In The Docklight: Tradition Meets Digital Growth at Landscape World

For some businesses, the road to digital growth is as smooth as a slab of marble. For others, it comes from building a solid reputation and loyal customer base through hard graft. 

That's the story of Landscape World, a family-run paving firm on Merseyside that's created a thriving online retail store to complement their local display centre. 

In this edition of In The Dock Light, we look at how they turned tradition into online traction while staying true to their community values. 

Who are Landscape World? 

Founded by Chris Price after the sale of his family's building supplies business, Landscape World has been supplying paving products to homeowners and tradespeople since 2010. 

Their display centre in Widnes sells CE-marked, ethically sourced products carefully chosen for their performance and durability. You won't find 'end-of-line' or lower-grade stone at this local landmark – just high-quality materials such as natural stone and porcelain that customers can see and touch while they imagine their new gardens and driveways. 

Today, Chris and wife Joanne run the company with their son, who's driving the digital side into a new era. This combination of industry experience and modern thinking means Landscape World now offers customers across the North West the same expert service that made them a local institution.

As long-term sponsors of Widnes Vikings and local junior sports, Landscape World is a business built on trust first, online second. 

‍

‍

Stone, Slabs & Shopify: The Pandemic Pivot

Despite having a digital presence for years, Landscape World was always a more conventional, yard-first merchant. Homeowners and tradespeople would visit the display centre and speak to an on-site expert for help picking their paving. 

But then COVID‑19 forced the yard to close. Their digital platforms weren't robust enough to replace the lost foot traffic, so the business had to adapt. That's where Dock stepped in. 

We recommended a fresh, flexible Shopify platform to replace their existing Magento set-up. In just four weeks (built remotely, during lockdown), the site was live. 

Features such as a smart paving calculator, shipping engine, structured product options, cross-sells, and a delivery cost calculator made the new site simple, intuitive, and helped reduce abandoned carts. 

The impact was immediate. Customers could now find what they wanted quickly and complete orders with confidence.

Within a month, there was a nearly 1,400% growth in online sales and an 831% increase in conversion rates year-on-year.  (More on that here) But it wasn't just about the site. Digital ads also played a significant role in their results. 

At first, the idea of increasing online ad spend felt daunting to a traditional business like Landscape World. However, just as their customers trust them, Landscape World put their faith in Dock to deliver. 

That trust has been the backbone of our 10-year relationship. The results speak for themselves. 

Compared to 2023, conversion rates have risen by more than 80%, average order values have gone up, and mobile sales have improved dramatically – leading to 99% online growth last year and a further 65% growth so far in 2025.

With the website now in its second design phase, we expect these metrics to remain on an upward curve.

‍

Grounded Growth

Despite strong online sales, Landscape World's focus remains on providing local homeowners and tradespeople with products and services they can rely on.

The business recently opened its doors to a new eco-friendly shop and warehouse (which can be seen from the Mersey Gateway Bridge), purpose-built with smart systems and solar for a "Greener, Smarter Future". 

They're modernising without losing sight of the foundations Chris and his team laid in the yard. 

Dock added the finishing touches with a Shopify store that makes it as easy to browse online as in person. Every order that comes through their site feels like a shared win. Each improvement is another step in a pathway that keeps customers coming back to a company that exists to serve their community.  

Landscape World is proof that with the right tools and support, even the most traditional businesses can pave the way online.