Transforming Shopping with an Intelligent Recommendation

Countr is a unique social shopping app designed to bring people together through a shared love for style. By blending e-commerce with social interaction, it offers users a platform to discover products, share fashion inspiration, and earn money—all while shopping with friends.

Founded by Manon Roux, Countr reimagines online shopping as a community-driven experience. Users can:

• Shop collaboratively with friends
   
• Share and receive style recommendations
   
• Express their fashion identity
   
• Get inspired by others
   
• Monetize their content
   

With a growing network of over 160 retailers, Countr is reshaping how users engage with online shopping—making it more personal, social, and rewarding.

In January 2018, Countr partnered with React Coders to enhance its alpha-stage product. The goal was to reorganize the platform, scale it effectively, and introduce advanced features like personalized product discovery using machine learning.

Our Approach

• Conducted a comprehensive code audit and scoping session to align the product with the founder’s vision
   
• Recommended architectural improvements, UI/UX enhancements, and metrics tracking strategies
   
• Rewrote legacy code using best practices to improve scalability and maintainability
   
• Integrated an initial machine learning system to personalize content discovery
   

After months of development and intensive user testing, a refined version of the app was ready. The feedback from early testers was overwhelmingly positive, with high praise for its clean design and intuitive experience. Discussions with several public figures for potential collaboration soon followed.

React Coders built out several advanced features to take Countr beyond a typical shopping app:

• Machine learning-powered product discovery: Upon sign-up, users choose preferred stores and categories (e.g., fashion, skincare, workwear). This data powers personalized content feeds.
   
• Smart recommendation balancing: The algorithm intelligently mixes preferred and new brands, enabling discovery without overwhelming the user.
   
• Unified cart checkout: A seamless shopping experience, even when purchasing from multiple retailers.
   
• Community engagement tools: Features like cheering and tipping for content foster a strong, interactive user base.
  

Launching a new e-commerce platform in a crowded market came with challenges:

• The app needed to be feature-rich yet simple, ensuring accessibility without sacrificing innovation.
   
• A robust recommendation engine was essential to tailor user feeds based on nuanced preferences.
   
• Influencer marketing was key to gaining traction—leveraging the founder's network helped make the app's launch a significant event.
   
• Rapid development was crucial. Our Ruby on Rails team leveraged pre-built Gems to integrate complex functionalities quickly, including:
   
  • Elasticsearch for high-performance search
     
  • Searchkick to enhance search accuracy
     
  • Google Vision for intelligent image recognition
    

The next evolution for Countr is to deepen personalization by learning from user actions—likes, dislikes, purchases, and browsing habits. This involves capturing subtle user signals and translating them into refined, individual recommendations.

While understanding why a user likes a product (e.g., color, brand, price) is complex, it’s essential for Countr’s vision of hyper-personalized shopping. As data accumulates, the recommendation engine will continue to evolve.

The time is ripe for innovation in e-commerce:

• By 2021, 73% of online shopping was expected to take place via mobile devices
   
• Social media plays a critical role in influencing purchase decisions
   
• AI-driven automation is revolutionizing how consumers discover and interact with products
   

Personalization is leading the charge, shaping the future of how people shop online. With its unique blend of community, content, and commerce, Countr is well-positioned to be at the forefront of this transformation.