I’m Nick, a web designer for Manchester businesses, based 45 minutes down the line in Liverpool. Bespoke web design for Manchester and Greater Manchester, on Squarespace or fully custom, and the alternative to a Manchester web design agency: one person, 250+ sites, and I build every one myself.
ManchesterM
Manchester isn’t short of web agencies, and most of the businesses that find me have already tried one, or built the site themselves. Either way they’ve ended up with a website that isn’t pulling in work.
Two recent builds: a record label that needed custom code to show off hundreds of releases, and a North West nonprofit with a lot to say and nowhere to put it. They’re part of 250+ sites I’ve built for businesses across the UK and beyond, and the best of them are in the portfolio.
Black Acre RecordsBlack Acre has been releasing genre-defying electronic music since 2007 and needed a site as bold as the label. I built it on Squarespace with custom code, including an interactive record gallery that lets you scroll through hundreds of releases and preview each one.
Social SignatureSocial Signature had loads of brilliant videos and resources and nowhere to put them. I built them a bright, simple site that holds it all and makes it easy for schools and parents to get involved.I’m Nick Croce. American roots, Liverpool postcode, and 45 minutes from Piccadilly. I studied at university in Liverpool, learned big-brand standards at a North West agency, and started Design by Ency to give businesses across the region that level of work without the agency price.
Since then I’ve built more than 250 websites for businesses in Manchester, Liverpool, across the UK and overseas: florists, law firms, health clinics, charities, gyms, startups. Squarespace made me a Circle Platinum Partner for it, their highest tier.
What you get is me. I answer the emails, I design the pages, I build the site and I fix the things. If you want to meet the person behind your website before you hire them, I’m a short train ride away and happy to make it.
Liverpool based, Manchester regular
No more costly custom code
Doctors bookable by state
A full site, built in just 2 weeks
Squarespace 7.0 to 7.1 full redesign
Built exact to wireframes
Visuals brought to life
From DIY to finished article
A cohesive brand identity & website
Whatever stage your business is at, there’s a route in. Every one is custom, every one includes the SEO foundations, and every one is done by me. Prices are on each page, and on the pricing page, so you never have to ask.
Bespoke Squarespace web design for Manchester businesses: designed around your brand and built from scratch, with ecommerce website design where you sell online. From £3,000, yours to keep.
Custom buildsGot a site that’s dated, slow or just not bringing in work? I rebuild it properly, redirect your old links, and give it a look your Manchester customers actually trust.
RedesignsThe build included, then looked after every month: updates, fixes, security and support, for one fee. For business owners who never want to log into a website again.
Managed-For-YouNot sure what’s wrong with your current site? I review it properly and send you a video walkthrough and a PDF of what to fix. The good, the bad, the ugly.
Health checkEvery build ships with the SEO basics in place from day one. Managed-For-You clients can add the quarterly SEO growth plan to keep climbing.
SEO growth planNeed a logo, graphics or the words to go on the site? Bolt them onto a build so the whole thing arrives finished, instead of being stitched together later.
Add-onsStraight answer: two ways to work with me, both with a fixed figure in writing before any work starts. No hourly rates, no surprise invoices.
Custom Squarespace build
£3,000
One-time fee, quoted per project. Designed and built around your brand, then handed over with training so you run it yourself. Yours to keep, forever.
Managed-For-You website
£150
The build is included. Then I run it for you every month: updates, fixes, security and changes on request. You tell me what you need and it’s done.
Want a number for your project? Build a ballpark in about twenty seconds, no email needed.
Build your quoteusually 3 to 6 weeks
A clear, collaborative process from start to finish. You deal with me at every stage, so nothing gets lost in translation.
Book a discovery call to talk through your vision, what the site needs to do, and whether we’re the right fit for each other.
Once we’ve agreed the scope and you’ve accepted the proposal, the build begins: custom design, layouts and features, shared with you as it takes shape.
When you’ve approved the finished website, it goes live and you get bespoke handover training, so you feel confident running it yourself.
A Manchester web design agency puts an account manager between you and whoever’s actually building the site. When you work with me you deal directly with the person doing the work: me, on every page, every call, every fix. That’s quicker, it’s cheaper, and nothing gets lost in translation.
The city is full of ambitious startups, creative studios, independent shops and professional firms, and a website has to keep up with that or it gets ignored. As a website designer working with Manchester businesses from just down the road, I know what a customer in Didsbury expects from a local shop’s website, and what a firm in Spinningfields needs to look like to be taken seriously.
I’m not going to pretend I’m in the Northern Quarter. I’m in Liverpool, 45 minutes from Piccadilly, which is close enough to meet in person whenever it helps and far enough that you get honest, no-nonsense advice rather than a sales pitch over a flat white.
