Applications built around your business.
Web applications, SaaS platforms, customer portals, marketplaces and operational tools - built from scratch by experienced developers, not assembled from no-code blocks.
What we build
Applications, not just websites
SaaS platforms
Multi-tenant products with proper user management, subscriptions and billing, role-based access, audit logging, and the operational tooling you need to run a real software business. We have shipped our own SaaS products - Pipeline, NM8 - and we know what the unglamorous parts of running a platform look like.
Customer portals
Private areas where your customers can log in, see their account, file requests, view documents, pay invoices, or manage their team. Branded, secure, integrated with whatever you already use for billing and identity.
Marketplaces and two-sided platforms
Buyer-seller, client-contractor, partner-network - applications where two distinct user groups transact and the platform has to handle trust, payments and dispute flows. Demanding work, and exactly the kind of thing we enjoy.
Operational web apps
The web app that runs your business day to day - job scheduling, stock control, dispatch, asset tracking, revenue management. Real-time data, role-based access, mobile-friendly screens for field staff.
How we approach it
Boring tech. Sharp execution.
We do not chase the framework of the month. Our stack is deliberately boring - proven tools that will still be supported in a decade, with strong communities and obvious best practices. That is not a limitation; it is the whole point.
Boring tech leaves the interesting work for the parts that matter: your business logic, your user experience, your operational quirks. That is where we spend the time and where the value comes from.
See Python, JavaScript and PHP for the specific stacks we work in, and our case studies for real applications we have shipped.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between application development and bespoke software?
They overlap. "Application development" tends to mean a discrete product - a web application, SaaS platform, customer portal or marketplace - that is used by named users with logins. "Bespoke software" is broader and includes internal tools, automations and data pipelines that may not have a user-facing app at all. We do both. See software development for the wider picture.
Web app, mobile app, or both?
For most business applications, a responsive web app covers 95% of needs at a fraction of the cost of native mobile. We only recommend native mobile when there is a clear reason: offline use, deep device integration, App Store distribution, or push notifications as a core feature. See mobile app development for when native makes sense.
Can users self-register or do you handle admin-managed access?
Whichever fits your model. We have built fully self-service SaaS products, admin-invitation-only platforms, multi-tenant systems with separate organisations, and hybrid models with both. Authentication and access control are something we set up properly from day one.
How do you handle scaling?
We design for the load you actually have, with sensible headroom for growth - not for hypothetical scale you may never see. Most applications run very happily on a single server for years. When traffic genuinely grows, we add a database replica, a queue, a CDN, more application servers - incrementally, as needed.
How much does application development cost?
A focused application starts around £20,000. A mid-sized platform with a handful of integrations and multiple user roles typically lands between £50,000 and £100,000. Larger SaaS products with customer portals and complex billing often run higher. We break this down in detail in our pricing post.
Got an application in mind?
Tell us what you are trying to build. We will give you a straight answer about scope, time and cost - usually within 24 hours.