Westfield Line Pass Details

The Line Pass system provides a way for retailers at Westfield centers to opt-in as they desire, at no extra cost. When a retailer decides to utilize the system, their company name and logo is displayed within a list of other participating retailers in a single unified, easy to search list. Each entry conveys to the customer how they can get in line (queue, scheduled time or both) with clear estimates for expected wait times. Meanwhile, the existing Westfield Connect app for retailers exposes the admin section of the third party system to store employees so that they can manage the allowed number and method of entry for customers in line.

Our Approach

Lightning Fast Implementation

Due to the sporadic and conflicting nature of reopening protocols in different states during the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for a fast turnaround time was crucial. This was by far the fastest project (from inception to implementation to release) our team had worked on for Westfield. The turnaround time was the driving force behind using a third party to provide a reliable queuing system that could be built upon and integrated into the Westfield ecosystem.

The team decided to work closely with the third party queuing system developers for a deep integration with our existing system. A microservice written in Node.js was chosen for quick development and easy configuration. The backend team worked together to quickly offer public facing APIs for entering a queue, scheduling a visit time and providing real-time hooks to keep customers updated on their place in line, expected wait time and direct communication with the retailer.

Meanwhile, the Mobile team worked with European counterparts to offer a unified system for both US and international properties. The integration with both iOS and Android apps was able to offer bold and easily understood options for joining a queue or viewing a real-time update on their current wait time. This was easily accomplished by utilizing OpenAPI Generator to create on-the-fly SDKs for both mobile platforms from service-specific Swagger files.

Case Outcomes

Retailer Response Was Huge

Retailers across the different Westfield centers lined up in big numbers to sign up for Line Pass. The platform was rolled out to center after center without any major issues and had a massive adoption rate. Some retailers created their own integrations with the system from their web pages, which allows customers to jump into the Line Pass system from a third party source, then follow along the journey using the Westfield mobile app

Interdepartmental Confidence Increased

After a successful and quick release of the Line Pass platform, the Westfield Digital team gained a large amount of confidence from other inter-office departments. This has resulted in increased requests for inter-department projects with the Digital team, which means more projects and a greater amount of staffing from Tech Holding.

Summary

Designing a tool to help alleviate new and unprecedented challenges on a tight deadline is a hefty challenge in even the best of times. Working together with the different departments at Westfield and leveraging a third party provider allowed us to offer a quick and elegant solution. Collaboration, communication and the confidence to tackle an unforeseen challenge allowed Tech Holding to stand strong in our commitment to customer satisfaction