Liverpool to Piccadilly, in person when it helps
Start to finish, no account managers
Squarespace Circle Platinum Partner
Whichever your business actually needs
Titles, alt text, compressed images, redirects
In writing before any work starts
“We’ve had an outstanding experience working with Nick. From day one, he brought a level of care, precision, and creativity that’s hard to find. He quickly understood what we were trying to achieve and consistently delivered high-quality work — on time, with great communication throughout. Nick doesn’t just build websites; he solves problems, adds value, and genuinely feels like part of the team. We’re genuinely thrilled with the results and look forward to working with him again. Highly recommend!”
Patrick Smith“Nick built the Waters Agency website, and I couldn’t recommend him more highly. He quickly understood what we wanted to achieve and translated it into a polished, professional site that reflects our brand brilliantly. He was creative, responsive and straightforward to work with throughout the entire process. The website has continued to run smoothly since launch, and Nick has always been helpful whenever we’ve needed support. A talented designer and a genuinely great person to work with.”
Declan Waters“Unhesitatingly recommend Nick! He absolutely knocked our project out of the park. From start to finish, he was collaborative, communicative, and incredibly knowledgeable about Squarespace. He was proactive, responsive, and genuinely invested in the project's success. We look forward to working with him again in the future.”
Jason Letteboer“Working with Nick was a great experience! He built a beautiful website for my flower business and really brought my vision to life. Nick was patient and responsive, always happy to be contacted, no matter how many questions I had. My website looks fantastic - we are very pleased with it. Since launching the new site, we have seen more people visiting and engaging with my business. Highly recommend!”
Arta LlabjaniI’m a website designer for Manchester as a whole, Greater Manchester included, not just the city centre. From the creative studios of Ancoats and the Northern Quarter to the professional firms of Spinningfields and Deansgate, and out to Salford, MediaCityUK, Didsbury, Chorlton, Fallowfield, Hulme, Stockport, Sale, Altrincham and Trafford: if you’re in the M postcodes, I’m an hour away at most. Across the wider North West, Liverpool, Chester and Preston are all on my patch, I work with London clients too, and everything else is done just as well over a video call.
The first call is free and there’s no hard sell. Book below, drop me an email, or say the word and I’ll come to Manchester.
Not covered here? Send me a message
no such thing as a silly question
It depends on who you hire. Manchester agencies typically quote £5,000 to £15,000 for a small business site, and freelancers can be anywhere from a few hundred pounds up. My custom Squarespace builds start from £3,000 for a site that’s yours to keep, or the Managed-For-You plan is from £150 a month with the build included. Every price is fixed in writing before any work starts.
No, and I’d rather say so than pretend. I’m based in Liverpool city centre, 45 minutes from Manchester Piccadilly on the train, and I work with businesses across Manchester and Greater Manchester. If meeting in person matters to you, I’ll come to you for the first chat, and at points during the project. Day to day, most clients find a video call quicker anyway.
Most custom builds take three to six weeks from the first call to launch. The biggest factor is how quickly the content comes together on your side: copy, photos and the like. If you need the words written too, the copywriting add-on takes that off your plate.
Every site I build has the SEO basics in place: page titles, image alt text, compressed images and redirects, so Google can read the site properly from day one. I’ll also point you at getting your Google Business Profile right, because for local searches that matters as much as the website. If you want to actively climb the rankings afterwards, Managed-For-You clients can add the quarterly SEO growth plan.
No. I’m a Squarespace Circle Platinum Partner, the top tier, and it’s the right choice for most Manchester small businesses because you can run it yourself afterwards. But the Managed-For-You plan is custom coded, and I build in code wherever a project genuinely needs it, so you get a web designer and web developer in one. You get whichever your business actually needs.
No. I don’t build new sites on WordPress. If you have a WordPress site that’s become slow, fiddly or expensive to maintain, I rebuild it on Squarespace, move your content across and redirect the old links, so you can update it yourself without plugins breaking.
No, and that’s the point. Website design agencies in Manchester tend to put an account manager between you and whoever builds the site, and price accordingly. I’m one designer, based in Liverpool, doing the design and the build myself for businesses across Manchester and Greater Manchester.
Yes, and it’s most of what I do. I rebuild it from the ground up rather than patching the old one, redirect your old links so nothing breaks, and move your existing content across.
Yes. If your customers come from one part of the city, the site can be written and structured for that: neighbourhood-specific copy, the right local business details, and pages set up so Google understands exactly who you serve and where.
That’s your choice. On a custom build you get bespoke handover training so you can run it yourself, and I’m at the end of an email if you get stuck. On Managed-For-You I keep running it for you: updates, fixes, security and changes on request, every month.
Fifteen minutes, no pitch. Tell me about your business and I’ll tell you honestly what your website needs, and what it would cost.
