WebCitz started working with this client in 2021
- Client: Farrell Equipment
- Platform: BigCommerce
- Industry: Construction / Real Estate, Retail / E-Commerce
- Services: Ecommerce, Maintenance / Support, Web Development
The Challenge
Farrell Equipment isn’t a standard retail store; they are a high-volume industrial supplier with unique regional requirements. They faced several critical hurdles:
- Data Complexity: Moving a massive catalog of heavy equipment and specialized tools from a non-standard proprietary system into BigCommerce.
- Visual “Proof of Concept”: They needed a digital version of their physical Decorative Concrete Display to help contractors visualize stamps and colors.
- The “Pick-Up” Tax Problem: Standard e-commerce platforms calculate tax based on the shipping address. Farrell needed a system that accurately applied local sales tax based on the specific store location where a customer chose to pick up their order.
The WebCitz Solution
We engineered a high-performance BigCommerce environment with several “first-of-their-kind” customizations:
- Custom Stencil Theme Development: We built a customized, responsive Stencil theme designed for industrial speed. We prioritized clear technical specs and “Contractor-First” navigation to ensure professionals could find parts quickly on a job site.
- Interactive Decorative Concrete Tool: We developed a unique digital display that mimics their 3,500 sq. ft. physical display in Eau Claire. This allows customers to click on specific sections to see stamp patterns, colors, and the exact product details used to achieve that look.
- Custom Checkout & Tax Integration: This was the project’s technical “heavy lift.” We built a custom checkout experience to support Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store (BOPIS). Because tax laws vary by municipality, we developed a custom integration with their tax system. This ensures that when a user selects “Appleton” for pickup, the checkout automatically recalculates and applies the correct local tax for that specific branch, rather than the user’s home address.
- Seamless SEO Migration: Moving from a proprietary system carries a high risk of losing search rankings. We managed an extensive 301 redirect strategy to ensure every legacy URL was mapped to its new BigCommerce equivalent, preserving their decades of search authority.
- Enterprise Data Management: We handled the bulk import and optimization of their product data, ensuring that thousands of tools – from Milwaukee power tools to Proline concrete stamps – were correctly categorized and searchable.
The Result
The 2021 migration transformed Farrell Equipment into a digital leader in the construction supply space. By solving the complex “Pick-Up” tax issue and building interactive visualization tools, WebCitz helped Farrell provide an “Omnichannel” experience that connects their physical warehouses with their online storefront. The site now serves as a vital tool for Midwest contractors, backed by the technical reliability of a fully managed BigCommerce environment.
