A stalled integration project is stopped, and the store finally connects

The Challenge

No one owned the website, and the bills kept coming

Fante's has sold kitchenware in Philadelphia's Italian Market for generations, with an online store alongside it. After staff changes, nobody inside the business owned the website.

An integration project meant to connect the store to the retail system had run months past its estimate with no end in sight, while product uploads corrupted the category tree and some orders never reached the back office at all.

On top of that, a vulnerability report needed attention and the platform itself was expensive to keep for a business of Fante's size.

The Strategy

Stop the bleeding, then simplify

PeakBeyond's first act was to stop the stalled integration rather than keep funding it, then run a fresh kickoff with weekly meetings so the work had an owner and a rhythm again.

Instead of building a bespoke connection, we recommended a proven connector already used by similar retailers — a smaller bill and a known outcome.

With the connection settled, the platform question answered itself: a simpler, lower-cost platform would serve Fante's better than the one it was paying to maintain, provided inventory, orders and shipping kept working exactly as before.

The Solution

A recovery, then a clean move

PeakBeyond stopped the work that wasn't going anywhere, then moved Fante's to a platform that fits the business, within a year.

• Stopped the bleeding — Halted the stalled integration project, ran a new kickoff with weekly meetings, and recommended the proven connector the client signed instead of a bespoke build.
• Steadied the old store — Cleaned up the category tree, escalated the product upload bug and handled a production-down incident.
• Kept it running while the decision was made — Upgraded the platform and the payment extension, advised on the server move, tuned caching and shipping rules, and fixed card capture.
• Moved to a simpler platform — Shipping software connected directly, the connector migrated, and post-launch import fixes, with inventory and orders in step with the retail system throughout.
• Left the team able to run it — Training on product uploads, invoicing and returns, plus a retired blog, cleaned-up redirects and categories, and privacy and accessibility pages.

Each step was small enough for a business with no in-house web team, and the recurring cost became predictable rather than open-ended.

The Results

Live on a platform that fits the business

Fante's went live on the new platform in January 2023, with inventory and orders in step with the retail system and shipping running through the software the team already knew.

The runaway integration was replaced by a supported connector, so the recurring cost became predictable and the outcome known.

Staff were trained to upload products, invoice and handle returns themselves, which is what a business without an in-house web team actually needs.

A store that had drifted without an owner came back under control — and onto a platform its team can run.