Unico and Scandiweb Deliver 380.8% More Logins for a Leading Specialty Retailer

The Context

The client is a leading specialty retailer of apparel, footwear, and accessories, catering to young men and women who express themselves through active and alternative lifestyles. Operating in a fiercely competitive market, with a strong presence in the United States, Canada, and Europe, the brand knew that delivering an exceptional customer experience was critical to standing out. To achieve this, elevating the user experience became their primary mission, starting with modernizing their Magento (Adobe Commerce) authentication.

The Challenge

Implementing a seamless and secure paswordless authentication system came with several hurdles that needed careful navigation under a tight timeline ahead of the critical Black Friday period.

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• The Threat: Traditional passwords present long-standing vulnerabilities, including the risk of phishing, credentialstuffing, and brute-force attacks. Additionally, high volumes of password resetrequests drained IT resources and increased operational costs.
• The Bottleneck: There were significant technical challenges. First, technical compatibility: the Unico Connector required Magento version 2.4.4-p9, while the client’s system was still on version 2.4.4-p2, requiring an extra compatibility layer. Second, PWA adaptation: the available connector was not originally built for Progressive Web Apps (PWAs), demanding custom configurations.
• The Goal: To simplify registration and login processes, provide a more convenient and secure authentication experience, reduce friction and password reset requests, and boost customer retention with smoother interactions.

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The Solution

The retailer partnered with scandiweb to implement Unico’s passwordless technology. To deliver a seamless process across the client’s website and mobile apps, scandiweb worked closely with the Unico team to develop custom compatibility modules.  hey adapted the Unico Elite SDK for the client’s PWA environment, tailoring Scandi PWA-specific adjustments for seamless integration with Magento. This included modifying the GraphQL schema, optimizing routing, and preloading mechanisms.

The solution transitioned users from passwords to passkeys and device-based authentication, allowing users to log in through QR code scans or built-in biometric options. It also featured configurable two-factor authentication (2FA) for secure new device enrollments. Notably, for compatibility and fallback purposes within Magento, a password is still generated and stored for each user, but it is never used or accessed during the passwordless authentication process itself.

The Impact

The streamlined approach reduced friction for users, eliminated the common frustrations of traditional passwords, and delivered immediate, quantifiable business results:

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• Unprecedented Login Growth: The client saw a massive 380.8% increase in login events, demonstrating that more users were accessing their accounts with greater ease and confidence.
• Surge in Registrations: Registration conversions rose by 137.8%, indicating that the streamlined process encouraged more new users to sign up and engage with the brand.
• Operational Efficiency and Security: By relying on device-based keys and biometrics, the brand eliminated the risk of password theft and significantly reduced operational costs associated with IT resources handling password reset requests. The one-click login feature vastly improved customer engagement and repeat interactions.

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The Horizon

This shift to passwordless authentication positioned the client as a leader in user-friendly retail technology. Looking ahead, scandiweb designed the authentication system to be future-proof and scalable. By supporting multi-environment setups, the team enabled smooth management acrossvarious deployment stages. The introduction of scalable features like passkeys prepared the client’s platform to adapt to evolving authentication technologies, maintain robust protection for customer data, and foster greater long-term loyalty.

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