Bunnypants: Designing Dreams & Weaving Web Wonders

Show: “Sunrise Connect”

Host: NALEDI Guests: LORRAINE NELSON & WILLEM NELSON (Founders of Bunnypants & BP Online Solutions)

(Intro music for “Sunrise Connect” fades. Studio is bright and cheerful. NALEDI, a warm and engaging host, sits opposite LORRAINE and WILLEM on comfortable chairs.)

NALEDI: Good morning, South Africa, and welcome back to “Sunrise Connect”! Today, we’re chatting with a dynamic duo whose company name is as memorable as their incredible work. They’ve been at the forefront of digital innovation for over two decades, helping businesses shine online. Please welcome Lorraine and Willem Nelson, the founders of Bunnypants Graphic & Web Design Studio and BP Online Solutions! Welcome to you both!

LORRAINE: Good morning, Naledi! Thank you for having us. It’s a pleasure to be here.

WILLEM: Morning, Naledi! Great to be here.

NALEDI: It’s wonderful to have you. Now, Lorraine, I have to start with the name – Bunnypants! It’s so distinctive. Where did that come from?

LORRAINE: (Chuckles) It certainly gets noticed! It was back in early 2004 when I launched the brand. My maiden surname is Haasbroek. In Afrikaans, “Haas” translates to Bunny, and “Broek” directly translates to Pants. So, Bunnypants it became! It’s unusual, but people don’t forget it.

NALEDI: That’s brilliant! So, Lorraine, take us back to the beginning. What was your vision when you started Bunnypants?

LORRAINE: Well, I studied Graphic Design, Photography, and Interior Design, so creativity is in my blood. My vision was twofold: obviously, to create stunning and effective design work, but also, I have a real passion for women in business. I strongly believe that moms or housewives can have incredibly successful careers while still being dedicated home keepers or mothers. That was a driving force.

NALEDI: That’s a powerful mission. And your role now has evolved, I understand?

LORRAINE: Yes, I’m currently the support manager at both Bunnypants and our sister company, BP Online Solutions. I make sure the wheels and gears keep turning smoothly and that we consistently deliver the best quality work across both businesses. And on a personal note, I also run a little hobby business called Pluk, selling Dahlia seeds I cultivate from my garden. It’s my bit of green therapy! Colleagues often joke I’m the one everyone wants to hug when they meet me – I just try to bring that warmth into our business too.

NALEDI: I can feel that warmth already! Willem, you joined Lorraine about fourteen years ago. What was your journey into Bunnypants?

WILLEM: That’s right. I studied Computer Systems Engineering and spent 13 years at IBM as a Senior Systems Engineer. I always had a dream of building and developing websites and online systems. So, in 2010, I took the leap and joined Lorraine at Bunnypants. It was a chance to combine her incredible design talent with my technical and systems background. My aim was to ensure that our websites not only look stunning but are also incredibly functional and robust.

NALEDI: A perfect synergy! And you’ve taken on a significant leadership role since then?

WILLEM: Yes, I’ve taken over the role of running the business, focusing on developing our staff’s skills, and creating awesome online products and websites. I’ve also continued learning – I studied Theology at Sovereign Grace Seminary and hold various certifications on IBM, Lenovo, Dell, Google, and Microsoft products, which helps keep our technical edge sharp.

NALEDI: Bunnypants has a reputation for being a premium agency. You have an analogy you often use to describe your service, don’t you?

LORRAINE: We do! We often say we’re not a fast-food or takeout experience. Bunnypants is more like a Sunday roast or a fine dining experience with a great view to enjoy. People might say we are more expensive than some other agencies in SA, but what you’re paying for is our quality, deep expertise, strict procedures, balanced timelines, and our 21 years of experience. We are also very transparent in our pricing and structure.

NALEDI: What would you say truly sets Bunnypants apart from competitors in this busy digital space?

WILLEM: It’s a combination of factors. Firstly, we have a very strong design team, a strong technical team, and a strong administration team. This means we can deliver on all fronts. Every client is assigned a dedicated project manager, and we have robust policies and procedures in place that protect both us and the client. We’re not a one-man freelancing company; we’re a team of professionals.

LORRAINE: And our staff are fully proficient in both English and Afrikaans, so we can help all South Africans. We’re always growing, and our team keeps up with all kinds of trends and new technology to service businesses of all sizes.

NALEDI: You cater to a very diverse clientele, don’t you? Who is your ideal client, and where are they based?

LORRAINE: Our ideal client is really any startup, entrepreneur, or existing business that needs assistance. We have extensive experience across many different industries because we don’t like to focus on just one. Many of our clients are industrial services clients, consultants, business and life coaches, doctors, and lawyers – essentially any business offering specialized services or products.

