WebSparky partnered with ecommerce agency teclan to replace its legacy SellerDeck platform with a modern online store powered by Aero.
The project focused on creating a faster, more intuitive shopping experience for trade professionals and retail customers, simplifying product discovery across an extensive electrical catalogue, and migrating essential business data with minimal disruption to trading.
With integrated delivery and payment services, a streamlined admin experience and a flexible platform for future development, the new store gives WebSparky a stronger foundation for continued growth.
The retailer
WebSparky is an established, family-run electrical wholesaler combining traditional trade counter expertise with a modern digital storefront. Founded in the late 1960s to serve electrical contractors across North West England, the business created WebSparky to make trade-quality electrical products, cables, tools and accessories available online to trade professionals, commercial installers and DIY customers across the UK.
Challenges before Aero
After experiencing ongoing difficulties with SellerDeck, the WebSparky team recognised that its existing platform was holding back growth. The business needed a modern, responsive alternative that would make it easier for customers to navigate its extensive catalogue and purchase the products they needed.
SellerDeck’s desktop-bound architecture and legacy codebase made it difficult to meet modern ecommerce demands and scale alongside a growing product catalogue. Electrical wholesaling requires detailed product information, precise specifications and layered filtering options, including amperage, voltage, IP ratings and finishes. SellerDeck struggled to support intuitive, faceted product discovery, leaving customers to navigate rigid and cluttered categories.
Project requirements
Rather than working to a rigid set of predetermined functional specifications, WebSparky relied on teclan’s expertise to help shape the platform architecture, technology stack and user experience. Following the initial scoping session, the project budget was agreed, giving the team flexibility to develop an approach suited to the business’s needs.
A key priority was to migrate existing customer accounts, core product lines and historical data from SellerDeck while preserving SEO equity through appropriate redirects for legacy URLs and catalogue structures. The transition also needed to minimise disruption to ongoing trading. Alongside the migration, WebSparky required an intuitive, low-maintenance admin panel that would allow its team to manage inventory, pricing and orders without relying on developers for routine updates.
The build
teclan designed and developed a clean, lightweight theme tailored to the needs of trade contractors and commercial buyers. The interface prioritises quick product scanning, clear readability and touch-friendly navigation across smartphones, tablets and desktop devices.
The team also reorganised WebSparky’s extensive catalogue into logical, trade-focused parent and child categories, including Modern Lighting, Switches & Sockets, CCTV & Security, Cable, and Circuit Protection. This structure makes it easier for customers to navigate the catalogue and find the components they need.
Product pages and catalogue listings were configured to display both VAT-inclusive and VAT-exclusive prices, catering to trade professionals claiming tax and direct retail customers.
Product pages were also structured to make key technical information easy to find, including SKUs, manufacturer part numbers, compliance ratings such as 18th Edition standards, and package quantities covering individual items, trade packs and boxes.
A further key part of the project was the migration from SellerDeck to Aero. teclan extracted, cleaned and transferred product records, imagery, customer databases and historical transaction data into Aero’s modular database structure, supporting a smooth transition to the new platform.
A smooth, predictable build
The project progressed smoothly, with few unexpected blockers or technical issues disrupting delivery.
The open technical brief and strong working relationship between WebSparky and teclan helped the team avoid the challenges of retrofitting functionality into an incompatible legacy framework. With Aero providing a stable foundation, teclan could focus on improving the merchant experience and refining the catalogue, keeping the project within the agreed timelines and budget.
Having never used Aero before, I was pleasantly surprised how easily I found my way around the system, and how intuitive the whole platform is. Getting an online store up and running involves a lot of moving parts. The Aero platform successfully manages everything from your initial product listings to payment gateways, delivery configurations, and (most importantly) sales and order processing.
- WebSparky team
Why Aero was chosen for the project
Aero was chosen for its speed, responsiveness and flexibility to accommodate future development. While the initial build focused on the core functionality needed to trade within the agreed budget, the platform provides scope for additional capabilities as the business evolves. Potential future developments include bespoke B2B trade account tiers, automated ERP and stock feeds, multi-warehouse synchronisation and specialised pricing rules, without requiring another platform migration.
Unlike monolithic enterprise platforms that carry prohibitive license fees, costly server infrastructure, and ongoing retainer demands, Aero offered WebSparky a commercially accessible platform designed to support performance and reliability.
Aero’s intuitive admin panel also enables the WebSparky team to update products, run promotions, and fulfill orders more efficiently, reducing reliance on developers for day-to-day tasks.
Results
Integrations with Royal Mail and Stripe have helped streamline key parts of WebSparky’s ecommerce operation.
The Royal Mail integration reduces time spent on manual data entry, while Stripe gives customers access to multiple payment options, including express checkout through Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Together, these integrations support a more convenient purchasing experience for customers and more efficient order management for the business.
