Operational Freedom: 100% automation of prepaid return labels, eliminating hours of manual logistics work.

Inventory Optimization: 42 legacy SKUs archived, untangling broken backend dependencies.

Performance Gains: 26% faster page loads (LCP) and 29% smoother user interactions (INP).

Foundational Trust: Transitioned from a "logistics nightmare" to a stable Onyx-tier support retainer.

Entera Skincare (enteraskincare.com) sits at the intersection of clinical biochemistry and boutique luxury. Founded by Nick Andrews—a biochemical engineer and peptide innovator—the brand specializes in high-potency, transdermal delivery systems for peptides like GHK-Cu and C60. Their flagship products, such as the Folitin Hair Growth Serum and Luminose Daily Firming Serum, are designed to deliver medical-grade results through an elegant, consumer-facing experience.

Since migrating to Shopify, the brand has seen significant scale, including a 108% increase in orders and a steady 4.43% conversion rate. However, this rapid growth outpaced their technical infrastructure, leading to the "logistics nightmare" that sparked our initial engagement.

Despite their market success, the technical reality behind the scenes was far from premium. The brand had been burned by previous developers, leaving behind a trail of fragile code and half-finished integrations. This resulted in significant operational bottlenecks:

Logistics Breakdown: The store could not generate prepaid return labels, forcing manual, time-consuming workarounds for every customer return.

Inventory Chaos: 42+ legacy SKUs and ghost bundles cluttered the backend, making fulfillment a guessing game.

Performance Issues: High interaction latency was eroding the premium feel of the customer experience.

For the start of this engagement, my priority was to integrate into the team and solve the problems that were costing the founders the most time. My approach focuses on technical empathy: understanding the business pain before touching the code.

By auditing the connection between Shopify and ShipStation, I identified and corrected deep-seated packaging data errors. This restored full automation to the returns process. Shipping rates are now accurate, and labels generate instantly within the Shopify admin, eliminating the need for manual entry.

I conducted a thorough audit of the product catalog and archived 42 outdated SKUs and legacy bundles. This untangled complex dependencies that were triggering checkout errors. To protect the brand, I also implemented a suite of compliant policy pages, ensuring the customer journey was transparent and legally sound.

The results of this focused technical care were visible within the first thirty days. By removing the "weight" of unused scripts and optimizing the backend logic, we achieved:

26% Reduction in LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): Dramatically faster initial page loads.

29% Reduction in INP (Interaction to Next Paint): Virtually eliminating the lag between a customer clicking and the site responding.

Operational Freedom: A 30% reduction in backend clutter, allowing for faster fulfillment. 42+ SKUs reduced to a manageable handful. ~3 apps removed from the site.

The success of this project illustrates the value of solving problems correctly from the start. After struggling with developers who left behind fragile code, Nick and Ashley now have a stable infrastructure and a partner they can rely on for the long term. These quotes were from a recent sync call discussing future opportunities for collaboration:

"I freaking love your work man."

" You're worth your weight in gold, Andres."

— Nick & Ashley Andrews, Founders (respectively)

Additionally, it is worth noting that I am continuing to maintain Entera's Shopify site, assisting with other projects and integrations now that we've stabilized a good portion of the site's major issues!

If your Shopify backend feels like a "nightmare" or you’ve been burned by developers who didn't take the time to understand your business, I can help. Whether you need a surgical stabilization like Entera or ongoing technical direction, let’s talk about getting your time back.