ifolor

Challenge

Working with ifolor presented our team with several complex challenges that required careful attention. One of the main tasks was migrating the entire online shop from AEM to Shopware 6. This involved a phased migration covering eight different countries and domains—five of which included full shop integration, while three were landing pages. The migration had to be executed in such a way that the ongoing operations in the respective markets were not disrupted, ensuring that all content and structures were seamlessly transferred to the new system.

Another critical aspect was the integration of a complex infrastructure consisting of various apps and a web editor for designing photo products. These tools needed to be smoothly integrated into the new Shopware platform to meet the high demands of ifolor's customers, who expect a user-friendly and customizable experience when creating their photo products. While our team focused on the Shopware integration and technical implementation, some parts of the project, such as connecting the web editor, were handled by other specialized agencies. The collaboration between the different agencies was crucial to ensure a seamless integration of all systems.

Additionally, internationalization played a significant role, as the platform had to deliver content in multiple languages and comply with various legal frameworks. This required close coordination between translations and the legal requirements of each country to ensure that all regulations were met.

Finally, it was necessary to make specific customizations and optimizations that had been implemented in the original Adobe platform, such as special product displays and tailored sales processes. These customizations were successfully transferred to the new Shopware 6 platform to meet ifolor's high standards and specific needs.

Project Approach & Current Status

The project follows an agile project management approach, organized in sprints. Two teams – the Content Team and the Tech Team (developers) – work according to Scrum. This iterative workflow allows the teams to respond flexibly to new requirements and challenges. Through close, cross-country collaboration, efficient and coordinated implementation of the project goals is ensured. Both teams bring their expertise to the individual sprints, gradually migrating the domains from Adobe AEM to Shopware.

A key component of the approach is the structured rollout process used for each domain. Once a domain is technically migrated to Shopware, an A/B test is conducted, initially splitting the traffic between the existing system (Adobe AEM) and Shopware. The traffic is gradually increased, allowing real-time monitoring and comparison of performance, user experience, and other relevant metrics. These tests are critical to ensuring that all functions are stable and run smoothly without affecting the customer experience before fully transitioning the domain to Shopware.

The process begins with an initial traffic allocation of 10% to Shopware to perform early analyses and compare performance data with AEM. After successful testing, the traffic is increased to 50%, with continuous monitoring of all metrics, including load times, conversion rates, and user behavior. Once this phase is successfully completed, the traffic is ramped up to 100%, meaning the domain is fully operational on Shopware.

This multi-stage approach is applied to each domain to ensure a smooth transition. Currently, the Austrian domain (.at) has been fully migrated to Shopware and is running stably. The German domain (.de) is in the second phase with 50% traffic on Shopware, while the Swiss domain (.ch) is in the initial phase with 10% traffic. In parallel, preparations are underway for the next launch, which involves the Finnish (.fi) and Swedish (.se) domains. These two domains are scheduled to be migrated to Shopware in the coming sprints, and the proven A/B testing strategy will also be applied here.

This carefully orchestrated approach ensures that each domain is tested and optimized under real-world conditions before being fully transitioned to the new system. This minimizes risks and ensures that customers enjoy a seamless and optimized online experience.