Grizzlyware are a developer-led digital transformation agency specialising in secure, reliable and bespoke software solutions.
The team works with businesses that have outgrown off-the-shelf software or need greater flexibility from their technology. By combining software development expertise with a focus on efficiency and performance, Grizzlyware helps businesses build solutions around the way they actually operate.
As an Aero partner, the team brings this approach to ecommerce, using Aero as a foundation for building tailored online stores for retailers with complex requirements.
We spoke to the Grizzlyware team about their experience working with Aero, the challenges they faced with other ecommerce platforms and how the partnership has influenced the way they deliver ecommerce projects.
Why did you decide to partner with Aero?
Firstly, the platform is built on Laravel, a technology we already use across the majority of our projects. Combined with access to the underlying code, this gives us the flexibility and customisation capabilities we look for when building bespoke solutions.
We also liked that Aero is a modern platform without the technical debt we had experienced with some other ecommerce technologies. That gave us confidence that we could build high-quality, efficient sites for our clients.
The alignment between Aero and our own company values was another important factor. Finally, being able to deliver an MVP for a client particularly quickly demonstrated the potential of the platform for our projects.
What challenges did you experience with other ecommerce platforms?
Before adopting Aero, we primarily worked with WooCommerce and Magento, and both presented challenges from a development perspective.
With WooCommerce, the main hurdles stemmed from its dated, procedural PHP codebase, especially after the introduction of Gutenberg. The emphasis on user-friendliness seemed to neglect the developer experience, making it challenging for our team to work efficiently.
Similarly, with Magento, we faced difficulties due to the high effort required to add even simple features to websites. The unconventional architecture and complexity of the platform made it hard to understand and onboard new developers into projects. Moreover, both WooCommerce and Magento suffered from slow performance, hindering the development process.
In both cases, we observed a surplus of unnecessary code, which added complexity and made implementing changes more time-consuming than necessary. These challenges prompted us to seek a better alternative, leading us to embrace the Aero platform, which has proven to be a modern, streamlined solution for our ecommerce projects.
How has Aero improved your development process?
The fact that Aero is built on Laravel has made a significant difference to our development workflow.
Because our developers already work extensively with Laravel, onboarding team members onto Aero projects is much more straightforward. The consistency also makes it easier to transfer knowledge between different projects and applications.
We've also found setting up local development environments simpler, while Aero's licensing model contributes to a more straightforward development process overall.
Which Aero features do you find most valuable?
There are several areas of the platform that stand out to us:
Access to the code: Being able to understand and work with the underlying code gives us the transparency and flexibility needed for bespoke development.
Checkout customisation: We can adapt the checkout to meet specific requirements without replacing core functionality, making it easier to maintain as the platform evolves.
Request builder: This gives us a straightforward way to manipulate pages and tailor them to individual project requirements.
Feed builder: A useful way to create and manage product feeds without having to build this functionality from scratch.
Server-side rendering: Aero's support for SSR with Vue helps us deliver performant experiences for customers.
Wishlist functionality: The built-in wishlist package provides useful functionality without requiring additional development or third-party solutions.
Together, these features give us a strong foundation while still allowing us to customise the experience where a client's requirements demand it.
How does Aero help you deliver better results for retailers?
The flexibility and robustness of Aero has helped us propose and deliver websites with confidence knowing that we can meet virtually any client requirement, either with Aero’s support or with adaptation using the Laravel framework.
Additionally, the reliability of Aero means we can ensure timely delivery of Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) to our clients, meeting their needs efficiently and effectively.
How does Aero support your agency?
Having direct access to knowledgeable developers is particularly valuable to us. Rather than having to work through first-line support, we can get answers from people who understand the platform and can help resolve issues quickly.
Aero also provides business support and advice, which helps us when we're working with retail clients and considering how best to approach their requirements.
Has Aero helped reduce development or support costs?
Yes. The amount of time we spend supporting Aero stores is significantly lower than we experienced with Magento sites.
We've also seen benefits compared with WooCommerce. Because clients aren't able to install arbitrary plugins and potentially introduce conflicts or break functionality, there's less ongoing support required as a result of third-party additions.
How does Aero help you tackle common ecommerce challenges?
The availability of pre-built packages makes it easier for us to implement functionality without having to develop everything from scratch.
We also appreciate the thought that has gone into some of the less visible challenges retailers face. For example, Aero's handling of live stock levels helps prevent overselling during periods of high demand.
These types of considerations can make a significant difference to the reliability of an ecommerce operation, particularly for retailers dealing with busy trading periods.
What feedback have your clients given you?
The feedback has been very positive. Clients particularly appreciate the speed and intuitive nature of the websites we've built on Aero.
They've also responded well to functionality such as timed content and blocks, which gives them greater flexibility when managing their websites.
From a development perspective, we've also found that issues can be reproduced and diagnosed quickly, helping us resolve problems efficiently when they arise.
Overall, what do you value most about the partnership?
We're proud to be able to offer our clients a modern ecommerce solution backed by a dedicated UK team that we can communicate with directly when we need support.
That means we can confidently recommend a platform that we understand and believe in, which is important when we're responsible for delivering successful projects for our clients.
We also value the fact that Aero listens to agency feedback. Having the opportunity to influence package development and contribute to the evolution of the platform makes the relationship feel much more collaborative.
For us, that's an important part of what makes the partnership work.
Build your next ecommerce project with Aero
Choosing an ecommerce platform isn't just about what a retailer needs today. It needs to provide the flexibility, performance and support required as the business evolves.
Aero gives agencies like Grizzlyware a strong ecommerce foundation while leaving room for bespoke development where it's needed.
Want to see what Aero could offer your next ecommerce project?
Book a demo with Aero to explore the platform and see how it can support your agency and your retail clients.
