The Situation
Insideast is a Moroccan artisanal brass and copper fixtures brand managing custom orders from international clients. Every order was different — size, finish, configuration — and their entire workflow ran on WhatsApp messages and a Google Sheet.
The result: orders arrived with missing information, quotes were written from scratch every time, and technical schematics were hand-drawn for each request. What should have been a scalable business was bottlenecked by its own operations.
What We Built
A three-phase system to replace it entirely.
Phase 1 — Structured Order Form
A 5-step customization form embedded directly on their Shopify store. Each submission generates a unique request ID, triggers an automatic confirmation email, and routes the order into one of 4 internal pipelines based on request type. No more missing information. No more back-and-forth on WhatsApp to collect basic specs.
Phase 2 — Internal Operations Dashboard
A full Kanban dashboard with 4 pipelines (VA, Workshop, Pricing, Fulfillment) and role-based access for each team. Features include:
- Automated client notifications at every status change
- Quote generator with pre-filled templates
- Daily WhatsApp summary delivered at 8 AM via n8n
Every person on the team sees only what they need. Every client gets timely updates automatically.
Phase 3 — AI Technical Schematic Generator
The most time-intensive part of the old workflow was the hand-drawn schematics. We automated it: a product photo goes in, an annotated SVG technical drawing comes out.
Built with Replicate ControlNet for photo-to-vector conversion and Konva.js for the interactive annotation editor. Engineers can review and adjust the output in seconds. One-click PDF export directly from the dashboard.
The Results
- Estimated 60% reduction in admin time per custom order
- System handles the full lifecycle: intake → quote → production → fulfillment → delivery notification
- Designed to scale from 30 to 100+ orders/month without additional headcount
- The team stopped managing operations in WhatsApp
Stack
React · Node.js · PostgreSQL · n8n · Replicate ControlNet · Konva.js · Shopify · WhatsApp Business API · SendGrid
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