Precision Power: Flexible Search at OBI

Search in online shops is becoming increasingly complex, which meant our client OBI faced a major challenge: the shop was running on a search technology where the ranking of search results could only be customized to a very limited extent. In this article, we take a closer look at the project.

Challenge

• domain-specific requirements (such as variable prices and stock levels across stores) had to be taken into account

• high configuration effort of the existing search

• insufficient ability to customize search result ranking

Solution

• development of a new search tool based on an open source search engine

• cloud deployment with a Java backend and Vue frontend in a Kubernetes environment

• custom search architecture with a flexible, scalable structure

• integration of new features such as search by dimension

Results

• significant improvements in search quality and performance

• higher conversion and click-through rates

• cost savings through cloud migration

• reduced configuration effort

• page speed up to three times faster

• increased revenue

• foundation for internationalization and AI integration

This advanced architecture gives OBI what was previously missing: flexibility, scalability, and above all a better conversion rate.

OBI - A strong franchise system

We have been supporting OBI in operating and continuously evolving its online shop since 2010. With more than 640 stores in Europe, including 349 in Germany, plus an online business, OBI is one of the largest DIY retailers in Germany. The online shop was originally designed as a way for customers to browse the product catalog. The initial assumption was that customers would research online and then complete their purchase in-store – a concept known as ROPO (Research Online, Purchase Offline).

In recent years, however, OBI has increasingly shifted its focus to online sales and expanded this channel, among other things in collaboration with neuland. E-commerce is becoming ever more important, a trend also shaped by the franchise structure of the stores. The stores are operated by different retailers as franchise partners who sell the OBI assortment locally.

neuland’s response to complex search requirements

The previous search technology in OBI’s online shop had several limitations and made it difficult to meet domain-specific requirements such as variable prices and stock levels across different stores.

The new architecture enables a flexible, modular structure that allows the search functionality to be tailored to OBI’s specific needs. The project team manages search completely autonomously, meaning they take full ownership and deliver the solution end-to-end to the customer.

The open-source engine provides a robust set of tools designed to handle complex user needs. This is best illustrated by capabilities like search by dimension, which automatically reconciles unit discrepancies. By implementing such intelligent features, the system ensures that search results are not just fast, but highly relevant to the user's actual intent.

On top of that, development time for new features is significantly shorter, enabling the implementation of complex requirements such as search engine optimization (SEO) and the integration of retail media within the shop. The team no longer has to build workarounds to circumvent the limitations of a black-box system. Instead, they can design and test their own solution concepts for every need or problem.

Measurable success: the impact of an optimized search

The dominance of search functionality is not just a UX trend—it is a revenue driver. By replacing the old licensed technology with a custom neuland solution, we unlocked value across three key dimensions:

• Performance & Revenue: The new architecture delivers a Time-to-First-Byte up to three times faster. This speed directly contributed to higher conversion rates and revenue growth during A/B testing.

• Cost & Agility: Moving to an in-house, cloud-based model generated substantial cost savings. More importantly, the close collaboration between the neuland and OBI teams allowed for rapid feature rollouts without disrupting ongoing operations.

• Innovation Readiness: The platform is built for what’s next. We have already executed a successful PoC for vector search, proving that the system is ready for AI integration and international scaling.