About the company

Planetahuerto.es, a part of the Carrefour Group, is a prominent online retailer in Spain. Established in 2011 by brothers Pablo and Alfonso Sanchez, the company has grown to serve over 816,000 customers. It boasts a substantial catalog of more than 35,000 products across key categories, including organic supermarkets and a range of products designed for home cultivation and production. Additionally, it has accumulated 37,000 product reviews, reflecting its extensive customer engagement.

The biggest problem in the previous platform

The problem faced by PlanetaHuerto centered around their old, custom shop subsystem, which had limited functionalities. Firstly, this custom solution was not fully equipped to meet the growing needs of the business, particularly in terms of features and scalability. Secondly, there was a significant issue with the old system’s performance on mobile devices. The site operated very slowly and had problems displaying information effectively, which led to decreased user satisfaction and impaired the usability of the webshop on these devices. Lastly, the platform lacked adequate marketing support, such as product placement articles or tools for managing sales promotions and special offers, essential for driving customer engagement and boosting sales.

The main goal and the big picture of the project

The main objective for Planeta Huerto in this project was to overhaul their existing custom shop subsystem by implementing a solution based on Sylius. The primary aim was to enhance and streamline their online presence, previously hampered by the need for integrated marketing support. This transition involved migrating products and customer data from the existing custom solutions to the Sylius platform. A significant aspect of the project was effectively integrating the blog platform with the online store, recognizing the blog’s crucial role in Planeta Huerto’s marketing strategy. The client also sought to broaden the scope of their eCommerce capabilities, which included expanding shipping options, introducing new payment methods, and establishing a more user-friendly product management system. This comprehensive approach was designed to resolve existing limitations and equip Planeta Huerto with a more robust and scalable eCommerce solution, facilitating improved operational efficiency and enhanced user engagement.

Main issue and goal

Planetahuerto.es chose to collaborate with BitBag, a software house that was ready to tackle the upcoming challenges. This partnership aimed to bring innovative solutions and improvements to their online platform, addressing key areas for enhancement. The challenges they set out to address included:

• The migration of existing product and client databases from bespoke solutions to the Sylius platform, ensuring smooth transition and data integrity.
• The efficient management and scaling of a substantial inventory and customer base, emphasizing robust system performance and scalability.
• Developing and integrating a versatile „gift card” system enhances customer engagement and sales opportunities.
• Creating a dynamic product bundling feature allows for the composition of custom product packages from the existing online inventory.
• The implementation and customization of the Pimcore system, tailoring it to meet specific business requirements and workflows.
• The revision of pricing strategies with scheduled adjustments, enabling dynamic pricing models in response to market trends or promotional activities.
• Advanced product categorization, facilitating user-friendly navigation and product discovery by sorting items based on brand affiliations.
• The augmentation of product information includes „.pdf” file attachments, enriching product descriptions, and providing additional value to customers.
• The diversification of supply chain management through assigning products to varied sources affects logistics, like shipping schedules.
• Incorporating a customer review system enables product ratings and feedback to foster community engagement and inform purchasing decisions.
• The implementation of a query feature for logged-in customers, offering a direct channel for product inquiries and enhancing customer service.
• The expansion of delivery options by introducing new shipping methods, including self-pickup from the warehouse and UPS access points.
• Integrating advanced payment gateways Aplazame and Adyen broadens payment options and enhances transactional security and convenience.

Results

BitBag, through months of expert work, delivered a state-of-the-art eCommerce system to the client, adept at managing several key operational aspects:

• Marketing, by providing detailed product information,
• Streamlining the entire sales process,
• Efficiently handling shipping logistics,
• Simplifying payment processes, and effectively managing inventory stocks.

This system, designed and implemented by BitBag, transformed the client’s store, ensuring it ran smoothly on various platforms, including desktops, tablets, and smartphones. Applying these sophisticated solutions significantly boosted the customer experience, increasing efficiency and sales. The project’s success is a testament to BitBag’s proficiency and the high performance of the developed system.

To explore this case-study journey and outcomes, visit BitBag’s website.