About Zangersheide
Stud farm and horse breeding center
Active worldwide
Zangersheide, founded in 1967, is a world-renowned Belgian stud farm and horse breeding center, specializing in top-quality showjumping horses. -> Zangersheide
Thanks to their progressive breeding program, the development of their own horse studbook, and a focus on innovation and performance, they have become a global player in the showjumping sport. Their horses shine on international stages and consistently set new standards in the equestrian world.
The Challenge of Perfection: How Zangersheide Transformed Its Digital Platform
Zangersheide strives for perfection, and this also applies to its CEO, Judy Ann Melchior. This was all the more reason for PHPro to step into the Lanaken office in early 2022 with an inspiration session based on three pillars: an efficient, secure, and stable platform, better service, and of course, increased revenue.
At that time, the Zangersheide website consisted of five separate subsites: the studbook, the stallions, the Z-magazine, Auction, Breeders Auction, and Events. This large number of subsites was not very user-friendly for many customers: on one hand, there was no navigation or convenient search function across the subsites, and on the other hand, many customers did not know which subsite they should visit to find the necessary information.
After the extensive inspiration provided by PHPro, Tom Lemmens and Judy Ann Melchior decided to embark on a discovery journey together. In these workshops, they delved deeper into the needs and requirements of Zangersheide and its customers. The Discovery phase was later translated into a comprehensive analysis, which was quickly turned into reality!
It soon became clear that this was a complex project, as the first phase included a staggering 1,000 Jira tickets and a large “parking lot” full of ideas to further optimize the site in phases two and three.
In addition to the useful functionalities, Zangersheide also wanted to innovate visually. The different subsites each had their own styling, and the design for print, ads, and digital media was not sufficiently aligned. Together with its sister company Us, Zangersheide began the design process, during which a style guide and branding guidelines were developed for the first time. Thanks to this design process, the website now not only has a more premium look and feel, but the User Experience (UX) has also improved significantly.
Zangersheide: The Leading Auction House in Show Jumping
Zangersheide is globally renowned for its exclusive auctions. Since hosting their first Online Auction in 2013, they have grown into the largest auction house in the show jumping world. From frozen embryos to approved stallions, they consistently offer only the very best. However, with this growing popularity came new challenges: global traffic brought not only security risks but also performance issues. A traditional solution like Cloudflare alone proved insufficient, as bidders and buyers participate from all over the world.
A Technical Feat: Security and Real-Time Bidding
Together with PHPro, Zangersheide implemented a solution that combined Cloudflare with strict registration requirements and an approval workflow to enhance security. For the complex hybrid auctions - both online and in-person - extensive load testing was carried out. These auctions demanded real-time bidding without delays or errors, alongside livestreams and bidding screens. Thanks to a robust technical approach, the first Quality Auction went off without a hitch and without any downtime. With further optimizations, the following auctions were executed flawlessly as well - a true technical masterpiece!
With the implementation of automated business processes!
Zangersheide has experienced exponential growth in recent years, but unfortunately, not all business processes kept pace, meaning a lot of manual work was still required, both for customers and staff. This not only increased the likelihood of errors but also led to higher costs and longer process lead times.
For this reason, it was decided to simplify many of these processes where possible. For example, for the registration forms, an integration with Hippomundo was chosen, allowing breeders and owners to search for their horses online, eliminating the need to re-enter all the data repeatedly. For the selection days, an online appointment module was implemented, enabling the selected individuals to choose their ideal time slot. This, of course, simplifies the administration for both the customers and the auction staff!
Technologies & Features
Sulu CMS
Symfony
Symfony UX
React
Shopify Webshop
Mollie PSP
Sendcloud SSP
Integratie BOB
Integratie HorseID
Integratie Equicty
Integratie Hippomundo
Online Auction
Live Auction
Marktplaatsen (Breeders Auction)
Match My Mare
Compact Webshop for Zangersheide Clothing Line
Zangersheide and Spooks have been loyal partners for years when it comes to the Zangersheide clothing line, but in the past, the Z-Shop online experience had fairly limited success: customers could not immediately complete their purchases online, and the entire buying process was not intuitive. For Zangersheide's staff, the process was also cumbersome: they manually checked whether payments had been made and then determined which shipping service was applicable for each order.
Since an Adobe Commerce or Orocommerce webshop was too large an investment for this business case, PHPro supported Zangersheide in creating a Shopify webshop. Thanks to the integration with Mollie, customers can now pay immediately using more than 15 different payment methods, and with the connection to Sendcloud, Zangersheide's staff now spend less than 10 seconds on shipping: the labels are generated semi-automatically. This integration also sends the customer an email with a track & trace code, improving the post-purchase experience and continuing the customer journey even after the sale.
Phase 2: Custom ERP and language Integrations for Zangersheide
Thanks to all the ideas and the success of Phase 1, Zangersheide decided to continue its digitalization journey. Specifically, this means that their old ERP system is being replaced by Z-Horse: an ERP and database custom-built to meet the specific needs and requirements of the Zangersheide Studbook. To further optimize the customer experience, an integration with BOB, Zangersheide's accounting software, is also being implemented. This allows customers to immediately view and pay their invoices.
In addition, Zangersheide no longer needs to manually create invoices for orders placed online. Zangersheide attracts a highly international audience, and with no fewer than five languages, it has proven difficult to keep news articles always accurate and up-to-date. For this reason, we are currently working on an integration with DeepL to serve customers worldwide in their own language.
We have written a separate case on Phase 2, which you can find here.
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