Website design
Brand-led sites that load fast, read clearly and turn visitors into enquiries. Easy for your team to update.
Learn more →Digital & AI studio
We build the software your business runs on.
Websites, custom web apps, e-commerce and AI automation — designed, built and looked after by one senior team.
Recent work in
Automotive repairDevice repair & retailProperty managementConstructionHome services
10+ yearsof product management and software development behind every project
20+client websites and systems patched within two days of PHP2Shell →
0extra staff a car parts client needed to start selling online →
4 brandsrunning on one repair system we maintain →
What we do
Three ways we move your business forward.
Start with one, or let us run the whole stack. Every project is scoped, designed and engineered in-house.
01
Build & grow
Fast, beautiful websites and online stores that get found and convert.
02
Custom systems
Web applications shaped around how your team actually works.
03
AI in production
AI that's wired into your data and tools — and actually used every day.
01 — Build & grow
A website that works as hard as you do.
Design, build and search visibility handled together, so launch day is the start of growth — not the end of a project.
E-commerce
Online stores with smooth checkout, local payments and inventory synced to the rest of your business.
Learn more →SEO
Technical SEO, content and local search that bring in customers already looking for what you sell.
Learn more →02 — Custom systems
Software built around your workflow.
Off-the-shelf tools make you bend your process. We build the system that fits it — then keep improving it as you grow.
Custom web applications WEB APP
Internal tools, client portals, booking and order systems, real-time dashboards and integrations with the software you already use.
Learn more →Paperless workflows PAPERLESS
Replace paper forms, approvals and filing with digital workflows — e-signatures, document capture and a full audit trail.
Learn more →03 — AI in production
AI that leaves the demo and does the work.
Most AI projects stall after the pilot. We put engineers next to your team and ship AI into the systems you already run.
Engineers who work inside your team
For a set period our engineers work alongside your staff — what the industry calls forward deployed engineers — find where AI saves real time, and build it into your own data and tools.
- 01Map workflows and find the highest-value use cases
- 02Connect AI to your documents, databases and apps
- 03Ship to production with guardrails and monitoring
- 04Hand over, train your team and keep improving
Support that never clocks off
An AI agent that answers from your own knowledge and order data, on the channels your customers already use.
Learn more →24 / 7Instant replies, day and night
Every channelWhatsApp, web chat, email
Human handoffYour team steps in when it matters
AI DATA SECURITY
Your data stays yours
Customer records, pricing and know-how are business assets. Before we build anything, we agree with you where your data lives, so it stays under your control instead of becoming training material for AI companies. Your documents and knowledge base stay on systems you control in every setup.
- Fully localOpen-source models run on your own servers. Nothing leaves your network.
- Your own cloudModels hosted in your own cloud account, in a region you choose.
- Business API, data minimisedBusiness plans that don't train on your data, with names and other sensitive details removed before anything is sent.
From the blog
Real projects, written up properly.
What we built, what went wrong along the way, and what we learned. All posts →
PHP2Shell: how we patched our clients' servers in two days
When PHP disclosed two critical remote-code-execution flaws, we patched more than 20 client websites and systems across three servers — including ones stuck on end-of-life PHP — with a tested fallback for every change.
Read the write-up →A website that turns panel-beating enquiries into quotes
How we built a fast, search-friendly website for DW Panel & Painting on Auckland's North Shore — with a photo quote form, ten service pages and a Chinese version ready to switch on.
Read the write-up →One repair system for four retail brands
How we keep a shared repair management system running smoothly for a device repair group operating several brands in New Zealand and Australia — and make changes without breaking years of job history.
Read the write-up →How we work
Clear steps. No surprises.
A fixed price agreed up front — or, for qualifying projects, part of our fee tied to results. Either way, a working demo every couple of weeks. How pricing works →
01
Discover
We learn your business, goals and constraints, then agree scope and budget.
02
Design
Flows and screens you can click through before a line of code is written.
03
Build
Short cycles with regular demos, so you see progress and steer early.
04
Launch & grow
We ship, monitor and keep improving — support doesn't end at launch.
One team, end to endDesign, engineering and AI under one roof. No hand-offs between agencies.
Senior people on your projectThe people you meet are the people who build it.
You own everythingYour code, your data, your accounts. Always.
FAQ
Questions we hear a lot.
Something else on your mind? Ask us on a free call or email info@backbonestudios.co.nz.
How much does a project cost?
It depends on what you need. After a free call we send a fixed-price proposal, so you know the cost before any work starts. For qualifying projects, part of our fee can be tied to the results we agree on instead — see how that works.
How long does it take?
A marketing website usually takes a few weeks, depending on how ready your content is — our panel beater website took about three weeks from first commit to launch. Custom systems are planned in stages, so something useful goes live early.
Do you only work with Auckland businesses?
We're based in Auckland and happy to work on site with you here. We also work with businesses across New Zealand and in Australia, remotely.
Who owns the website or system you build?
You do. The code, data, domain and accounts are yours, and everything is documented so another team could take it over.
What happens after launch?
We look after hosting, security updates and monitoring, and keep improving what we built. For websites, we can send a traffic report with SEO recommendations every six months.
Start a project
Have something in mind?
Tell us what you need. We'll reply within one business day with next steps and a rough estimate.
Prefer to email us directly? info@backbonestudios.co.nz