WILLEM: A large part of our client base includes businesses that offer business services and consulting, as well as products, though perhaps not so much in the direct retail space. We also assist clients overseas, not just in South Africa. Many of our overseas clients are actually South African expats working for international companies. Our portfolio is very diversified across commercial, industrial, agriculture, and even the bio-space.

NALEDI: Communication seems to be key to your approach.

WILLEM: Absolutely. We pride ourselves on being excellent communicators. We’re always promptly ready to answer clients’ questions or give updates, often even before they ask. We believe educating clients as best we can is beneficial for our business. The more clients understand what we can offer and how we do it, the more inclined they are to start a relationship with us. We even train our clients to manage their own WordPress websites, although many ask us afterwards to handle their content maintenance.

NALEDI: And like many businesses, you adapted your working model a few years ago?

LORRAINE: Yes, Bunnypants gave up its physical offices during Covid, and we’ve never returned. All our staff work remotely now. We’ve found our team to be very efficient and disciplined in this way.

NALEDI: Let’s delve into your core services. Bunnypants is renowned for custom WordPress website design. Can you elaborate on that?

WILLEM: Certainly. And this is a very important point for us: we do not use pre-bought templates. We custom design clients’ websites from scratch based on their specific brand, needs, functionality requirements, and their target audience. This really differentiates us from many WordPress designers who tend to buy and edit themes. We are specialists in the Divi Builder, but we also work extensively with Elementor Builder and other visual builders.

NALEDI: And it’s not just the look, but also complex functionalities you can integrate?

WILLEM: Exactly. We can add various web systems to clients’ websites and configure and modify them perfectly to suit the site. This includes things like Booking Systems, Learning Management Systems (LMS), community systems like BuddyBoss, full eCommerce solutions, Cart-to-Quote systems for bespoke products, Catalogue Systems, Web Calculators, Advanced Input Forms, and much more.

NALEDI: Lorraine, on the graphic design side, what do you offer?

LORRAINE: We offer comprehensive Logo & Corporate Identity Design. Clients can choose from packages, or we can provide a custom quote. We design many other items too, like presentation decks, business cards, digital brochures, and company profiles. We don’t do the printing ourselves, but we supply clients with print-ready formats. And very importantly, we give our clients the open design files of their Corporate Identity in Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop format, so they own their design files once payments are fully made. They can store them or give them to other designers if needed in the future.

NALEDI: Willem, you also mentioned WooCommerce and maintenance.

WILLEM: Yes, we do a lot of WooCommerce store development. We can also convert eCommerce stores to a Quote system or Catalogue systems where needed, which is particularly useful for clients with large products or items that need customization, specific manufacturing, or complex shipping requirements. We also offer Monthly Maintenance Services like Core WordPress and Plugin Maintenance and Updates, WordPress Security, and regular Backups and Restores. And we do fault finding on WordPress websites that are broken, suggesting ways to fix them and quoting for repairs or rebuilds.

NALEDI: You have specialist expertise in certain platforms too?

WILLEM: We do. We are specialists in LearnDash LMS and BuddyBoss. We can customize LearnDash extensively and integrate payment systems, subscriptions, and more. We also design and build invitation & RSVP websites, for example, for wedding invitations. And we design social media graphics, though we don’t manage clients’ social media accounts. We believe clients know their products and industries best for ongoing content, or we advise them to get a dedicated social media expert.

NALEDI: Willem, you also founded a sister company, BP Online Solutions. Tell us about that.

WILLEM: Yes, BP Online Solutions focuses on Performance Hosting, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), and Search Engine Marketing. We have a strong belief that proper hosting is incredibly important for website performance and security. So, our hosting is a bit more expensive, but it is proper, high-performance hosting.

NALEDI: SEO is such a buzzword, but it’s clearly a cornerstone of your services. What does BP Online Solutions offer in terms of SEO?

WILLEM: SEO is a large part of our business, and we are genuinely good at it. Our services include monthly SEO services like Local SEO – which includes Google Business Profile setup and management – creating SEO Landing Pages, ongoing SEO Updates, detailed Keyword Tracking, and Keyword Reporting. We can do competitor analysis and thoroughly analyze client websites. We also do monthly advanced SEO strategies and once-off fixes if no SEO was previously in place. We can also do performance optimization, which is technical SEO for WordPress. We’re always exploring the AI space when it comes to SEO, but we firmly believe AI tools are there to use and assist, not to replace real human expertise and strategy.

NALEDI: And Google Ads?

WILLEM: We offer Google Ads setup and reporting. We believe that a strong advertising campaign needs to co-exist with a strong monthly SEO strategy for the best results. However, we are definitely more passionate about SEO because of the sustainable, long-term results it can offer.

LORRAINE: And it’s important to note that when you contact Bunnypants or BP Online Solutions for new services or even product support, you will always interact with real humans. We believe in that personal touch.

