E-commerce platform (online shop + CMS)

The publisher’s existing online shop had evolved over time and was characterised by several parallel systems. Content, shop functions and editorial pages were technically separated from one another. This resulted in high maintenance costs, limited flexibility and an inconsistent user experience.

In particular, searching for standards, publications and specialist content was a key pain point for users. At the same time, demands on performance, security and scalability were increasing – driven by professional B2B customers as well as international usage.

Q3i’s role

The platform was developed in close collaboration with our partner agency, Bosbach. Bosbach took charge of project management and liaising with the client. Q3i was responsible for the technical architecture, development and integration of the solution.

Challenge

• Mapping complex product structures: standards, digital content, bundles
• High demands on search, filtering and performance
• Integration of existing systems and processes, including ERP as well as rights and licensing models
• An architecture that allows for continuous further development without the need to rebuild

Solution

We developed a modular shop architecture based on Shopware 6 in combination with TYPO3 as the leading content management system. The shop was implemented as a headless solution. This ensures that the front-end, business logic and content are clearly separated – facilitating design adjustments, performance optimisation and the integration of further systems.

Key elements of the solution:

• Shopware 6 (headless) as the commerce backend
• TYPO3 as an enterprise CMS for editorial content
• Elasticsearch for search and filtering
• Integration of existing systems (ERP, licence management) via APIs

• An improved user experience thanks to new search and navigation concepts
• Reduced maintenance and support costs thanks to the separation of the systems
• Stable performance during day-to-day and peak operations
• A platform that can be scaled to support new business models and international expansion

The combination of headless commerce, an enterprise CMS and Elasticsearch replaced the publisher’s existing, complex system landscape. Products, content and search now run on a single platform that can be extended via documented interfaces.