From Corporate Engineer to Digital Entrepreneur: My Journey with Bunnypants Studio

By Willem Nelson

When I tell people I left a 13-year career at IBM to join a company called “Bunnypants,” I usually get some interesting reactions. But that decision in 2010 has been one of the most rewarding choices of my professional life, allowing me to build something meaningful alongside my wife Lorraine while pursuing my passion for web development and digital solutions.

My Corporate Foundation

My journey began in the traditional corporate world. After studying Computer Systems Engineering, I started my career at IBM in early 1997 as a Senior Systems Engineer. For 13 years, I immersed myself in enterprise-level technology solutions, gaining invaluable experience in complex systems architecture and problem-solving. During this time, I also pursued studies in Theology at the Sovereign Grace Seminary and earned numerous certifications from IBM, Lenovo, Dell, Google, and Microsoft.

The corporate world taught me discipline, systematic thinking, and the importance of robust processes—skills that would prove invaluable in my entrepreneurial journey. However, as the years passed, I found myself increasingly drawn to the creative potential of web development and the dream of building something of my own.

The Leap of Faith

In 2010, I made the decision to leave the security of corporate life and join Lorraine at Bunnypants Studio. She had been running her graphic design studio since 2004, building it from her passion for creative work and her mission to prove that women could succeed in business while maintaining their roles as mothers and homemakers. The company name, derived from her maiden surname Haasbroek (Afrikaans for “Bunny Pants”), had already become memorable in the South African design community.

When I joined, I brought a completely different but complementary background to our portfolio. While Lorraine had the creative foundation with her studies in Graphic Design, Photography, and Interior Design, I brought the technical expertise and systematic approach from my engineering background. It was the perfect partnership—creative vision meets technical precision.

Building Our Digital Empire

Since joining Bunnypants, I’ve gradually taken over much of the day-to-day business operations, focusing on developing our staff’s skills and creating what we believe are some truly awesome online products and websites that not only look stunning but actually work. My role has evolved into being the technical architect behind our digital solutions while ensuring we maintain the highest standards of functionality and performance.

One of my proudest achievements has been the founding of BP Online Solutions, our sister company that focuses on Performance Hosting, SEO, and Search Engine Marketing. This expansion allowed us to offer comprehensive digital solutions under one roof, combining Bunnypants’ creative excellence with specialized technical services.

Our Technical Excellence

What sets us apart from our competitors isn’t just our combined 21 years of experience—it’s our approach to building robust, functional websites. We’re not a one-man freelancing operation; we’re a team of professionals with a very strong design team as well as a robust technical and administration team. This means we can create websites that look great AND function perfectly.

I’ve developed what we call our “party trick”—taking premium off-the-rack WordPress solutions and customizing them extensively, thus saving our clients both money and time. We don’t use templates; we custom design our clients’ websites from scratch based on their brand, needs, functionality, and audience. This is a crucial distinction that differentiates us from other WordPress designers who tend to buy and edit themes for customers.

Currently, I specialize in building custom Online Learning Systems and have developed an “out of the box” LMS System that can be cloned but is still 100% customizable. We’re specialists in Divi Builder, but we also work with Elementor Builder and other visual builders, always choosing the right tool for each project’s specific needs.

Our Comprehensive Service Portfolio

Technical WordPress Services

I oversee our ability to add complex web systems to our clients’ websites and configure them perfectly to suit their needs. These include Booking Systems, LMS, Community systems like BuddyBoss, eCommerce, Cart to Quote Systems, Catalogue Systems, Web Calculators, Advanced Input Forms, and more.

Our Monthly Maintenance Services include Core and Plugin Maintenance and Updates, WordPress Security, Backups and Restores. We also provide performance hosting for our clients because I have a strong belief that proper hosting is critical. Our hosting might be a bit more expensive, but it’s proper hosting that ensures optimal performance.

SEO and Digital Marketing Excellence

Through BP Online Solutions, Monthly SEO Services have become a large part of our business, and we’re exceptionally good at it. We offer Local SEO, SEO Landing Pages, SEO Updates, Keyword Tracking, and Keyword Reporting. We can do competitor analysis and comprehensive website analysis.

We also handle Google Ads Setup and reporting, though we believe that a strong advertising campaign needs to co-exist with a strong monthly SEO strategy. I’m more passionate about SEO than running ads because I believe in the long-term results it can offer our clients.

Specialized System Development

We excel in WooCommerce Store Development and can convert eCommerce stores to Quote systems or Catalogue systems where needed. We build many Cart to Quote systems for clients who have large products or products that need customization, manufacturing, or specific shipping requirements.

