Insights from working with fast-growing UK consumer brands
London has become a breeding ground for ecommerce innovation — from specialty coffee and skincare to fashion, fitness, and subscription-first startups. But for every breakout success, there are dozens of brands held back by underperforming websites.
At Midori Design Studio, we’ve worked with ecommerce teams across industries, and patterns emerge quickly. Certain brands scale smoothly, while others stall at the same predictable points. Here’s what we’ve learned — and what some of the best London e-commerce brands are doing right.
1. The Best Brands Treat Their Website as a Sales Tool — Not Just a Shopfront
A beautiful homepage isn’t enough. High-performing ecommerce websites function like active salespeople — guiding, persuading, and removing friction.
Brands that succeed:
Make their value proposition clear within 5 seconds
Use conversion-driven layouts, not just “pretty” designs
Prioritise product discovery and fast checkout
Take Cowshed — their homepage immediately communicates their ethos and collections. Product pages are elegant yet performance-focused, with upsells, bundles, and seamless checkout.
Finisterre, a B Corp fashion brand, uses clear visual hierarchy, sticky navigation, and purposeful CTAs that guide users straight to bestsellers.
2. Navigation and Structure Are Everything
We regularly see ecommerce sites with strong products but confusing navigation. It doesn’t matter how good your product is — if users can’t find it easily, they’ll leave.
Common mistakes include:
Hiding bestsellers behind too many clicks
Using unclear or overly creative category names
Forgetting mobile shoppers entirely
Rapha, the London-born cycling brand, nails navigation. It’s clean, focused, and separates product categories by user intent (e.g., collections vs. performance gear).
Another example is Mast Brothers — their layout keeps chocolate discovery intuitive across both mobile and desktop.
3. Content and SEO Are Often an Afterthought (Big Mistake)
Many London-based ecommerce brands over-index on paid ads and neglect organic growth — missing out on long-term, high-margin traffic.
The brands that win:
Build optimised collection pages with search intent in mind
Create educational content that drives discovery and brand loyalty
Structure their blogs and glossary sections to support SEO clusters
Form Nutrition, for example, does this well. Their blog is tightly linked to their products, boosting authority while delivering real value to visitors.
4. Post-Purchase Experience Is Part of the Website Too
The journey doesn’t end at checkout. Your website plays a key role in retention.
Leading brands:
Offer clear post-purchase FAQs, delivery policies, and account tools
Use thoughtful thank-you pages and email flows
Ensure returns and customer service access are visible and simple
Brands like Glossier UK set high expectations with packaging and post-purchase messaging that keeps customers engaged beyond the transaction.
5. Growth-Focused Brands Measure and Adapt Weekly
Growth isn’t random — it’s measured, tested, and improved continuously.
The most successful teams:
Track add-to-cart and checkout abandonment rates in real-time
Run experiments on landing pages, offers, and navigation
Use tools like Hotjar, GA4, and custom dashboards to detect friction early
Their decision-making isn’t based on gut feel — it’s guided by data and behavioural insight.
Final Thought
In a city as competitive as London, ecommerce growth isn’t just about having a great product — it’s about execution. Brands that treat their website as a revenue engine, not just a design project, consistently outperform the rest.
At Midori Design Studio, we work with e-commerce brands that are ready to scale with clarity, performance, and long-term thinking. If that’s you, we’d love to talk.