Just Sunnies Scales Sales with Headless Jamstack on BigCommerce

Background: From Legacy to Modern Stack

Just Sunnies launched its first ecommerce site in 2007 on a home-built platform crafted by the founder and a friend. While it served initial needs for order processing and inventory control, over time it became rigid and difficult to extend. Any attempt to introduce new features triggered a cascade of bug fixes and manual updates. By 2023, the site was creaking under the weight of 13,000 SKUs and rising customer expectations for speed, personalization, and a unified omnichannel experience.

Choosing a Scalable Foundation on BigCommerce

The team at Just Sunnies surveyed several platforms looking for robust core services, strong security, and an ecosystem of apps. BigCommerce won out thanks to its open architecture and extensive partner network. The decision to adopt a headless approach enabled the developers to decouple the front end from backend logic, giving them freedom to experiment with new frameworks and user experiences without altering the commerce engine itself.

Building a Progressive Web App with Jamstack

Leveraging React and Next.js, the developers created a PWA that uses incremental static regeneration. Static pages deliver near-instant load times, while on-the-fly updates ensure content freshness. This setup handles the extensive catalog efficiently and scales automatically on AWS. The end result: pages render quicker, interactions feel snappier, and mobile users report a marked improvement in browsing speed.

Integrations for Content, Inventory, and Checkout

To orchestrate content and inventory workflows, Just Sunnies layers in Prismic for headless CMS, PeopleVOX for warehouse management, and AWS for hosting microservices. They also built a bespoke optical checkout flow that captures prescriptions via a custom draw-bag interface. Following purchase, orders are fulfilled within 7–10 business days, enhancing convenience for prescription eyewear buyers.

Enhancing Marketing and Discovery

Email marketing gets a boost with Klaviyo, which taps into BigCommerce data to automate personalized messages. Searchspring powers on-site search and merchandising, making it simple for customers to navigate a catalog of over 13,000 products. PayPal remains a top payment method, boosting trust and checkout completion rates.

Results: Capitalizing on Agility and APIs

In the first year post-migration, Just Sunnies saw a 15% uptick in sales, a 32% rise in visits, and a 21% increase in the conversion rate. Mobile channels accounted for 75% of orders—a 13% increase—and the subscriber list expanded by 23%. Product offerings grew by 30%, cementing their position as a top eyewear destination in Australia.