FÈST

Dutch innovation and quality.

In 2013, FEST Amsterdam was founded with a distinct vision: to fill the gap between the commonplace, mass-produced furniture and the luxury, high-end designer labels. Deeply anchored in European craftsmanship, particularly from The Netherlands, FEST embodies the essence of Dutch innovation and quality.

When we first embarked on this journey with FEST, a Headless approach was the best fit to cater to their extensive customization requirements. Their digital journey with us began with a headless solution, seamlessly combining Shopify's backend strength with Contentful and Gatsby's front-end agility.

Over time, the digital landscape evolved, and so did Shopify. With its continuous advancements and innovations, Shopify began offering richer native customizations that previously required a headless solution. This led FEST back to us, with an aspiration to transition from their existing Headless setup to Shopify Native.

From Headless to Native.

FÈST's online store was already ahead of the curve, showcasing their expansive furniture collection with user-friendly and standout features. Yet, behind this sophisticated interface, the internal management of content faced hurdles. The headless system, while revolutionary at its inception, became demanding for the FÈST team, particularly when it came to content customization and management.

The challenge was about refining the backend operations. While the headless setup offered flexibility, we saw an opportunity in Shopify's latest advancements and innovations. By migrating back to a native Shopify solution, they could harness the platform's core capabilities while still enjoying extensive customization. This shift allowed FÈST to benefit from a more cost-effective solution while maintaining the high standard of user experience they had come to expect.

Trust, as they say, is built over time, and FÈST's decision to reconnect with us was a testament to our longstanding and successful partnership. Together, we started a new project to build a digital platform as unique and diverse as their furniture pieces.

Bridging furniture craftsmanship with digital innovation.

Our approach began with bespoke designs. Utilizing five distinct product page templates, we tailored the website layout for each furniture type to mirror its function and design. 

We employed advanced integration techniques, incorporating metaobjects for variant information, and introducing Cylindo's 3D models to enhance both aesthetics and utility. The addition of these 3D visuals into thumbnails streamlined the content filling process.

Building on this, we introduced one of our most innovative solutions for FÈST: the custom sofa builder, right on their Shopify platform. This enables customers to design their dream sofa from the ground up. They can select specific sizes, number of elements, types of fabrics, and more. To enhance flexibility and choice, we embedded three distinct variants within this sofa builder.

With a global audience in mind, it was vital to address regional preferences. That's why, through a tailored Klaviyo integration, we segmented our approach per market territories. Such an initiative made sure cultural and regulatory aspects, like the German double opt-in, found their right place and were executed efficiently using modern serverless functions.

Yet, what's a great shopping experience without an intuitive checkout process? Our efforts in migrating checkout and scripts stood the test of intensive trials. The end result was a cart system so intuitive, it bundled elements of a made-to-order sofa as a singular, cohesive item.