Commerce platform: From custom software to scalable standard solution

Starting point

sprd.net AG operated a comprehensive e-commerce platform based on a proprietary software stack for shop, order processing, and fulfillment. As the systems aged, maintenance efforts increased significantly, while introducing new features—such as additional payment methods—became very complex and time-consuming in the legacy system. Furthermore, the loss of expertise and outdated technologies made further development and operation of the platform increasingly difficult.

Challenge

sprd.net AG faced several key challenges: The high complexity and maintenance effort of the existing systems made it difficult to quickly introduce new features and adapt to market requirements. Outdated technologies and a lack of expert knowledge led to risks in ongoing operations and further development of the platform. In addition, integrating modern standard solutions into the existing infrastructure was technically demanding, especially with regard to interfaces, discount systems, and pricing logic. The goal was to modernize the system landscape without disrupting ongoing business operations, while at the same time strengthening the development organization for future requirements.

‍Solution

The shared goal was to reduce maintenance efforts and replace the existing, custom-developed software with market-standard solutions. Leading Lights supported sprd.net AG with a holistic approach that covered both technical and organizational aspects:

1.) Product Design: At the outset, a comprehensive product design was developed together with sprd.net AG, mapping the company’s specific requirements for modern e-commerce processes. The focus was on designing efficient order and payment workflows, developing flexible discount systems, and defining individual pricing logic. Through close coordination with the business units, user needs and the company’s strategic goals were translated into a future-proof product concept.

2.) Architecture & Interface Design: Based on the product design, Leading Lights developed an integration concept for connecting commercetools to the existing service landscape. Special attention was paid to shop-side integration and adjustments, for example in discount systems and pricing. In addition, other key interfaces were designed and integrated:

• Payment Provider Adyen: Integration for handling various payment methods and secure payment processing.
• Distributed Event Streaming Platform Kafka: Used as a messaging and integration platform for reliable and scalable communication between systems.
• CMS Amplience: Integrated as a content management system for flexible provision and management of media content in the shop.

3.) Technical Implementation: As part of the technical implementation, a dedicated development team was established to realize the integration of commercetools. In addition to implementing and adapting interfaces, processes for continuous development and quality assurance were established. This included the introduction of agile methods, regular reviews, and close collaboration with business units to ensure high acceptance and sustainable further development.

Result

The collaboration between Leading Lights and sprd.net AG led to the successful implementation of commercetools for order and payment processing. The system landscape was sustainably modernized and the development organization was strengthened, enabling new features and adjustments to be implemented more efficiently.