First Pier is a Portland, Maine-based agency specializing in growth strategies for direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands and boutiques operating on the Shopify platform. Their core services are structured around comprehensive ecommerce management, covering development, marketing, design, and operations. In the growth and marketing space, the agency executes paid search and Google Ads campaigns alongside paid social and Meta advertising. They provide ecommerce content strategy, influencer and affiliate marketing, and specialized AI advertising and commerce discovery. Their organic growth efforts focus on search engine optimization, content creation, and answer engine optimization (AEO) designed to build sustainable acquisition channels over time. On the design front, First Pier delivers ecommerce branding and identity, UX design, and collateral design, as well as email marketing assets like Klaviyo templates. Their development and technical services include Shopify store setup, Shopify Plus optimization, and building stores with scalable architecture. They further support merchants with integration and operational services, such as Shopify POS implementation, ERP services, shipping optimization, and marketplace/feed management. The agency's strategic approach emphasizes multichannel commerce, helping brands sell across multiple platforms while utilizing data and analytics for reporting and attribution. They focus on customer retention and loyalty strategies, conversion rate optimization, and overall ecommerce marketing strategy grounded in unit economics. First Pier targets growing brands that require an integrated team to handle the complexities of AI-ready commerce and Shopify ecosystem management. They position themselves as partners in building stores that can scale, specifically focusing on creating foundations that allow for long-term growth. Their methodology centers on balancing paid acquisition with organic search and customer retention to ensure profitable, predictable revenue outcomes for their clients.
I don't like how they do business. Always y s pushing to buy more especially when your "store" is not doing well. No way for you to contact them through email or phone call. Limited hours of operation, which limits a person working 8 to 5 in a real job completely unable to contact their always busy line. I've asked for reimbursement when they have called me and to date ...nada. Shady business practices
I hired First Pier to migrate our website from SquareSpace to Shopify. I had been pretty nervous about making this move. Our eCommerce business has been growing and I was concerned about interrupting our momentum. The quality and professionalism of First Pier was top notch. I could not be more pleased. They know their stuff. Communications throughout was excellent. The project went smoothly and quickly. They took care of details that I hadn’t even thought about. I am very pleased and I highly recommend them.
We’ve spent years working with the team at First Pier, as our business has grown and evolved. They’ve guided us through many projects, including rebuilding our ecommerce website, redesigning all of our packaging materials, updating promotional and packaging materials seasonally, and refreshing our brand imagery. They are responsive, thoughtful and efficient every step of the way, always working to make sure we end up with the best result possible.
I am so impressed with the level of professionalism and creativity First Pier brought to my work. What might be seen as routine or even mundane parts of a project -- redoing headshots and updating a newsletter template -- the First Pier team executed with enthusiasm. I wouldn't hesitate to work with this team again and recommend them to anyone who will listen.
