A design studio for DTC brands designs how a brand looks and builds the online store where it sells straight to its customers. Two of the five below publish a price: Liquid Lemon from $9,500 and Splash Creative from $15,000.
The product is ready. The packaging is half done. The store is a default theme with a logo dropped in. Customers judge all three in the first five seconds.
We design for consumer brands too, so this list isn't ranked. Studios are in alphabetical order, us included, and nobody paid to be on it.
How we picked
A studio made the list if:
- its own site says it works with direct-to-consumer or ecommerce brands
- it offers design for the brand or the store, not only ads or media
- it builds the store as well as designing it
- it's a studio or agency, not a solo freelancer
We left out freelancers, ad-only agencies and agencies whose own sites speak only to large consumer groups. Prices, ratings and clients come from each studio's own site or Clutch profile.
The five studios at a glance
Two of the five publish a price: Liquid Lemon, from $9,500 for a launching brand's storefront, and Splash Creative, from $15,000 for brand identity or a website. Tribe, Mint Lane and Hexcode publish none.
| Studio | Based | Best for | Price signal (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hexcode (us) | Indore, India | Brand-led sites for early consumer brands | Not published |
| Liquid Lemon | Not stated on its site | Fixed-price custom stores, CPG home turf | $9,500 for a launching brand, $12,500 for an established one |
| Mint Lane | Not stated on its site | Brand, packaging and Shopify for new brands | Not published |
| Splash Creative | Englewood, NJ | Brand and website in one fixed scope | Brand from $15,000, website from $15,000, both from $30,000 |
| Tribe | Exeter, UK | Food, drink, beauty and wellness on Shopify Plus | Not published |
The numbers behind it
| Studio | Clutch | Named clients |
|---|---|---|
| Hexcode (us) | Profile, no reviews yet | Mishmash, Freebean |
| Liquid Lemon | Not checked | Olipop, Alphalete, Hero Cosmetics, Bite, Away |
| Mint Lane | Not checked | Elara, HIPPEAS, Cure Hydration, The Good Ritual |
| Splash Creative | Not checked | HUUG, Peas Love & Carrots, GenOne |
| Tribe | Not checked | Sauce Shop, Origin Coffee, Freja |
Figures from each studio's own site, checked . Where the Clutch column says "Not checked", we haven't looked at the studio's Clutch profile. Named clients are ones the studio names on its own site.
Notes on each studio
Hexcode (us)
A 15-person studio in Indore, founded in 2020, with US overlap until 1pm PT. We built Freebean's brand-led website in Framer in 4 weeks, and launched Mishmash's redesign in 8 weeks. We're not a Shopify partner, we have no Clutch reviews yet and we don't publish a price. Read the Freebean case study
Good fit if: you're an early consumer brand that wants a distinctive site and brand system, and your store setup is simple.
Not a fit if: you need subscriptions, retention email, packaging production or a Shopify Plus build. Tribe, Splash Creative or Liquid Lemon fit better.
Retail and e-commerce20% sales lift for a kids' cosmetics brand
Consumer goodsThe website that makes free coffee feel believable
Liquid Lemon
Its site calls it a Shopify design studio for DTC brands and says CPG is its home turf. It lists a fixed-scope 30-day build from $9,500 for a launching brand, and its case studies include packaging for Offline and naming, branding and packaging for Parkside, a dog nutrition brand. It names Olipop, Alphalete, Hero Cosmetics, Bite and Away, and states no location.
Good fit if: you sell a CPG product and want a fixed price and a 30-day launch.
Not a fit if: you want identity and packaging priced up front, because the published price covers the storefront build.
Mint Lane
A Shopify design studio for direct-to-consumer brands that lists branding, Shopify websites, packaging and product photography. Its enquiry form asks whether a brand is pre-launch or already launched, and it shows work for Elara, HIPPEAS, Cure Hydration and The Good Ritual. It states no location or price, and its footer is dated 2024, so confirm it's taking new projects.
