From Catalogue to Checkout

A focused development day on the Rockin Threads e-commerce site, building out the complete shopping flow.

Shopping Basket and Checkout

Implemented the full purchase journey:

  • BasketContext with React Context + useReducer for state management
  • localStorage persistence so baskets survive page refreshes
  • BasketSidebar slide-out component for quick basket access
  • Full basket page with quantity controls
  • Checkout page with contact details, shipping address, and order notes
  • Order confirmation page with status tracking
  • API route for order creation (POST /api/orders)
Orders are currently quote-based (no payment integration yet - that's a separate phase). VAT calculated at 20% at checkout. Order numbers follow the RT-{timestamp}-{random} format.

Legal Pages

Created Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions pages with UK GDPR compliance (12 sections each) and specific e-commerce clauses. Every web project needs these - it's a standard requirement, not an afterthought.

Tech Reviews

Reviewed and approved both the initial project setup and product catalogue pages. Also reviewed the admin order management system - session-based auth with proper cookie security, environment variable credentials, and 7 order status types with CSV export.

Key decision: Using useParams hook for client component params rather than the Promise-based approach in Next.js.