Service
E-commerce websites built for how Lebanon actually buys
I build online shops in Next.js and TypeScript for businesses in Lebanon — product catalogues, stock, orders and delivery, with an admin panel your own staff can run. The difference is that they are built around how people here actually pay, which is not how the international platforms assume.
Bilal Malass builds custom e-commerce websites in Next.js and TypeScript for businesses in Lebanon, from a base in Minieh in the North. Each shop is built around local payment reality — cash on delivery, WhatsApp order confirmation, and prices shown in US dollars or Lebanese pounds — with a product catalogue, stock and order management, delivery zones, and an admin panel the owner runs without a developer. Work is available in Arabic and English.
Most e-commerce advice assumes a card is entered at checkout and the order is done. In Lebanon that is often the last step rather than the first: the customer browses, decides, and then wants to confirm with a person before any money moves. A shop that only offers a card form loses that customer at the exact moment they were ready to buy.
So the checkout is built to match. Cash on delivery is a first-class option rather than an afterthought, orders can be confirmed over WhatsApp with the basket already filled in, and a card gateway is added when you actually have one — not assumed. Nothing about the design treats the local way of buying as a fallback.
Prices are the other thing generic platforms get wrong here. A shop may need to show US dollars, Lebanese pounds, or both, and the rate is yours to set rather than pulled from an API that does not reflect what you actually charge. That is a setting in your admin panel, not a support ticket.
Underneath, it is an ordinary well-built application: server-rendered pages so the catalogue loads fast on mobile data, product data in PostgreSQL rather than a spreadsheet, image handling that does not push a 4 MB photo down a phone connection, and structured data so your products can appear properly in search results.
And it stays yours. The code lives in a repository in your name, there is no monthly platform fee scaling with your sales, and no plugin subscription that quietly becomes essential.
What the build includes
Product catalogue with variants and stock
Categories, options like size and colour, stock counts that decrement on order, and the ability to hide something without deleting it.
Checkout that fits local payment
Cash on delivery, WhatsApp order confirmation with the basket pre-filled, and bank or transfer instructions. A card gateway is wired in when you have a merchant account.
USD and LBP pricing
Show either or both, with the rate under your control in the admin panel rather than fetched from an exchange API that does not match your shelf price.
Delivery zones and fees
Different rates for Tripoli, the North, Beirut and further, plus a free-delivery threshold if you want one.
Order management
A dashboard showing what came in, what is paid, what is out for delivery and what is done — usable on a phone, because that is where you will read it.
An admin panel you actually own
Add products, change prices, edit descriptions and publish, in Arabic or English, without calling anyone.
Search-engine groundwork
Product structured data, clean URLs, a sitemap, correct metadata and fast pages — done during the build rather than sold back to you afterwards.
How the project runs
Work out what you are actually selling
How many products, how they vary, how stock behaves, who delivers, and how you want to be paid. Most of the cost of a shop is decided here, before any code.
Agree the scope and price in writing
What is included, what is not, how many rounds of changes, and what happens after launch. You get this before work starts, not after.
Build the catalogue and admin first
The part you will use every day gets built and shown to you early, so it is shaped by your feedback rather than delivered as a surprise.
Checkout, delivery and payment
Order flow, delivery zones, confirmation messages, and whichever payment routes you actually use.
Launch, then watch it
Domain, hosting, Search Console, and a real look at how the first orders behave on real phones. Anything that trips people up gets fixed.
What it costs
I do not publish a price, because a shop with 12 products and cash on delivery and a shop with 900 products, variants and a payment gateway are not the same job, and pretending otherwise means one of us is going to be unhappy. These are the things that actually move the number:
- How many products, and whether they have variants like size or colour
- Whether stock has to be tracked, or the catalogue is simply a price list
- Which payment routes you need — cash on delivery alone is far simpler than a card gateway
- Whether delivery is one flat fee or zone-based with thresholds
- Whether the shop needs Arabic and English, or one language
- Whether product photos and descriptions exist, or need producing
- Whether you are starting fresh or moving an existing shop with live orders
Frequently asked questions
How much does an e-commerce website cost in Lebanon?
It depends on scope, and any figure quoted before the scope is known is a guess. A small catalogue with cash on delivery is a modest build; several hundred products with variants, stock, zone-based delivery and a payment gateway is a different project entirely. Tell me what you sell and how you want to be paid, and you will get a clear written estimate before any work starts — not a number that changes later.
Can customers pay cash on delivery?
Yes, and it is built as a proper option rather than a checkbox bolted on at the end. The order is recorded, you see it in the dashboard with its payment state, and you can mark it paid when the money arrives. For a lot of Lebanese businesses this is the main way orders get paid, so it is treated that way.
Do I need a payment gateway to sell online?
No. Plenty of shops here run entirely on cash on delivery and transfers, and a card gateway can be added later without rebuilding the site. Getting a merchant account in Lebanon takes time and paperwork, so it is usually better to launch and start selling than to wait for it.
Can I take orders through WhatsApp instead of a checkout form?
Yes, and often you should. The customer builds their basket on the site and confirms on WhatsApp with the order details already filled in, so nothing is retyped and nothing is lost in translation. Many buyers here want to speak to a person before paying, and this keeps that conversation instead of losing the sale to a form.
Can I show prices in dollars and Lebanese pounds?
Yes. You can display either or both, and the rate is set by you in the admin panel rather than pulled from an exchange API, because the rate you actually charge is not always the rate an API reports.
Can I add products and change prices myself?
Yes. That is the point of the admin panel. You add products, edit prices and descriptions, upload photos and publish — in Arabic or English — without paying for every small change or waiting on someone else's schedule.
I already sell on Instagram. Do I need a website too?
They do different jobs. Instagram is where people find you; a website is where they can see everything you sell at two in the morning without messaging anyone, and where Google can find you at all. The two work together — the site becomes the catalogue you link to, and orders can still finish on WhatsApp.
Let's talk about your project
Tell me what you need and you'll get a clear plan and a written estimate before any work starts.