Z-Parts
From a grown-over general storeto a focused tool shop.
Z-Parts has sold tools and accessories successfully on eBay for years, while its own online shop ran on a 2013 system and no longer produced orders. For the relaunch I cleaned up the assortment with the client, reset the platform architecture and designed a clear Shopify theme.
- Role
- Consulting, shop concept, UI design & Shopify implementation (Liquid / CSS)
- Context
- Client project · e-commerce relaunch · 2026
- Status
- Working theme prototype · 59 products imported, pre–go-live
Find
Product name, article number or category
Check
Dimensions, mount and visible purchase details
Order
Guest checkout without an account barrier
01
Strong on eBay. Invisible in its own shop.
An audit of the old xt:Commerce shop quickly showed why nobody bought through the website anymore: car parts, large machines and small tools sat mixed together. On top of that came broken SEO structures, seven overloaded main menu items and unclear navigation.
- A clear niche focus: tools and accessories for metalworking
- A lean entry via direct search (name / article number) and 11 clean categories
- Simple guest checkout without an account barrier
02
A setup that fits real day-to-day operations.
A new design alone would not have solved the problem. The shop had to fit into the existing workflows of a one-person business and make economic sense.
Constraints
- eBay sync instead of duplicate work
- Because the main revenue runs through eBay (over 10,000 sales), the shop does not replace eBay. It complements it. Stock and orders stay in sync; from roughly six direct sales a month, the own shop pays for itself against high marketplace fees.
- Simple everyday maintenance
- The owner (70+) does not want to maintain layouts or operate complex dashboards day to day. The theme is therefore locked in code; the Shopify admin only exposes what is needed for prices, stock and delivery notes.
- Clean assortment separation
- A second business line (specialist accessories for reloaders) is deliberately kept out of this shop and moved to a separate enquiry site. That keeps the tool catalog clean and avoids issues with payment providers such as PayPal or Stripe.
03
Orientation through dimensions and numbers, not marketing copy.
Anyone looking for a 125 mm chuck or a specific milling arbor does not browse like in a fashion shop. They look for exact dimensions, mounts or a known article number.
01
Two paths into the assortment
- The principle
- Customers with a concrete need use the prominent header search (by dimension or article number). Anyone still orienting starts on the homepage through the category directory with visible product counts. Main navigation stays limited to Tools & accessories and Contact.
02
Full titles instead of truncated cards
- The principle
- For technical parts, the difference often sits at the end of the name, for example the diameter or taper mount. Product cards therefore spell out long technical titles in full instead of truncating them after one line with “…”. Article number, price and lead time sit directly underneath.
03
All purchase data at a glance
- The principle
- On the product detail page, dimensions, article number, stock and lead time sit together directly above the cart button. We deliberately skipped a review system. For niche tools, reliable technical data matters more than empty star ratings.
Specification
Dimension and mount appear in the title.
Availability
Stock status and lead time sit together.
Action
Quantity and cart follow the purchase details.
Optional: a short montage of the views
04
Ready for data alignment and go-live.
The custom Shopify theme is built in Liquid and CSS and stocked with the first 59 products across 11 categories. The main domain still runs the old system until the remaining product data is aligned with the eBay inventory.
Visible in the prototype
- Custom Shopify theme in Liquid and CSS
- A focused entry for tools and accessories
- 59 products imported across 11 categories
Next steps before launch
- Data & eBay connection
Final cleanup of article numbers and going live with stock sync against the eBay account.
- Legal compliance & SEO
Setting up 301 redirects for old Google links and integrating the new statutory withdrawal flow (§ 356a BGB) for guest checkout.
- Handover
A short briefing for the client on the simplified order handling.
What I take from this
For technical products, orientation comes from the right order of information and from a setup that fits real day-to-day operations. The next step is data alignment and go-live.
