VirtualExpo modernizes its digital experience with DJUST, without replatforming

VirtualExpo: Evolving a legacy B2B model toward e-commerce

With sites active for over 20 years, VirtualExpo has become one of the world leaders in online B2B trade shows.

However, B2B buyer expectations have shifted: e-commerce is becoming the norm, even in sectors that were historically less digitized. So, how do you add all the features expected of a modern e-commerce marketplace to an already established IT ecosystem?

Faced with changing buyer expectations, the company wanted to offer a true e-commerce experience without compromising its existing technology stack.

Goal: transition from a lead generation model to a fully functional marketplace , without replatforming.

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The challenges: continuity, scalability, and SEO performance

VirtualExpo faced several critical challenges in evolving its business model from lead generation to e-commerce:

• Maintaining existing operations
  With over 4,500 active clients on the LeadGen platform, ensuring service continuity was a priority, despite a profound structural transformation.
  
  
• Managing technical debt
  The age and high volume of our sites exposed VirtualExpo to significant technical debt. We needed to modernize our IS while limiting the expansion of our IT footprint. This led to the decision to rely on third-party solutions to reduce time-to-market, while validating both a technical and business POC.
  
  
• Providing a seamless customer experience
  Despite the technical challenges, the main objective was to ensure a smooth customer experience. Traditional solutions that couple back and front-end imposed constraints that were incompatible with VirtualExpo's environment. The integration had to be completely transparent for visitors.
  
  

We had to ensure service continuity while embarking on a true internal revolution.
_{VirtualExpo project team}

The DJUST solution: a headless architecture native to Mirakl with DJUST

DJUST established itself as an agile solution compatible with the existing ecosystem, thanks to its native integration with Mirakl and its headless approach, allowing VirtualExpo to maintain control over its front-end.

VirtualExpo's main objectives were:

• To have an easily scalable technical stack
• To maintain fine-tuned control over the front-end for UX and SEO

Key features

1. Scalability

VirtualExpo wanted to be able to deploy several vertical marketplaces across multiple countries from the start. It was essential to choose a solution capable of managing:

• Large product catalogs with complex taxonomies
• Multiple storeviews (by language, country, or sector)

2. Front-end control

The VirtualExpo tech team needed a 100% API-based architecture to seamlessly integrate data into existing customer journeys. This control was also essential for their SEO strategy: enriching content offerings, meeting visitor expectations, and adapting to the evolution of AI search.

Results: adoption and measurable impact

Two years after launch:

• 2 active marketplaces (DirectIndustry, MedicalExpo) active in 4 European countries: France, Italy, Spain, Germany
• 300,000+ e-commerce products online
• 10 merchants onboarded each month, supported in diversifying their sales channels, or even gaining their first access to digital

“The headless approach offered by DJUST was a lever for transforming our business model, without sacrificing our digital heritage.”
_{VirtualExpo project team}

Conclusion

VirtualExpo successfully combined technological transformation with business continuity. By integrating DJUST without replatforming, the company is laying the foundations for a sustainable, modular B2B e-commerce model that can be extended to new verticals.

The headless approach offered by DJUST, combined with its compatibility with Mirakl, allowed us to integrate e-commerce in an agile way into our existing ecosystem. This transition, far from being a simple technical addition, was a true evolution of our business model. Today, we can offer a modern B2B e-commerce experience while capitalizing on our DNA and our legacy platforms.
_{‍VirtualExpo project team}