Our innovation engine keeps CobbleWeb at the cutting-edge of ecommerce software development

Are you scared that your software engineering skills are stagnating? Doing the same stuff day in day out without learning anything new? At CobbleWeb we operate at the leading edge of ecommerce tech, which is a great way to future-proof your career.

The online marketplace model is evolving at breakneck speed, becoming increasingly integrated with advanced technology like AI, fintech, procurement funnels, IoT, etc. Innovation is therefore not a nice-to-have for us, it’s an absolute necessity. Without it, our clients will simply not be able to keep up with consumer demands and build sustainable business models. To stay ahead of competitors our engineers evaluate new technologies on a regular basis, always making sure that we offer the best possible solutions.

Modular design for component-based PaaS

The  crown jewel in our innovation engine is undoubtedly ShareWise –  a React library of modular components developed by the CobbleWeb team that can be combined in a plug-and-play fashion to build online marketplaces. Ready-to-use components, such as order management, payment processing, and product management, mean marketplace startups can get their MVPs up and running much faster and at a lower cost point.

ShareWise’s component-based architecture and open-source license also makes it highly customisable and scalable, which sets it apart from template-based ecommerce platforms like Adobe Commerce (previously Magento), CS-Cart, or Shopify.

The motivation behind ShareWise was twofold: on the one hand it makes it easier and cheaper for marketplace startups to test their initial concept, and on the other it broadens the funnel of potential clients for our custom marketplace development division. [Once a bootstrapped startup has found some traction with ShareWise it makes more sense to invest in custom iteration to establish deeper product-market fit and implement growth strategies.]

Software engineers appreciate the modular design, which allows parallel work on the smaller independent components that make up marketplace applications. For instance, one team can customise order management while another implements the payment feature. The scalable and flexible architecture also makes it easier to maintain and update. 

If this is the kind of project you would like to work on, check out our job requirements for a Senior Front-End JS Engineer

Synthetic Data

Our innovation engine is not only limited to modular design. The diverse nature of our clients’ projects drive innovation across many other areas.

Increasingly popular are our algorithms and simulations that produce synthetic data for our clients’ ecommerce platforms. By mimicking real-world user behaviour it allows them to test their business models in a faster, low-cost and risk-free environment.

Internet of Things

On the IoT front we have integrated both custom and third-party software with a wide range of hardware. 

We built a mobile application for Nestify, a property management platform, that uses geo-location (phone GPS and property co-ordinates) to automatically log the work hours of cleaners as they enter or exit a property. Property access was also automated by integrating the cleaner schedule and the booking system with KeyBox and KeyNest, which send cleaners or guests one-time codes for key lockboxes or collection points respectively.

Our client MobyPark needed to give car drivers automated access to parking spaces across various European cities. We developed a mobile app that sends drivers an access code which they can communicate to hardware-enabled entry booms via Bluetooth or manual input.

The MealMap application links participating restaurants’ point-of-sale software with a kitchen printer. This allows restaurants to track and manage food orders in real time. Features include basic analytics, discount coupons, order alerts, order status, refunds, delivery zone and time management, and editable menus. Except for evaluating suitable printer hardware options, we had to develop a React Native module to bridge the gap between React Native and the printer SDK. 

Bespoke Algorithms

Complex algorithms are behind many of the features that give our clients’ platforms an advantage over their competitors. MobyPark wanted to implement a dynamic pricing model similar to the ones airlines and hotel chains use. We  created a finely-tuned yield algorithm based on a list of variables (e.g. location, duration, availability, date and time) with complex prioritisation rules. Not only did this boost their revenue ten-fold, but it also led to their acquisition by one of Europe’s largest parking operators.

The above is just a small sample of how innovation is embedded into our work. Each client’s project will require some form of innovation, whether it is developing new software or customising and integrating third-party applications such as AI, ML, or VR.

As our longstanding client FanPass, a fast-growing event ticket marketplace, has stated:

CobbleWeb has constantly evolved in the time we’ve been working with them, adding new technology like modular React architecture and custom APIs. This has had a big impact on our value proposition.