Charles Fox Luxury E-commerce

Charles Fox Luxury E-commerce Platform (UK)

A comprehensive full-stack e-commerce solution for renowned UK jewelry and watch retailer Charles Fox, integrating inventory management systems, payment gateways, and financial services for online watch and jewelry sales.

Project Overview

Developed a comprehensive e-commerce platform for renowned UK jewelry and watch retailer Charles Fox, supporting online sales of luxury brand watches including Tag Heuer, Breitling, and Omega, as well as jewelry. The project adopted a phased implementation strategy, prioritizing watch e-commerce functionality first, with subsequent expansion to jewelry categories.

Role Division: The brand strategy and UX direction were guided by Catalyst agency. Hyperyond engineered the complete technical infrastructure — full-stack e-commerce platform, third-party system integrations (Clarity & Success, Planet Payments, Novuna), and scalable backend architecture.

Technical Challenges

Complex System Integration Requirements

Inventory Management System Integration: Real-time synchronization with Clarity & Success (C&S) inventory management system
Multi-Payment Gateway Integration: Planet Payments processing and Novuna financial services
Real-time Data Synchronization: Real-time sync of product information, inventory status, and price updates
High-end User Experience: Shopping experience meeting luxury brand standards

Solutions

Frontend E-commerce Architecture

Responsive Design: Referenced design patterns from renowned watch retailers like Laings and Brufords
Smart Navigation System: Hover-based mega menu supporting quick brand and category navigation
Product Display Pages: Professional product card layouts with filtering and sorting functionality
Shopping Cart System: Smooth add-to-cart and checkout processes

Backend System Integration

Clarity & Success API Integration:
- Product information sync: /articles endpoint to retrieve all website-marked products
- Inventory management: /articlestocks real-time inventory level monitoring
- Image management: /articleimages automatic product image synchronization
- Order processing: /addorder sales data feedback

Payment & Financial Services

Planet Payments Integration:
- Sandbox environment testing and production deployment
- Support for multiple payment methods including credit and debit cards
- Secure payment pages and Secure Fields implementation
Novuna Financial Services:
- Installment payment option integration
- Instant credit approval process
- Financial calculator embedded in product pages

Order Management System

Admin Dashboard: Store staff order management interface
Automated Notifications: Email system for order confirmations, shipping notifications, etc.
Order Status Tracking: Complete status management from order placement to shipping

Project Results

Business Value

Sales Channel Expansion: Extended from offline retail to 24/7 online sales
Inventory Efficiency Improvement: Real-time inventory sync, reducing overselling and stockouts
Customer Experience Optimization: Professional luxury shopping experience with multiple payment options
Operational Automation: Automation of order processing, inventory management, and customer notifications

Technical Achievements

Seamless System Integration: Successfully integrated three different third-party systems
High-Performance Architecture: Optimized API call performance through Sanity CMS caching
Secure Payment Processing: PCI DSS compliant payment security implementation
Scalable Design: Supports business expansion from watches to jewelry

Technology Stack

Frontend Technologies

Framework: React/Next.js
Styling: Tailwind CSS
State Management: Redux Toolkit
UI Components: Custom component library

Backend Technologies

API Development: Node.js + Express
Database: MongoDB
CMS Integration: Sanity CMS
Caching Strategy: Redis

Third-party Integrations

Inventory Management: Clarity & Success API
Payment Processing: Planet Payments (Datatrans)
Financial Services: Novuna Personal Finance
Email Services: SendGrid