Good fit if: you're pre-launch and want brand, packaging and the store from one studio.
Not a fit if: you need a stated location, time zone or price before you enquire.
Splash Creative
A founder-led studio in Englewood, NJ, started by David Herskowitz in 2010 and named Splash Creative in 2017. Its about page lists brand identity from $15,000, websites from $15,000 and brand and website from $30,000, at a fixed fee agreed in writing. Its own blog says it builds brand, Shopify stores and Klaviyo email for funded and founder-led DTC brands with roughly $1M to $50M in revenue.
Good fit if: you want brand and store from one team, on a fixed written scope.
Not a fit if: your budget is under $15,000, the lowest starting price on its page.
Tribe
An agency based in Exeter, UK, that says it works worldwide. Its site says it works with food, drink, beauty and wellness brands, and it calls itself an official Shopify Plus Partner, with Recharge, Skio and Klaviyo partner status. It shows a 52% rise in conversion rate for Sauce Shop in the first four months after launch, which is its own figure, and it publishes no price.
Good fit if: you sell food, drink, beauty or wellness products and want subscriptions and email handled with the store.
Brand first or store first?
Brand first if you have a product but no identity. Store first if the brand exists and you need to sell. Splash Creative lists brand identity from $15,000 and a website from $15,000, with both together from $30,000, while Liquid Lemon lists a storefront build from $9,500.
| What you need | What fits | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| A brand and a store, from nothing | One team for both (Splash Creative lists brand and website together from $30,000, and Mint Lane lists branding, packaging and Shopify) | Whether packaging and photography are in the price |
| A store for an existing brand | A fixed-scope build (Liquid Lemon lists 30 days, from $9,500 for a launching brand) | Work outside the list, such as email, priced separately |
| Subscriptions and retention | An agency with subscription and email partners (Tribe lists Recharge, Skio and Klaviyo partner status) | Retainer length and hours included |
| A distinctive site and a simple catalog | A design-led site build (we build in Framer, Webflow and code) | Checkout, subscription and app features you'd need to add |
Six questions to ask before you sign
- What does the price include: brand, packaging, photography, the store and email?
- Who owns the brand files and the store code after launch?
- Which apps will the store depend on, and what will they cost each month?
- How do you set up subscriptions, email flows and tracking?
- How long until launch, and what do you need from us to hold the date?
- What does support cost after launch?
Questions
How much does a design studio for a DTC brand cost?
Two of the five publish a price. Liquid Lemon charges $9,500 for a launching brand's storefront and $12,500 for an established brand, and Splash Creative lists brand identity from $15,000, a website from $15,000 and both from $30,000. Tribe, Mint Lane and Hexcode publish none.
How long does it take to launch a DTC store?
Liquid Lemon lists 30 days for its fixed-scope build. We built Freebean's site in 4 weeks and launched Mishmash in 8, which are our own figures. We didn't find a timeline on the pages we read for Splash Creative, Tribe or Mint Lane, so ask for one in writing.
Should I hire a brand studio or a Shopify agency?
A studio that does both if you're starting from nothing, and a Shopify agency if the brand already exists. Splash Creative and Mint Lane list brand and Shopify work together, Liquid Lemon lists a storefront build, and Tribe is a Shopify Plus partner that works across design, build and growth.
Do I need a Shopify Plus partner?
Only if your store needs Shopify Plus, which is Shopify's enterprise plan, so ask each studio why you would. Tribe says it's an official Shopify Plus Partner. Liquid Lemon, Splash Creative and Mint Lane don't say so on the pages we read, and we aren't a Shopify partner.
Why isn't this list ranked?
Because we're on it. Ranking a list we compete in would tell you more about us than about the studios. So it's alphabetical, with the facts we could check.
Related
Spotted something wrong? Email shabbir@hexcode.design with a link and we'll fix it.
Selling a product that needs a brand before a store?
Thirty minutes, no deck. Tell us what you sell and when it has to launch, and we'll say whether it's us, even if the answer is Tribe or Splash Creative.
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