In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for success. That's why DShop, a leading Australian Home and Living Store, turned to us at Typed Development for a full digital transformation. Our objective became to migrate their entire e-commerce platform to MedusaJS, an open-source solution known for its scalability and flexibility.

This digital transformation resulted in a significant boost in sales, optimized shipping processes, and a future-proof platform ready to grow with DShop's ambitions.

Dshop's need for a modern solution

DShop had been experiencing rapid growth, but their existing e-commerce platform was beginning to show its limitations. Slow load times, outdated backend infrastructure, and complex fulfilment processes were starting to impact both user experience and operational efficiency.

To remain competitive, DShop needed a new platform that was robust, customizable, and capable of handling large volumes of products and images—all while offering seamless integration capabilities. That's where Typed Development came in. We partnered with DShop to lead a full migration to MedusaJS, a powerful and flexible open-source e-commerce framework that aligns perfectly with their growth strategy.

Building and designing a scalable future

Migrating an entire e-commerce platform is no small project. The DShop migration project took place over three months and involved three dedicated teams: Data, Infrastructure, and Application. The scope consisted of migrating to a new ecomerce engine MedusaJS and new fully custom storefront tailor built to meet all the needs of dshop in order to allow them to keep growing their business for years to come. No part of the project was stock standard and we had to push the tools and technologies like we hadn't before to be able to deliver a site that would scale.

Why did we choose MedusaJS?

MedusaJS was selected for this project due to its combination of flexibility and high performance. Its modular design enabled us to develop and scale specific features without being limited by a bulky, single-structure system. This was crucial for DShop, which required custom fulfilment solutions to optimize shipping costs and speed across three warehouses.

Tools and technologies used:

• MedusaJS: As the core platform, chosen for its scalability, customization options, and strong developer support through an active online community.
• Dataforest: For data migration and ETL processes, ensuring a seamless transfer of 4,000 products and 40,000 images. Moving large amounts of data into a new system is never easy. Due to Medusa having easily customizable apis, we are able to modify the default apis to allow the data team to seamlessly import the data into Medusa.
• Nextjs 13: For frontend development, providing a fast, responsive, and intuitive user interface that enhances customer experience.
• Shippit: To build custom integrations fulfilment logic, optimizing the dispatch process from multiple warehouses. Shippits amazing speedy api allows us to quickly get quotes from multiple locations to be able to meet the businse requirements
• React email: To built amazingly pretty and engaging emails that customers love

Some of the challenges we encountered

No migration comes without challenges and hurdles. Here are some key challenges we faced—and how we managed to tackle them:

1. Data migration: Moving thousands of products and tens of thousands of images required a robust and precise approach to data migration. We engaged Dataforest to handle the extraction, transformation, and loading (ETL) processes efficiently, ensuring data integrity and minimizing downtime for both customers as well as DShop.
2. Custom integrations for fulfilment: DShop needed a way to optimize shipping from three different warehouses to offer the cheapest and fastest delivery options to customers. Using MedusaJS's modularity, we built custom integrations that allowed for real-time shipping quotations and intelligent dispatch routing. This resulted in a more efficient and customer-friendly fulfilment process - and a more cost-efficient shipping process. We had think carefully when trying to find the cheapest warehouse to dispatch an order from as there would have been total items to the power of number of warehouses that we could of arranged the distribution. We developed an algorithm that would work out the cheapest theatrical warehouse then prioitize dispatching items from that, and then use the next cheapest until all the items where allocated.
3. SEO optimization: After the migration, DShop saw a 40% boost in SEO performance and faster page load times. This was achieved through carefull optimization of frontend code and leveraging MedusaJS's ability to handle complex queries more efficiently. This was possible because Medusa allows to tightly couple the storefront to the backend and optimize data requirements. When we had custom logic that was reducing the frontend performance, we could easily move that into medusas apis to be handled server side. In some cases this we saw a 80% improvement in page load by just moving where code was executed.

DShop is ready for the future

The migration to MedusaJS has proven to be a game-changer for DShop. A 25% decrease of customer checkout time + a 40% increase in website performance

But the benefits don't stop there. DShop's new platform is not only faster and more efficient, but it's also future-ready, with the flexibility to add new features, scale operations, and continually improve customer experience whenever and however needed.

Behind the success: the power of collaboration

Successful projects are built on collaboration, and this was no different for us. We had an incredible team at Typed Development working across multiple disciplines—from data engineering to application development and infrastructure management. Special shoutout to Jake, Ashwin and Vladimir for their exceptional work and dedication.

We also want to thank the DShop team for their trust and collaboration throughout this journey. Together, we've created something truly impactful, and it's been a pleasure to see it come to life.

Insights and takeaways

Reflecting on this project, there are several insights that we believe are valuable for any business considering a major platform migration:

• Choose a flexible, scalable platforms a foundation. MedusaJS proved to be a perfect fit for DShop because of its flexibility and scalability. It allowed us to tailor solutions precisely to their needs without the constraints of bulky, single-structure system.
• Always prepare for unforeseen complexities. Large-scale migrations require meticulous planning, especially around data migration and integration. Using the right tools and having a dedicated team for each part of the process can significantly reduce risks and ensure a smoother transition.
• Keep everyone updated. Close collaboration with the client and within our teams was key to delivering a successful outcome. Regular check-ins, open communication, and a shared vision kept everyone aligned and motivated.

What's next for DShop and Typed Development?

With the new platform up and running, DShop is well-positioned to capitalize on future opportunities, enhance its customer experience further, and continue its growth trajectory. At Typed Development, we're excited to keep pushing the boundaries of what's possible with open-source platforms like MedusaJS.

For more details on this project and the challenges we faced along the way, check out our video and stay tuned for more updates from Typed Development!

Want to know how we can transform your e-commerce experience? Let's talk!