How Combat Corner Boosted Site Performance by 431% with Headless Commerce

Overview

Combat Corner started as a vision by former professional fighter Dan LaSavage in 2007. Frustrated by subpar gear that couldn’t stand up to intense training, he launched a line of high-quality martial arts equipment. Over time, the brand grew into a major supplier for gyms, dojos, and pro athletes across the globe, and began opening its doors to individual consumers. Yet, when it came time to power its online storefront, the team ran into speed and usability bottlenecks that threatened to stall growth.

The Challenge

Hosted on a legacy platform, the site suffered from slow page loads and an admin interface that was neither intuitive nor flexible. Marketing updates crawled through multiple teams, and each product change or content refresh felt like a heavy lift. Most critically, potential customers dropped off when key pages lagged—especially during heavy traffic or promotional pushes.

Crafting a Headless Solution

Combat Corner teamed up with Click Here Labs and a dedicated BigCommerce Customer Success Manager to rebuild the storefront. They adopted a headless approach: React for the front end, running on WP Engine’s Atlas, while keeping BigCommerce as the back-end engine for product, cart, and checkout services. This split architecture let the team tailor the user experience with modern React components, while benefiting from BigCommerce’s proven commerce APIs.

Optimizing the B2B Experience

Because a significant share of revenue came from wholesale accounts, Combat Corner implemented BigCommerce’s B2B features—customer groups, price lists, and bulk order tools. Now, pro teams see negotiated rates instantly and can reorder supplies in a few clicks. This personalized storefront logic simplified processes and deepened relationships with key buyers.

Automating Back-Office Workflows

To eliminate manual data entry and sync orders across systems, the team leveraged BigCommerce webhooks and APIs. Whenever a purchase is placed, an automated webhook transmits order details to Fishbowl for inventory management and to other internal tools. The result? Near-real-time accuracy and freed-up headcount.

Results

Since going headless, Combat Corner achieved a 431% overall performance boost, with a 604% gain in Speed Index and 328% faster First Contentful Paint. Page transitions feel snappier, and site admins can publish content without wrestling with clunky CMS flows. The combination of BigCommerce’s commerce APIs and React’s agility delivered a best-of-both-worlds experience that delights customers and empowers the internal team.

Looking Ahead

With a future-proof headless foundation in place, Combat Corner plans to expand its direct-to-consumer channel, launching custom-gear configuration tools and further automating workflows via new API integrations. By continuing to refine UX and speed, the brand is set to punch above its weight for years to come.