Unbound Commerce
Custom-built native iOS & Android apps for B2C and B2B ecommerce
A Boston-area agency that hand-builds custom native iOS/Android shopping and B2B ordering apps integrated with a merchant's existing ecommerce store, on a project-fee (no revenue-share) basis rather than a self-serve app builder.
Key Details
- App type
- Custom platform
- Delivery
- Managed service
- From
- $$$
- Headquarters
- Waltham, Massachusetts, US
- Founded
- 2008
- BigCommerce Certified Partner; app distributed via the 'Apptive' cartridge on the BigCommerce App Marketplace
- Vendor claims 300+ app builds and 600+ merchants on its Mobile Presence platform since 2008 (unverified)
- Charges project-based fees with no revenue/percentage share; typical build cited at 6-8 weeks (vendor claim)
- Serves both B2C shopping apps and B2B wholesale-ordering apps (order guides, auto-submit reorders, sales-rep modules, in-app barcode scanning)
- Small team (10-49 employees per GoodFirms)
Features
- Custom native iOS and Android app design and build
- API integration with the merchant's ecommerce store
- B2C shopping apps
- B2B / wholesale purchasing apps
- Sales-rep ordering modules
- Unlimited push notifications / messaging
- In-app barcode / QR scanning
- Loyalty program integration
- Third-party search and ratings/reviews integration
- Merchant dashboard / control panel for content and push
- Ongoing app maintenance and app-store publishing
- Optional custom features (AI modules, etc.)
Tech Details
Hybrid apps: catalog/search/engagement modules built in native code (Swift, Java) served by Unbound's server-side API middleware; cart, checkout and account pages are customized versions of the merchant's ecommerce site (webview). Merchant-facing 'Mobile Presence' / 'Apptive Easy App Builder' dashboard for content and push. (Per 2019 first-party BigCommerce developer interview; not re-confirmed against current docs.)
Integrations
- BigCommerce
- Shopify
- Magento
- Optimizely
Platforms Supported
What Reviewers Say
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Fully custom, agency-built native apps rather than a templated no-code output
- No revenue/percentage share - one-time project pricing plus maintenance
- Genuine B2B/wholesale ordering support (order guides, sales-rep apps, barcode scanning)
- Long operating history (since 2008) with named enterprise-brand customers and recent (2024-2025) positive reviews
Cons
- Quote-only pricing with no public rates; higher-cost custom-build model unsuited to small budgets
- Not a self-serve builder - every app requires a discovery/build engagement (typically 6-8 weeks)
- Small vendor (10-49 staff); thin independent review footprint (single-digit review counts)
- Cart/checkout is a customized webview of the site rather than fully native; one BigCommerce reviewer reported no callback
Bottom Line
Best for: Mid-market and B2B/wholesale retailers (especially on BigCommerce) that want a bespoke, one-off native app build with no revenue share, and are willing to pay a project fee rather than use a self-serve DIY builder.