WILLEM: We can also set up Google Analytics for clients and supply stats. For those who want to delve deeper, we can supply heatmaps of their website, create silo structures for better site architecture, and consult with clients who need professional guidance. Clients who subscribe to our Advanced SEO services also receive comprehensive reports. We also have a bit of a “party trick,” as we call it: we take premium off-the-rack WordPress solutions and customize them extensively, which saves clients money and time while still delivering a highly tailored and effective result!

NALEDI: That’s very clever! Now, you also offer something quite unique: White Label services. Can you explain that?

WILLEM: Yes, this came about when we realized how difficult it was for smaller agencies, freelancers, or even marketers to offer a comprehensive range of digital services. They might face time restrictions, have a small staff, or lack certain specialist skills. So, Bunnypants developed comprehensive white/private label design services. These are tailored for agencies, freelancers, and marketers aiming to expand their service offerings without increasing their in-house resources.

NALEDI: What kind of services fall under this White Label offering?

WILLEM: We offer Website Development, including the creation of fully functional websites and system websites that our partners can then rebrand and deliver to their clients as their own. Also, Graphic Design services to enhance their brand’s visual identity, our WordPress Specialization which covers development, theme customization, plugin integration, core and plugin maintenance, backup, and security. And finally, SEO & Performance Optimization services.

NALEDI: Who are your ideal White Label Partners?

WILLEM: Our services are perfect for Online & Social Media Marketers who want to focus on their marketing strategies while we handle the technical web aspects. Project Managers who need temporary or permanent help with design jobs or clearing design backlogs. Web & Marketing Agencies looking to grow and increase capacity without expanding their in-house team. Digital Marketing Companies aiming to offer web design as part of their services. And Agencies or Freelancers who offer basic web design but want to expand into more complex offerings.

NALEDI: Is it an open door, or do you select your partners carefully?

WILLEM: We are very careful. We don’t onboard just anyone. We follow a thorough vetting process, including interviews, to ensure the partnership is a good fit for both sides. All partners must agree to our terms of engagement before any work begins. To protect our partners, Bunnypants signs a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and strictly keeps all client and project information confidential. Our partners benefit from discounted pricing across products and services, ensuring these arrangements are profitable. They have full freedom to invoice and brand client work as they wish.

NALEDI: That sounds very secure. Is it always a completely “hidden” service?

WILLEM: Interestingly, no. Some partners openly introduce Bunnypants to their clients. While this might seem counterintuitive to a typical White Label model, we’ve found that this transparency often builds greater trust with the end clients and strengthens the agency’s credibility. These partnerships tend to be more successful and sustainable over time. But most importantly, client integrity is non-negotiable. We will never bypass a partner to quote or work directly with their clients—unless the partner themselves makes a formal handover. Your client relationships are absolutely protected with us. And, the more consistent work a White Label Partner brings, the better their pricing structure becomes over time due to volume rewards.

NALEDI: The scope of your work is truly impressive. Can you share some of the milestones Bunnypants has achieved over the years?

WILLEM: We’re very proud of what our team has accomplished. Up until the end of 2024, Bunnypants has 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 have designed and built 680 custom WordPress websites and developed 482 new brands from scratch. Just in the past 12 months alone, we’ve built 56 custom WordPress websites. Our portfolio, which is on our website, really is proof of our success.

NALEDI: Incredible numbers! And Willem, you have a particular specialization in Learning Management Systems?

WILLEM: Yes, I currently specialize in building custom Online Learning Systems. I’ve even developed an “out-of-the-box” LMS System that can be cloned but is still 100% customizable, which is a great solution for educators and corporate training.

NALEDI: It’s clear that both Bunnypants and BP Online Solutions are driven by expertise, a passion for quality, and a genuine desire to help clients succeed. Your ability to deliver custom, functional, and beautiful websites, backed by solid project management and two decades of experience, really makes you stand out.

LORRAINE: Thank you, Naledi. That’s what we strive for every day. It’s a team effort, and we have an amazing team.

WILLEM: Indeed. Our clients come from everywhere in South Africa, and as we mentioned, we have clients all around the world. Most of them use our services due to the custom high-quality work we deliver and our unwavering approach to excellence in product delivery and project management.

NALEDI: Lorraine and Willem Nelson, thank you so much for sharing the inspiring story of Bunnypants and BP Online Solutions with us on “Sunrise Connect” today. It’s been fascinating to learn about your journey and the comprehensive work you do.

LORRAINE: Thank you for having us, Naledi. It was a pleasure.

WILLEM: Thanks, Naledi. We appreciate the opportunity.

(Outro music for “Sunrise Connect” begins to play softly.)

NALEDI: And for our viewers looking to elevate their online presence, you know who to call! We’ll be right back after the break.