Game Day Ready: Official All Blacks Shop Built in Four Weeks

Game Day Ready: Official All Blacks Shop Built in Four Weeks

When the New Zealand Rugby Union decided it was time to upgrade the official All Blacks Shop, they faced a narrow window and a high bar for performance. The existing store lacked responsiveness and user-friendly checkout, while costs from the proprietary platform kept climbing. SportNZ tapped store manager Blake Skjellerup to find a better solution. After a fast round of research and platform trials, Blake landed on WooCommerce. With a tight deadline of four weeks and high expectations from fans worldwide, the team set out to turn a static site into an agile, global storefront.

Selecting the Right Platform

Blake’s first move was to list top contenders: WooCommerce, Shopify, and BigCommerce. He evaluated each on cost, flexibility, extensibility, and local service options. Proprietary quotes kept showing extra license fees and limited customization, while Shopify and BigCommerce left some features locked behind expensive add-ons. WooCommerce stood out for its open codebase and massive ecosystem of free and paid extensions. Blake then needed a partner. After meeting with two Christchurch developers, he signed with Meta Digital, whose portfolio ranged from small boutiques to national chains. That mix of agility and scale made them a perfect match.

Speeding Up Development

Under Meta Digital’s guidance, the project kicked off with a simple but effective plan. Blake delivered a base UX/UI layout, wireframes, and a list of must-have features: fully responsive templates, single-page checkout, mobile performance, and brand-aligned styling. Meta spun up a development site within hours. They leveraged off-the-shelf WooCommerce building blocks, custom CSS, and a handful of JavaScript snippets to speed layout adjustments. Instead of coding from scratch, they modified existing components, tested variations with quick browser checks, then moved to staging for client reviews. This iterative workflow cut revision cycles down and freed up time for deeper integrations.

Integrations That Matter

A seamless store requires more than just a checkout form. The team choseWooCommerce Payment Express PXPost Gatewayto accept Visa, MasterCard, and PayPal in NZD without redirecting customers off-site. For stock control and fulfillment,Cin7took charge: it stored product records, generated labels, and managed returns. Automatic sync between Cin7 and WooCommerce ensured inventory stayed accurate in real time. Orders flowed to Cin7 for packing and once marked complete, accounting entries appeared inXerovia Cin7’s connector. Shipping rates came straight fromNew Zealand Post, so customers saw correct costs at checkout without manual rate tables. That end-to-end link cut busywork and let the store scale.

Going Live in Four Weeks

A four-week timeline for redesign, coding, testing, and launch can sound impossible. To hit it, the squad set two back-to-back sprint cycles. In sprint one they nailed theme setup, page templates, and core plugin installs. In sprint two they focused on testing, fine-tuning checkout flows, stress-testing payment paths, and training SportNZ staff on the back end. The team held daily standups, tracked progress in shared docs, and flagged roadblocks as soon as they emerged. By day 28 the public store went live. Traffic climbed steadily the first hour, and orders streamed in from Australia, New Zealand, and beyond.

Ongoing Support & Growth Plans

Launch day was just the start. Meta Digital moved into a monthly retainer to handle WordPress core updates, plugin patches, and ad hoc customizations. They monitor performance metrics, apply security fixes, and scope new features—like loyalty programs or localized landing pages—with a clear estimate timeline. All extension subscriptions and hosting costs are bundled into this agreement, so Blake can budget with confidence. That maintenance rhythm frees the SportNZ team to focus on marketing goals rather than code reviews.

Fueling Global Fan Engagement

The store’s launch opened doors to global orders, especially in the Americas. To capture that demand, Blake set upGoogle Analyticsto track key metrics, created segmented audiences inMailChimp, and linked the catalog to the officialFacebookpage viaFacebook for WooCommerce. Campaigns now target fans by region, product interest, and purchase history. Next up is an abandoned cart series powered byConversioto recover lost orders. Combined, these tools keep the store busy long after opening day.

Lessons for Your Store

Speed doesn’t have to compromise quality. By picking a flexible platform, reusing design assets, and choosing extensions that tie directly into back-office systems, you can trim weeks off your schedule. Regular check-ins, clear sprint objectives, and a solid support plan make post-launch operations smooth. And by lining up analytics and marketing automation from the start, you’ll be ready to scale as demand grows.