We’re specialists in LearnDash LMS and BuddyBoss. I can customize LearnDash extensively and integrate payment systems, subscriptions, and more. We also design and build invitation & RSVP websites, such as wedding invite sites.

One of my key strengths is fault-finding on WordPress websites that are broken and suggesting effective ways to fix them. We’ll quote clients to implement repairs or rebuilds where needed, always focusing on long-term solutions rather than quick fixes.

Our Unique Market Position

When people say we’re more expensive than other agencies in South Africa, I always explain it this way: we’re not fast food or takeout—we’re a Sunday roast or fine dining experience with a great view to enjoy. Our quality, expertise, strict procedures, balanced timelines, and experience are what clients are paying for.

Our ideal clients are startups, entrepreneurs, and any business that needs professional assistance. We have extensive experience across many different industries because we don’t like to focus on just one sector. Our client base includes industrial services companies, consultants, business and life coaches, doctors, lawyers, and businesses offering specialized services or products.

The White Label Innovation

Years into building Bunnypants, I realized how difficult it was for smaller agencies to offer comprehensive services due to factors like time restrictions, low staff numbers, and skill gaps. How do you offer all the comprehensive services your clients need while also handling your own marketing, finances, billing, and more?

My solution was to develop comprehensive white/private label design services tailored for agencies, freelancers, and marketers aiming to expand their service offerings without increasing in-house resources.

Our White Label Services Include:

• Website Development: Creation of fully functional websites and system websites that can be rebranded and delivered to your clients as your own
• WordPress Specialization: Expertise in WordPress development, including theme customization and plugin integration, Core and Plugin Maintenance, Backup and Security
• SEO & Performance Optimization: Services to improve website visibility and performance, ensuring optimal user experience

Ideal White Label Partners

Our white label services are perfect for:

• Online & Social Media Marketers who want to focus on marketing strategies while we handle the technical aspects
• Project Managers seeking temporary or permanent assistance with design jobs
• Web & Marketing Agencies looking to grow without expanding their in-house teams
• Digital Marketing Companies aiming to offer web design as part of their service offering
• Agencies or Freelancers who offer basic web design but want to expand their offerings

We carefully select our White Label Partners through a thorough vetting process, including interviews, to ensure good partnerships. All partners must agree to our terms of engagement, and we sign Non-Disclosure Agreements to protect everyone involved.

Our Remote-First Approach

All our staff work remotely—we gave up physical offices during COVID and have never returned. Our staff are very efficient and disciplined in this arrangement, which aligns perfectly with our belief that people can be successful while maintaining flexibility in their work and personal lives. This approach has actually improved our productivity and allowed us to attract top talent regardless of geographic location.

Our Track Record Speaks

The numbers tell our story. Up until the end of 2024, we’ve completed 8,244 design projects with a very high success and satisfaction rate. We’ve successfully helped 3,277 individual clients over the years. We’ve designed and built 680 custom WordPress websites and developed 482 new brands from scratch. In the past 12 months alone, we’ve built 56 custom WordPress websites.

Our customers come from everywhere in South Africa, but we currently have clients all around the world. Most of our clients use our services because of the custom high-quality work we deliver and our systematic approach to excellence in product delivery and project management.

Always Innovating, Always Learning

At Bunnypants, we’re always growing, and our staff keep up with all kinds of trends and new technology. I believe in continuous improvement and staying ahead of the curve, while never losing sight of the technical excellence that makes our solutions truly effective.

We’re always exploring the AI space when it comes to SEO and development, but I believe AI tools should be used as tools, not replacements for real humans and genuine expertise. When you contact Bunnypants for services and support, you’ll interact with real humans who understand your challenges and can provide thoughtful solutions.

The Partnership That Works

What started as my decision to leave corporate security and pursue my passion for web development has evolved into something much larger. Lorraine continues to serve as our support manager, ensuring all the wheels and gears keep turning while maintaining our quality standards. Her nurturing approach to client relationships perfectly complements my systematic approach to technical solutions.

Together, we’ve built something that proves you can have both technical excellence and genuine human connection in business. The Bunnypants name might make people smile, but it’s our systematic approach to delivering exceptional results that makes them stay.

Looking back on my journey from IBM engineer to digital entrepreneur, I can say with confidence that taking that leap of faith in 2010 was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. We’ve built not just a successful business, but a comprehensive digital solutions provider that truly makes a difference in our clients’ success online.