Headless e-commerce refers to an e-commerce architecture where the front and backend of an e-commerce platform are decoupled or separated. This means that the presentation layer, or the user interface, is separated from the business logic and data layer, allowing each layer to operate independently.
Composable commerce is a relatively new concept in the world of mobile apps and e-commerce, and its impact on specific mobile apps may vary depending on the app's business model and technology stack.
However, some examples of mobile apps that have been affected by composable commerce include some famous brands. Read on to discover who has gone headless in the mobile app world.
Composable mobile apps
- Shopify: Shopify is a leading e-commerce platform that has embraced composable commerce by providing an open API ecosystem that allows developers to build customized integrations and extensions to the platform.
- Stripe: Stripe is a popular payment gateway provider that has adopted composable commerce by offering a suite of APIs and SDKs that enable developers to integrate payment processing functionality into their mobile apps.
- BigCommerce: BigCommerce is another e-commerce platform that has embraced composable commerce by providing a range of APIs and webhooks that enable developers to integrate custom functionality into the platform.
- Salesforce Commerce Cloud: Salesforce Commerce Cloud is a cloud-based e-commerce platform that has integrated composable commerce capabilities into its architecture, enabling developers to build customized storefronts, integrations, and extensions.
- WooCommerce: WooCommerce is a popular WordPress plugin that enables users to create an online store. It has also adopted composable commerce by offering a range of APIs and extensions that enable developers to customize the platform's functionality.
- Magento: Magento is an open-source e-commerce platform that has embraced composable commerce by providing an extensive range of APIs and extensions that enable developers to build custom integrations and extensions for the platform.
Overall, composable commerce has the potential to impact any mobile app or e-commerce platform that is looking to build a flexible, modular architecture that enables customization and integration with third-party tools and services.
How does it work?
In a headless commerce architecture, the frontend of the e-commerce platform is responsible for rendering the user interface, while the backend handles business logic and data management. This gives businesses more flexibility in customizing their e-commerce store's user experience and allows them to leverage the benefits of different frontend frameworks and tools.
With headless commerce, the frontend of the e-commerce platform can be built using various frontend technologies such as React, Vue.js, or Angular and can be hosted on any platform. This allows businesses to create a more personalized and engaging customer shopping experience by offering a customized user interface.
On the backend, a headless e-commerce platform can utilize microservices or APIs to manage business logic and data management. This allows businesses to integrate with different services, add new features or functionalities, and optimize performance and scalability. It also allows businesses to manage their e-commerce store more efficiently, as the front or backend updates can be made independently without disrupting the entire system.
Additionally, headless e-commerce can benefit businesses with complex requirements or the need to integrate multiple services or systems. Overall, headless e-commerce offers a modern approach to e-commerce architecture that can provide businesses with a competitive advantage in the online marketplace.
The benefits of headless commerce
Migrating your e-commerce store from a monolithic to a headless commerce platform can offer several benefits for your business. Here are some reasons why you should consider migrating to a headless commerce platform:
- Increased flexibility: A headless commerce platform allows you to decouple the frontend and backend of your e-commerce store, giving you greater flexibility to customize the user experience and integrate with other services. This can enable you to create a more unique and engaging shopping experience for your customers and make it easier to adapt to changing business requirements.
- Improved scalability: A headless commerce platform can improve the scalability of your e-commerce store by allowing you to scale different parts of your platform independently. This means you can scale your frontend separately from your backend or scale individual services independently. This can help you handle spikes in traffic or demand more efficiently without affecting the performance of your entire e-commerce store.
- Faster time-to-market: A headless commerce platform can help you bring new features and updates to your e-commerce store faster by reducing the complexity of your development process. With a headless commerce platform, you can develop and deploy new frontend components and backend services independently without affecting the other parts of your platform. This can help you launch new products or promotions faster and respond to market trends faster.
- Better performance: A headless commerce platform can improve the performance of your e-commerce store by allowing you to optimize individual services separately. This means you can optimize the performance of your frontend separately from your backend or optimize individual services independently. This can help you improve page load times, reduce bounce rates, and provide a better user experience for your customers.
- More integration options: A headless commerce platform can provide you with more integration options by allowing you to connect with a broader range of services and third-party applications. With a headless commerce platform, you can integrate with different content management systems, marketing automation tools, and other services more easily, which can help you improve the overall functionality of your e-commerce store.
Overall, migrating your e-commerce store from a monolithic to a headless commerce platform can offer several benefits, including increased flexibility, improved scalability, faster time-to-market, better performance, and more integration options. By leveraging the benefits of a headless commerce platform, you can create a more customized and engaging shopping experience for your customers and improve the overall performance and efficiency of your e-commerce store.
How to create a headless mobile commerce store?
Creating a composable e-commerce store involves several steps that can be customized to fit your business's specific needs and requirements. Here is a step-by-step guide to creating a composable e-commerce store:
- Define your business requirements: Before you start building your e-commerce store, you must define your business requirements. This involves identifying your target audience, product catalog, payment methods, shipping options, and other features essential for your e-commerce store.
- Choose a composable tech stack: Once you have defined your business requirements, you must choose one to help you build your e-commerce store. This involves selecting the specific components and services you need to create your custom e-commerce solution. Some of the components you may want to consider include microservices, API gateway, containerization, serverless computing, event-driven architecture, API-first design, cloud-native computing, DevOps, analytics and monitoring, and low-code/no-code tools.
- Select an e-commerce platform: After you have chosen your composable tech stack, you need to select an e-commerce platform that can integrate with your chosen components and services. Many e-commerce platforms, such as Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce, offer many features and integrations to help you build your store.
- Build your e-commerce store: Once you have selected your platform, you can start building your e-commerce store. This involves customizing the design, setting up product catalogs, payment and shipping options, and other features essential for your store. You can leverage the components and services of your composable tech stack to create a custom solution that meets your business requirements.
- Test and optimize your e-commerce store: After you have built your store, you need to test and optimize it to ensure that it meets your business requirements and provides a great user experience. This involves testing the functionality, performance, and security of your e-commerce store and making any necessary optimizations to improve its performance and usability.
- Launch and maintain your e-commerce store: Once you have tested and optimized your store, you can launch it and start selling your products or services online. You also need to maintain your store by updating the content, adding new products, and monitoring its performance to ensure that it continues to meet your business requirements and provides a great user experience.
Overall, creating a composable e-commerce store involves defining your business requirements, choosing a composable tech stack, selecting a platform, building your store, testing and optimizing it, and launching and maintaining it. By following these steps, you can create a custom e-commerce solution that meets your business requirements and provides a great user experience for your customers.