the high standard that we pride ourselves on, that our clients are happy, and that everything is finished on time.
