Supporting a Wholesale Auto Parts Website

Client Overview

Vostok (Sunrise) is a B2B wholesale distributor of automotive parts under the management of a larger group that also operates a retail automotive eCommerce platform for auto parts businesses, a car care product brand, a network of auto repair shops, and a logistics company. The company’s primary B2B platform, V-avto, enables businesses to purchase necessary products in bulk.

The client maintains two versions of their website—new and legacy—which currently coexist. While the new version offers essential functionality, a complete transition to it is planned for the near future. The client sought a specialist to assist in enhancing the new site while providing partial support for the legacy system.

The site functions as a storefront for engaging with customers, searching for products, and placing orders. Its backend, including inventory and pricing automation for retailers, operates on Ruby on Rails, while the frontend of the new site utilizes React. The legacy site was built entirely on Rails templates.

Integration Processing Price Lists with 1C

A complex pricing system drives the website through integration with the 1C software. Pricing is calculated based on rules defined in 1C, allowing for custom discounts and markups. The website database is fully synchronized with the 1C database once a day, with multiple smaller data exchanges throughout the day.

Customers can download automated price lists based on 1C data. Options include generating price lists for all site products or specific items and categories. Additionally, users can schedule automatic price list exports to be delivered to their inbox at regular intervals.

We optimized the interaction with 1C to speed up price calculations, enabling faster automatic price list processing with less server load. By preloading rules into the application and reducing SQL queries, we streamlined the process. All data now loads in a single query, with preloaded rules applied.

Local Improvements to the New Site

As part of the migration to the new version, we rewrote several methods using GraphQL, effectively creating a modern wrapper for existing functionality compatible with the React frontend. For instance, we improved the registration process by adding a page where users can specify a permanent delivery address.

One popular feature is the ability to build a shopping cart from an xlsx file. Customers upload a file with part numbers and quantities, which the system uses to generate a cart. If a part number corresponds to multiple product options, the user selects the desired one. On the backend, this is managed by a state machine that responds to events like file reading, processing, and option selection. We implemented this feature for both the legacy site backend and the new GraphQL-powered frontend.

We also integrated third-party services such as Direct API connections to the ABCP platform, a tool popular among auto parts stores, and DaData, which auto-fills legal entity information in forms.

Additionally, a new notification system is in the works. The previous system was complex, so we refactored the code for easier use by frontend developers and business analysts and added simple statistics tracking in the BI system.

New Features for the Automotive e-Commerce Platform

Evrone contributed to developing new features for the B2B eCommerce platform for wholesalers. These include:

1. Marketing Promotions: Discounts set in 1C are displayed on the site with tags and highlighted in search results. A dedicated section showcases items with special offers.
2. Waitlist for Out-of-Stock Products: Customers can add items to a waitlist and receive notifications when stock becomes available. Notifications are sent once daily, excluding nights, weekends, and holidays, for user convenience.

Results of Collaboration

Key achievements on the project:

• Optimized integration processing price lists with 1C for faster and more efficient pricing.
• Established third-party integration services to enhance functionality.
• Transitioned legacy features to the new site using GraphQL.
• Implemented a waitlist feature and developed marketing promotion tools.

Future plans include launching a new notification system, revamping the catalog for faster rendering and improved search functionality, and introducing a modern admin panel. The ultimate goal is to fully transition to the new B2B auto parts e-commerce website for wholesalers and dealers.

Looking to build a marketplace for car parts or boost your automotive eCommerce platform? Evrone can assist with everything from integration processing and price lists to creating scalable solutions for automotive part distribution. Fill out the form below, and let’s discuss your project!