I'm tearing my hair out trying to get packages like oscommerce and zen cart to look the way I want them to.
These systems should only be used as a base, by someone who is technical (PHP/MySQL developer), for developing a final professional system - no wonder they are causing you stress.
I've decided to take the plunge and have one built, but I don't need a hosted site as I already have hosting.
It is a pity that your existing hosting is already limiting your choice of solution. It rules out hosted managed solutions, ones which might provide you with a cost effective appropriate solution with a low cost of entry. Insisting on using your existing hosting might also rule out half of the possible solutions available (e.g. if you have linux hosting with PHP/MySQL it will rule out Windows hosted solutions using ASP.NET). Even if you opt for a PHP/MySQL solution your hosting environment may not have some PHP extensions required to implement the ecommerce effectively (e.g. GD graphic extensions for auto-thumbnailing).
You shouldn't let your existing hosting dictate your solution for your business. You should select the best solution for your business, then choose hosting that provides the system requirements needed for the solution.
I don't know at this stage whether I should be looking at a completely bespoke site or a customised package.
If you want something different to the normal type of shop then this is a good indicator that a
bespoke or partially bespoke solution is required, which will generally be more expensive. If you don't want anything different to most online shops, then an off-the-shelf system that is customisable to a certain extent might suffice and might be more cost-effective.
I would be grateful if those who would be interested in taking this on could contact me either on here or by email, letting me know what information you need from me in order to supply a quote.
We have standard pricing for our
hosted managed ecommerce sitebuilder service, which can be seen on our website along with other information and our portfolio. Our solution uses our sitebuilder, which manages the informational side of the website (and is used for non-ecommerce websites too), and our custom version of osCommerce, which provides the shop as a section of the site. Please contact me (contact details on the website) if you have any questions.