client project Taste for Audio
A niche webshop with big plans
With Tasteforaudio.com, Samuel Melief caters to lovers of unique and high-quality audio equipment.
His carefully selected range of new, pre-owned, and vintage products is designed to last, and he considers sustainability extremely important.
His great story deserved a professional webshop, and we were allowed to create it.
The assignment
"I'm not a dealer, I'm an entrepreneur," says Samuel. "That's why, in addition to selling on Marktplaats, I also wanted a good webshop that exudes trust. I did extensive research into which platform would work best and then made a list of ten webshop builders that appealed to me," Samuel says. "I was looking for a company that was affordable but not standard."
"Then I narrowed it down to 3 companies and made the decision. I called Rosanne and was immediately enthusiastic. She is super good at communication, is clear, and listens well. She asked critical questions about things I hadn't immediately thought of myself. And they also clearly indicate what is included in the quote and what is not, so what you still have to do yourself."
"Buro Staal is really super good at communication. Rosanne thinks along as an entrepreneur, and Tim and Rick are technically strong and like to get things done."
Samuel Melief
The situation
Taste for Audio was registered with the Chamber of Commerce in 2021. In 2023, Samuel rented his first building. Now there is a showroom and storage in one. Due to this growth, in combination with his plans for the future, there was a need for a professional webshop.
"I sell high-end products, and the shop had to reflect that as well. Even though even the big audio dealers sell via Marktplaats, that doesn't reflect what I stand for at all, namely quality and sustainability. And I want people to know that I am a reliable entrepreneur. I am also quite ambitious."
The goal
"You also can't go international with Marktplaats. Now I can. I also translated the webshop directly into English. This means you have to do everything twice, but I am already getting most of my purchases from abroad. In the future, I will also sell to America. Dutch customers usually look in the webshop first and then come to the showroom."
Another good reason to have your own webshop made is that you can start working with gift cards, marketing becomes easier, and you are not dependent on other platforms. "Marktplaats changes its policy quite often," says Samuel. "I don't want to be dependent on that. Now I can make my own plans much more."
THE approach
"The communication was really pleasant, both with Rosanne, Tim, and Rick. They clearly explained what needed to be done, in what order, and who would handle it. Everyone at Buro Staal has their own expertise and input. When I sent Tim a list of points, he fixed everything in no time."
In this case, we mainly used email to communicate, along with Excel lists where we could tick everything off. We also had the occasional phone call, and that's how we delivered the entire shop in 5 months.
"Actually, it was supposed to go live a month earlier, but we still had quite a few things to sort out. It was really on me. And because it's bilingual, we had to do everything twice. I also wanted the blogs to be up and running at launch. So, I didn't make it easy on myself. But hey, I never do."
"I really don't like that modern stuff that only lasts for 5 years at most. I want people to choose quality. It's much more sustainable."
Samuel Melief
THE result
The webshop has only been live for a month at the time of writing. So, it's a bit difficult to talk about results yet. Samuel, at least, is very satisfied.
Although Samuel has every opportunity to tell us what didn't go so well, he can't really think of anything. "I'm a real perfectionist. Everything is exactly how I want it. Of course, we'll still be fine-tuning. I have a lot of plans for the future of this company, and you'll see them all reflected on the site."
We're super proud that Samuel is so happy with the result. We even received two cakes after the delivery! We love that.
We wish Samuel every success with his wonderful company and are happy to stay involved.
