How Kokatat Transformed Its Ecommerce with BigCommerce

Revitalizing Kokatat’s Digital Experience

Founded in 1971 by Steve O’Meara in Arcata, California, Kokatat has earned a reputation for crafting best-in-class paddling apparel. But when its legacy Magento 1 store started to drain resources on constant patches and security fixes, the team realized technical debt was holding back the next chapter of growth. They needed a modern, scalable solution that would marry inspiring storytelling with frictionless commerce.

Kokatat’s site is as much a journal of expedition tales and expert tips as it is a storefront. The brand wanted to weave product content into its narrative—showcasing ambassadors on whitewater runs—without sacrificing site performance or flexibility. Equally critical was a real-time dry suit builder, offering nearly 100 customizable color, size and feature options in one intuitive interface.

A Composable, SaaS-First Solution

In partnership with Overdose, Kokatat chose an API-driven, reverse-headless architecture. Contentful became the CMS driving blogs, ambassador stories and event updates, while BigCommerce handled catalog, cart and checkout. Leveraging BigCommerce’s open templating with a customized Cornerstone theme, the team integrated Contentful’s JavaScript SDK via a PWA approach—seamlessly blending content modules alongside product listings.

To conquer the configurator challenge, Overdose built a custom dry suit builder using BigCommerce product modifiers, custom fields and the Storefront API. Live previews update instantly as paddlers select GORE-TEX PRO fabrics, zippers, colors and accessories. This approach reduced the need for in-store fittings and elevated the online shopping experience.

Measurable Impact and Future Growth

By migrating to a fully managed SaaS platform, Kokatat reduced maintenance overhead and gained a pathway to infinite composability. APIs now connect with ShipperHQ, Klaviyo, Authorize.net and Avalara to support shipping rules, targeted email campaigns, secure payments and automated tax calculations. When comparing the second half of 2019 to the same period in 2020, the brand saw a 12.76% rise in revenue and a 33% jump in conversion rate across its new storefront.

Looking ahead, Kokatat remains committed to innovation—refining drywear comfort, expanding colorways and pushing durability standards. With a future-proof architecture, the brand can spin up new storefronts, international channels and digital experiences without rebuilding the core infrastructure.