Building a custom E-Commerce for a major industrialist
Parduyns
A family business in the industrial landscape of Wallonia, Parduyns offers its clients several services:
- Industrial maintenance,
- Metalwork,
- Professional equipment.
Based in Leuze-en-Hainaut and Herstal, Parduyns’ mission is to provide technical, logistical, and digital solutions to its clients to improve their productivity and ensure the uninterrupted operation of their industrial activity, while:
- controlling costs,
- reducing environmental impact,
- maximizing safety.
However, fulfilling this mission comes with its own challenges, which Caracal had the opportunity to address by providing Parduyns with its expertise.
Challenges
The challenge set by Parduyns revolved around two aspects: Technical and UX, Digital identity
Firstly, Parduyns not only offers services but also sells industrial and professional equipment.
This is where the first challenge stems from: the size of the product catalog sold by Parduyns required the development of a custom E-Commerce platform, capable of covering the entire catalog while providing a smooth and user-friendly interface.
In reality, this issue concerns all companies. Every business needs to effectively present their offerings, both visually and textually.
Addressing this effectively requires genuine expertise, hence the value of collaborating with a specialized agency like Caracal, which can rise to the challenge, no matter the domain or sector, using our methodology.
Methodology
To address these challenges, we began by analyzing the solutions already implemented by Parduyns, to understand the foundation upon which we could build and deploy our solutions.
We also collaborated with various stakeholders, including an external technical profile, which proved crucial to successfully complete the project.
Solutions
We first tackled the technical challenge, which was the most significant part of the work and the major concern for Parduyns.
For this, we developed a custom E-Commerce site that encompasses the entire product catalog. A technical solution was needed to make various elements work in tandem, starting with Parduyns’ ERP.
Specifically, using an API developed for the occasion, we connected the company’s ERP with our chosen CMS, allowing the entire catalog to be displayed on the website.
Moreover, it’s worth noting that the website comes with several types of user accounts, based on their permission level and their use of the site.
Subsequently, with the technical aspects in place, we focused on the design of the site. The design was based on the graphic charter provided by Parduyns, supplemented with strict usage rules to ensure brand consistency across all communication channels.
Impact
The impact of our work for Parduyns was twofold.
Firstly, the company now has a custom-built E-Commerce site that is technically sound. This allows Parduyns to market its entire catalog and sell its products online, while providing an excellent user experience to its clients.
Secondly, our design support improved Parduyns’ brand image and also enhanced the consistency of its communication across all channels. It’s not enough to have a technically functional site; it must also be visually appealing. However, the reverse is also true: visuals without the technical aspects don’t work either.
This is why it’s beneficial to collaborate with a specialized partner, ensuring that your website fully serves its purpose and actively contributes to your growth.
