Mobile app development and custom web apps in Corsica
Our mobile app development work starts from a need, not a technical specification: online bookings, a customer portal, a tool for staff in the field, activity tracking. We design each custom web app around the people who will use it, build it with proven technologies and keep improving it with you. The result does what off-the-shelf software cannot do for your business.
A custom web app designed around its users
A web app runs in a browser, on a computer or a phone, with nothing to install. It can also take the form of a PWA (progressive web app): a web app that installs on your phone's home screen and behaves like a regular app. Depending on your needs, you get:
- 01
Screens built for the task
Each screen matches a real task: booking, reporting, checking, approving. Mock-ups are tried out with you before development.
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Accounts and permissions
Customer area, staff access, admin roles: everyone sees what concerns them.
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Centralised data
A secure database, exports and links with your existing tools through APIs, the interfaces that let two pieces of software exchange information.
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Real time where needed
Notifications, dashboards that update themselves, information shared instantly across several screens.
What an app can do for your business
A custom app makes sense when a task comes up often and generic tools force you into workarounds. Some typical cases:
- 01
Tourism and leisure
Slot bookings, availability management, tickets or vouchers on a phone, practical information in several languages.
- 02
Trades and service companies
Job scheduling, site reports with photos, customer signatures on a phone and reports sent automatically.
- 03
SMEs and startups
A customer portal, an internal business tool, or a first version of a digital product to test a market.
- 04
Associations and public bodies
Registrations, appointment booking, reporting issues or online procedures, accessible to everyone.
How a mobile app development project unfolds
We often recommend starting with a focused first version, sometimes called an MVP (minimum viable product): the essentials, done well and put in users' hands early, then expanded based on what they tell you.
- 01
1. Understand
Who will use the app, for what, how often and on which device? Together we set the goals, budget and timeline, and pin down the core of the need.
- 02
2. Design
User journeys, screen mock-ups and technical architecture. You approve the mock-ups before a line of code is written, so nothing gets built that will not be used.
- 03
3. Build
Step-by-step development, with regular versions you can try on your own phone. Each feature is tested before it is delivered.
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4. Launch and evolve
Go-live, support for the first users, hosting, maintenance and new features based on feedback from the field.
PWA, performance, security: what makes a good app
Tantale, a connected role-playing game we designed, is a concrete example. Three to six players gather at home: the game master pilots the ship from a console, each player uses their phone as an on-board terminal and the TV shows maps and live events. It all runs on a PWA and a Node.js server that keep every screen in sync in real time.
Hameau Vivant, a persistent social simulation in 3D that runs in the browser, with villagers driven by a large language model (a type of AI), shows how far a web app can go without installing anything.
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Easy to use
A good app makes sense without a manual. Each screen has one clear purpose, and frequent actions sit within thumb's reach.
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Fast and reliable
Short loading times, proper behaviour on a weak mobile signal, still a reality in parts of inland Corsica, and a clean recovery after a dropout.
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Secure
Encrypted connections, protected passwords, precise access rights and regular data backups.
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Accessible and GDPR-compliant
Usable by everyone, including with assistive technology, and in line with the GDPR, the EU regulation on personal data: only the data you need is collected, and it is protected.
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Built to grow
Structured, documented code using widely adopted technologies such as React, TypeScript and Node.js, so the app can grow without starting over.
Mistakes to avoid in an app project
- 01
Wanting everything in version one
An overlong feature list delays launch and inflates the budget. Feedback from early users beats assumptions.
- 02
Heading for the app stores by reflex
A native app published in the stores makes sense for some uses; for many others, a PWA does the job and avoids two separate builds.
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Forgetting the real users
An app designed without the people who will use it every day often ends up gathering dust. Involving them from the mock-up stage changes everything.
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Skipping maintenance
Operating systems, browsers and software libraries keep changing. An app left unmaintained degrades even if nobody touches it.
What drives the cost of a custom app
An app is always priced on a quote, once the need has been scoped, with hosting and maintenance set out separately. The main factors are:
- 01
Number of screens and journeys
An app that handles one precise task is not on the same scale as a platform with several types of user.
- 02
Business rules
Calculations, approvals, schedules, special cases: the complexity of how you work carries through into the build.
- 03
Integrations
Payment, maps, text messages or emails, links with your management software.
- 04
Real time and offline
Instant sync across several screens, or working without a network, calls for a more elaborate architecture.
- 05
Web, PWA or native
One codebase for every device generally costs less than two separate apps for iPhone and Android.
Hosting, maintenance and growth for your app
An app lives with its users. After go-live, we can handle hosting, for example in Docker containers, a technique that makes deployment repeatable and updates easier, along with monitoring, backups and security fixes.
Feedback from the field then shapes what comes next: a new screen, a new type of user, a link to another tool. You keep the same contact, based in Bastia, who knows your app from the inside.
Technologies and methods
- React
- Next.js
- TypeScript
- Node.js
- PWA
- Real time
- Docker
Frequently asked questions
What is a PWA, and how is it different from a regular app?
A PWA installs from the browser onto your home screen without going through an app store, opens full screen, can send notifications and can partly work offline. A native app, by contrast, is built specifically for iPhone or Android and downloaded from the App Store or Google Play.
Does my app need to be on the App Store and Google Play?
Not necessarily. Being in the stores helps people discover you and gives access to certain phone features, but it comes with publishing rules and often two separate builds. If your users already know you, through your website or your shop, a PWA is often simpler and more economical. We help you choose during planning.
Will my app work without an internet connection?
Partly, yes, if it is planned from the start. A PWA can keep the screens and data it needs, save entries made offline and sync them once the connection returns. That is particularly useful for teams working in areas with poor coverage.
Can we start with a simple version and add to it later?
That is exactly what we recommend. A first version limited to the essentials lets you check users' interest and adjust before investing further. The code is structured from the start to take on the next features.
I have an app idea but no specification. Is that a problem?
Not at all. The first step is precisely to turn your idea into a clear need: users, journeys, priority features. You explain what you want to achieve; we turn it into mock-ups and a clear, jargon-free quote.