What Is MACH Architecture?
MACH architecture is a new-age technology principle used for building next-generation e-commerce solutions for businesses of every scale and size. MACH commerce solutions are ecommerce platforms built on Microservices-based, API-first, Cloud-native and Headless architecture. MACH commerce solutions use the best-in-breed technologies for building agile, flexible and innovative ecommerce solutions.
MACH architecture has the following components:
Microservices: Microservices are stand-alone pieces of business functionality that are developed, deployed and managed independent of each other. Microservices in the MACH architecture are usually designed to perform a single function like checkout, advanced search, product variants etc
API-first: API or Application Programming Interface is the intermediary software that helps two or more software to talk to one another. API-first approach facilitates agile software development and by tying together any number of applications or services on a MACH-based platform
Cloud-Native: Cloud-native means that software development and delivery is cloud-based. This component of MACH architecture ensures inherent elastic scalability, automatic upgrades, reliability and good uptime
Headless Commerce: Headless architecture decouples the front-end and backend of an e-commerce solution. This decoupled setup helps in creating a variety of personalized buyer journeys and user experiences on multiple customer touchpoints using the same backend logic and APIs
MACH architecture helps businesses use the best technology/software/ services to develop any specific business functionality or module. All these components of the MACH-based platform StoreHippo enable businesses to build customizable, extensible, agile and scalable ecommerce solutions.
What Are MACH Architecture Benefits
MACH e-commerce platform offers a great improvement over traditional ecommerce solutions as it allows more creative freedom and control to create out-of-box ecommerce solutions. Each component of the MACH architecture,i.e; Microservice, API-first, Clour-native and Headless have their own benefits.
Here is how MACH architecture benefits help enterprise ecommerce businesses and brands in charting their growth:
Benefits Of MACH E-commerce Platform With Microservices
Microservices used in MACH architecture are used to build individual components that can be glued together to perform a variety of simple or complex functions on an ecommerce store. Here is how they help your business:
Reduce Operational Costs: When designed adequately, it is easy to scale any or all of the microservices independently. This feature helps in bringing down the infrastructure cost of the overall ecommerce solution
Compostable Ecommerce Solutions: As each microservice is an independent building block, it is possible to replace any of them with a better native solution or use the best-in-breed 3rd party software/services. The easy composability of microservices helps businesses build and deploy best-in-class solutions on their MACH e-commerce platform
Fault Isolation For High Availability: It is easy to detect and isolate any faulty microservices component in the MACH architecture. Even if one or some of the microservices of the MACH commerce solution are down, others are not impacted by it and continue to render seamless functionalities
Easy Upgrades: Since each microservice is independent of the other, it is easy to upgrade or change them in isolation. There is no need to write a huge upgrade, patch, update etc. for the whole ecommerce solution at the same time. This unique feature of MACH architecture for ecommerce enables businesses to roll out new changes quickly
Advantages Of API-First MACH Architecture For Ecommerce
The API-first design of MACH architecture gives immense creative control to build tailor-made solutions for your brand. Here is how your brand can benefit from this component on a MACH-based platform:
Enhanced Flexibility: Gives you the freedom to choose and use the best-fit front-end technology for designing custom solutions for your unique business needs
Fast And Easy Development: APIs help in using the same backend logic with new and unique frontends. This enables fast development without the need for duplicating the backend logic for each customer touchpoint
Faster Go-To-Market: The API-first MACH architecture reduces the time-to-market substantially by making it easy to implement new touchpoints by using and extending the existing API capabilities of the MACH e-commerce platform
Benefits Of Cloud-Native MACH-Based Platform
Ecommerce solutions designed on the cloud-native principle and MACH architecture are delivered using the SaaS model. Cloud-native solutions enable enterprise businesses to reap the benefits inherent to the SaaS business model. Here is how enterprise brands benefit from this:
- Agile On-demand Solutions: A cloud-native SaaS-based MACH e-commerce platform helps enterprise businesses to use the service offered as a whole or only the components that are in demand at a given point in time.
For example, StoreHippo MACH-based platform offers a host of inbuilt features and tools which can be used by enterprise businesses as and when they need it. They can easily begin with fewer features and move on to higher subscription plans with advanced features as and when their business scales up. With the MACH architecture, they don’t need to rebuild the whole solution again which gives them the agility to experiment and make new changes in their MACH commerce solutions.
Benefits Of Using MACH Architecture And Headless Commerce Solutions
The decoupled headless solutions for ecommerce make it possible for enterprise brands to build disruptive omnichannel solutions that open up new growth opportunities. This is how headless architecture helps brands:
- Go Omnichannel: The headless approach in MACH architecture for ecommerce helps brands build seamless omnichannel journeys for their customers. They can easily personalise the buyer journey on each of these different channels and sell better by meeting their customers across multiple touchpoints
Disruptive Ecommerce Solutions: With headless commerce’s decoupled architecture businesses get the flexibility to use different technologies and solutions to build out-of-box solutions in no time. Since the same backend logic is used for various touchpoints it saves on cost and time needed for development
Extensive Customizations: With headless commerce at the core of MACH architecture enterprise brands can go for solutions beyond the capabilities of their existing tools, features and technologies. They can build bespoke MACH commerce solutions designed for the unique requirements of their brand
Experiment With New Business Models: MACH architecture makes it easy for enterprise businesses to experiment with new business models that are better suited for changing customer behaviour and current trends of the ecommerce domain. They can easily extend their existing features and functionalities and create new ones to cater to their customers’ needs
StoreHippo MACH e-commerce platform is designed to offer cutting-edge solutions for brands planning to go D2C or omnichannel. Enterprise brands can easily build the most innovative solutions in record time using the cloud-native, API and microservices-based headless architecture of StoreHippo top ecommerce platform.
Why StoreHippo Is The Best MACH E-Commerce Platform For Disruptive Online Businesses
StoreHippo MACH e-commerce commerce platform is a SaaS-based, cloud-native solution designed to build disruptive ecommerce solutions for enterprise brands. With 300+ API endpoints, StoreHippo helps brands leverage MACH architecture benefits for brands looking for an omnichannel presence.
Built grounds-up on the MACH architecture, StoreHippo enables brands to easily scale their backend and frontend to suit the unique demands of a large business. With a MACH-based platform, brands can build ecommerce solutions aligned with their brand identity and replicate them across multiple customer touchpoints.
With its 300+ inbuilt features and 120+ integrations, StoreHippo enables brands to use the best in breed software for ERP, CRM, payment, shipping marketing, accounting etc. Brands can easily create the most innovative online marketplace solutions, location-based multi stores or explore new markets with multilingual websites to grow their business.
Built on the mobile-first principle StoreHippo helps brands leverage MACH architecture benefits for business growth.StoreHippo also comes with an inbuilt mobile app builder and enables brands to turn their online store into PWA within a few clicks. Storehippo inbuilt marketing features along with a wide spectrum of payment options and integrated shipping solutions helps brands to realize the true potential of their business.
Ready to disrupt the ecommerce battleground with your innovative business solutions? Check the MACH architecture benefits for different B2B and B2C brands powered by StoreHippo MACH commerce solutions. Explore StoreHippo MACH-based platform by starting your 14-day free trial now.