AM WebLab

AM WebLab is a one-person web studio in Sliema, set up for owners who would rather talk to the designer than to an account manager. The person who plans your site is the person who builds it, and the same person looks after search engine optimisation, copywriting and advertising once it is live. That makes it a practical option for small companies, shops, holiday rental owners and professional firms on the island.

The studio is listed on VisitMalta.co.uk under IT companies in Malta and marketing agencies in Malta. Its work spans Malta and Italy, and it has built more than 50 websites for over 40 clients across more than eight years.

Who runs AM WebLab

AM WebLab is run by Andrea Mazzarella, who was born in Milan in 1989 and studied journalism and media communication at the Università Cattolica in that city. He worked with web agencies and iGaming companies as a web designer, SEO specialist and product manager before settling in Malta, where he has now lived for eight years. His core skills are WordPress, on-page SEO, lead generation and affiliate marketing.

Because the studio is independent, larger projects can be supported by two partner studios. One handles brand identity and interface design in Figma, and the other produces promotional video and photography in Malta. The client keeps a single point of contact, while each job goes to the right specialist. The working process has four steps: discovery, idea brainstorming and design concept, development, and analysis with ongoing support after launch.

The studio positions itself as a digital partner for local businesses, and its main promise is straightforward communication. Expect plain answers about what a project needs, what it will cost and how long it will take, rather than a long list of add-ons you did not ask for. That suits first-time site owners, who often want to understand each decision, and it suits experienced business owners who simply want the work done well.

Website design for local businesses

Custom design is the main service. AM WebLab builds business sites, WordPress sites and landing pages, and it publishes dedicated pages for sectors with particular needs: restaurants, law firms, short let and holiday rental owners, estate agents, and gyms and fitness studios. A booking-led operator such as the boat charter firm Adventure Cruises Malta, which is only a short walk away, is the kind of business that benefits from a clear mobile layout and a simple enquiry route.

The studio's pitch is quality work at an affordable price without cutting corners. Each site is planned around the customer journey and the business goals, and the studio aims to produce sites that explain the brand clearly and generate enquiries. If you are setting up a business and need paperwork handled as well, Accurit Accountancy is listed nearby, and CLA Malta is our featured partner for company formation and tax. One of the studio's own portfolio projects is a lead-generation site for a company formation team.

Each sector page explains what a typical customer expects. A restaurant needs menus, opening hours, allergen information and a way to request a table. A law firm needs to look credible and explain its practice areas clearly. A short let owner needs a calendar, house rules and an easy way to send a booking request. An estate agent needs property listings and a lead route, and a gym needs class information and trial sign-ups. Thinking in these terms helps the studio decide the structure of each page before any design work begins.

WordPress is the platform behind most of the brochure and corporate sites, which means the owner can edit text and images without calling a developer. The studio also builds landing pages for single campaigns, and it can redesign an existing site that has become slow, dated or hard to use on a phone.

Online shops with WooCommerce and Shopify

For e-commerce, the studio works with WooCommerce on WordPress and with Shopify. Portfolio examples include a bilingual shop selling Italian liqueurs with an age gate for alcohol, a pop art shop with product filters and a fast cart, and a jewellery store with customer accounts and a wishlist. A basic Shopify store starts from €1,200 as a one-off price, or at €129 a month plus a €299 setup fee, with maintenance and updates included and a minimum term of 12 months. These are indicative figures for a basic store, and larger catalogues or custom features receive a tailored quote.

Shopify work covers store setup, custom themes, theme customisation, payment gateway integration, app integration, search optimisation, migration from other platforms, speed work and ongoing support. For Maltese merchants, the studio configures local payment preferences, shipping to Malta and Gozo, English and Maltese content, and EU VAT settings. Most Shopify stores take two to four weeks to build, and complex custom projects take longer.

Pricing is straightforward too. The figures above are indicative for a basic store, and a written quote follows a short conversation, so there are no surprises when the project is agreed. Larger catalogues might need product import, extra languages, filters or bespoke features, and these are scoped separately.

SEO, content and advertising

Search engine optimisation is a core part of the offer, including local SEO for businesses that rely on customers in a particular area. The studio also provides copywriting and content marketing, advertising and pay per click campaigns, social media management and animated or promotional videos. Branding, logo design and UI and UX design in Figma are delivered with the partner studio.

SEO work begins with a clear, readable site structure and fast pages, and it continues with content that answers the questions customers ask. This matters most for visitor-facing firms, such as operators serving people who search for things to do in Malta, where being found on a phone in the evening decides whether the booking comes to you or to a competitor.

Copywriting is treated as part of the build rather than an afterthought. Clear service descriptions, plain-language answers to common questions and sensible headings help visitors and search engines alike, and they save the owner from filling a new site with placeholder text. Advertising and pay per click campaigns can then send traffic to pages that are ready to convert.

AI chatbots and AI search

AM WebLab also sets up AI assistants for websites and shops. A chatbot trained on your own pages, prices and policies answers routine questions in English and other languages around the clock, collects booking or enquiry requests and sends each lead to you by email or WhatsApp with a short summary. When a question needs a person, the assistant says so and hands over. Visitors are told they are speaking to an AI, in line with EU rules, and a person approves any AI-drafted text before it goes live.

The studio demonstrates this with a chatbot on a holiday villa site in Gozo, and the same approach suits owners of properties near the Gozo attractions or elsewhere in Malta, as outlined in our overview of the islands. A second service, known as AEO and GEO, makes services, areas and FAQs clear and machine readable so that AI tools can describe a business accurately. No result is guaranteed, because AI tools choose what to quote for themselves, but the studio tests real customer questions over time. A written quote lists exactly what is included.

Portfolio and how to start

The portfolio shows e-commerce, hospitality, industrial catalogues, corporate services, wellness, maritime consultancy and a film studio, with sites in several languages. Clients in Malta include a maritime surveyor, a filmmaker and a company formation team, while a hotel site in Italy runs in five languages.

Entrepreneurs from the UK who are weighing up a move can read our Malta relocation guide and our guide for remote workers and digital nomads before launching a venture. To start a project, use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to AM WebLab, which will reply with a free quote.