Wellensteyn is a leading brand in the technical outdoor and performance outerwear segment, specializing in jackets designed for extreme weather conditions. The brand serves online customers across four markets: Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Canada. As part of the technological modernization of its online stores, the key challenge was to migrate a complex, four-country Magento setup to Shopify without disrupting the customer experience or day-to-day operations.
The Starting Point
Wellensteyn’s Magento 2 setup was built on a customized Luma theme that had reliably supported the brand for years but was becoming increasingly outdated. A heatmap analysis conducted by OANDER identified 58 improvement opportunities related to user experience, conversion optimization, and operational efficiency. We evaluated four possible approaches: improving the existing Magento theme, introducing a Hyvä frontend, rebuilding the Magento platform, or migrating to Shopify. After comparing the benefits, risks, and required resources, Shopify was selected as the foundation for the brand’s next-generation e-commerce operations.
Key Challenges and Solutions
Four Markets, One Consistent Experience
We established four independent Shopify stores to accommodate each market’s legal, payment, tax, and shipping requirements while maintaining a consistent theme, product structure, and shopping experience.
Custom Shopify Theme and Product Structure
We developed a custom theme based on Shopify’s Dawn, preserving Wellensteyn’s visual identity while improving usability. To recreate the brand’s complex, multi-level product hierarchy, we implemented a custom metaobject-based data model, enabling intuitive navigation within Shopify’s architecture.
Data Migration and ERP Integration
We migrated product, customer, and order data across all four markets, implementing URL redirects to preserve organic search visibility. We also designed a unified metafield and metaobject architecture to support consistent ERP integration and data management across the stores.
Results
Wellensteyn now operates four independent Shopify stores across four markets, built on a unified theme and shared data architecture. The new Shopify ecosystem combines the flexibility required for local market operations with a consistent technological foundation. Of the 58 improvement opportunities identified during the initial heatmap analysis, approximately 50 were implemented in the new theme. The remaining recommendations were Magento-specific and no longer relevant following the platform migration. The result is a modern, scalable Shopify ecosystem that supports Wellensteyn’s international e-commerce operations, simplifies management, and delivers a consistent shopping experience across all four markets.
