Ankandet

Hitting the Ceiling

Ankandet started out with a mix of third-party tools and custom workarounds. That was enough to get going, but it wasn’t something to grow on.

As volume grew, the problems got harder to ignore. At around 700 auctions a day, the system hit its ceiling. Auctions failed, and bids didn’t always go through. In an auction business, reliability is the whole product. Bidders need to know that when they place a bid, it counts.

Ankandet didn’t need another patch. They needed a platform built for the volume they were heading towards, not the one they had already outgrown.

One Step at a Time

We started with the auction engine, since that was the part holding Ankandet back. Instead of rebuilding everything at once, we split the migration into phases. The first phase was a custom-built auction platform that could handle real peak loads. Shopify stayed in place for product management and checkout, so Ankandet could keep using what already worked while the most critical part was rebuilt.

AI is a big part of how we were able to move this fast. We used it throughout our development process, so tasks that would normally take weeks were done in days, and Ankandet had their new platform up and running much sooner.

From 700 to 1,300 Auctions a Day

Every auction on Ankandet closes at the same time each day. In those final seconds, thousands of bidders compete across more than a thousand auctions at once. Conventional infrastructure isn’t built for spikes like that, so we designed the platform around them.

At its core is a serverless auction engine that processes bids in real time. If a bid comes in during the final moments, the auction is extended automatically, so every bidder gets a fair chance. When an auction closes, the winner receives a confirmation email and the order goes straight to Shopify for fulfilment.

Bidders get a fast, responsive interface built for live bidding. Ankandet’s team gets an admin tool with direct control over auctions and bids. The architecture is deliberately lean. Instead of servers running around the clock, the platform uses cloud services that scale up when traffic peaks and cost almost nothing when it’s quiet.

More Auctions, Same Infrastructure Cost

We launched the platform in early 2026, and the difference showed right away. Daily auction volume went from around 700 to 1,200–1,300, without infrastructure costs rising to match.

The daily closing rush is no longer a risk. Every final bid is processed correctly, and order processing, which used to fall behind, now keeps up.

Just as important, Ankandet is no longer working around the limits of its system. The platform has room for more auctions, more partners and new markets, and it can grow along with the business.

What Comes Next

The work with Ankandet is ongoing. There are several directions the platform could take from here. Native mobile apps would bring the auction experience closer to bidders. Better operational tooling could replace the manual workflows that remain. There’s also a real opportunity in the warehouse, with a scanner-guided system that routes staff to the right location, in the right order, at the right time.

Which of these comes first is up to Ankandet and where they want to take the business. The platform is ready for any of them.