Pixelcabin

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the project manager for OneStopShop, the innovation branch of Anheuser-Busch InBev. We give restaurant and bar owners the opportunity to order all their goods, supplies, foods, drinks, and non-food items on a single online platform that bundles all our wholesalers together.

What challenge were you trying to address with Pixelcabin?

We needed help developing our B2B platform.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We did a small pilot with them and were happy with their speed. In one and a half months, they built a minimum viable product (MVP) from scratch. We’ve continued the collaboration ever since.

Using Shopify Plus, they developed a B2B online marketplace platform for restaurant and bar owners. Shopify is originally a B2C technology, but Pixelcabin transformed it and added the functionalities of a marketplace.

They developed a standalone product engine where we can easily upload and edit product and pricing information. They also developed a standalone order splitter app that allows us to send orders to all our suppliers. That had never been done on Shopify. 

What is the team composition?

When we started, the two founders and a junior developer were involved. Since then, they've added two more people. Each part of the team tackles one specific module. I mostly interact with the founders, who do an amazing job of managing the product and translating user requirements into product requirements.

How did you come to work with Pixelcabin?

We'd been happy with their work on smaller Shopify and Shopify Plus projects. Pixelcabin has better expertise than other Shopify development teams. 

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent $600,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2017 and the work is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’re happy with their speed and accuracy. The platform has very few bugs that we didn't spot before launch. 

We’ve seen a 5.6% increase in sales compared to the legacy platform we had before. The platform also has a 7.6 out of 10 rating from the internal teams who process orders. The legacy system had a 6.2 rating out of 10.

Among the restaurant and bar owners who use the platform, 80% refused to use any digital ordering solution before this one. Our retention rate is 95% after introducing them to this platform.

How did Pixelcabin perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Pivotal Tracker to track user stories and Trello for quarterly planning. During our weekly sprints, the founders translate product requirements to the person who will work on the modules. If we have to work on the order splitter, we talk to their software developer. If we want mockups or designs, they delegate it to the frontend designer. They have good methods for distributing work across their team. I’m happy with their ability to translate requirements.

We have weekly sprints and discussions. They develop and refine user stories accurately. Their developers are never confused about our expectations. Every time we talk, we groom the stories before communicating to the right person on the team. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re great at front- and backend work and responsive in implementing user feedback. They define the technical requirements until the project manager is happy with the results. If we request that they implement a large user requirement or functionality, they ensure that the project managers accept every step.

They’re great technically, but they can also help people without a programming background. I acquired this project management role, but don't have technical knowledge. They help me understand the technical possibilities and break down user requirements. I tell them what users want, and they guide me through every step to bring it to fruition.

They communicate well, test everything before launch, and ensure you’re happy along the way. We’re very happy with their method of spotting problems before production.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They should increase the size of their team. They’re taking on more challenges, and will grow a lot because they're good at what they do. They should get the right people on board so they can service all their customers as well as they help us.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Before you explain technical requirements or features, talk to them about your metrics, your goals, and the entire story. Their history and experience will help a lot.