Chipmart E-Commerce Store (Learning Project)

Overview

This is a full-stack e-commerce application built with Ruby on Rails as a learning project.

The goal is to deeply understand:

• Rails MVC architecture
• Database design & associations
• Real-world business logic (cart → order → checkout)
• Authentication & authorization
• Scalable app structure

---

Project Goals

By the end of this project, I should be able to:

• Design relational data models confidently
• Build full CRUD flows in Rails
• Handle sessions and state (cart system)
• Implement authentication and authorization
• Manage multi-step workflows (checkout)
• Structure a production-ready Rails app

---

Tech Stack

• Ruby on Rails (Full Stack)
• PostgreSQL
• ERB (views)
• Tailwind
• Devise (authentication)
• Active Storage (file uploads)
• Payment processor integration --- Stripe or Pesapal or any alternative I figure out with time.

---

Development Roadmap

✅ Milestone 0: Project Setup (DONE)

• Initialize Rails app
• Setup PostgreSQL
• Initial project structure ready

---

Milestone 1: Product Catalog (CORE FOUNDATION)

Goal: Users can browse products

Tasks

• Generate Category model

• Generate Product model

• Setup associations:

  • Category has_many Products
  • Product belongs_to Category

• Add validations:

  • Product: name, price, stock, description
  • Category: name

• Create ProductsController:

  • index
  • show

• Setup routes:

  • root → products#index
  • products#index
  • products#show

• Build views:

  • product listing page
  • product detail page

• Seed sample data (10+ products)

Success Criteria

• Users can view products
• Each product has valid data
• Relationships work correctly

---

🛠️ Milestone 2: Admin Product Management

Goal: Admin can manage products and categories

Tasks

• Create Admin namespace

• Admin::ProductsController (full CRUD)

• Admin::CategoriesController (full CRUD)

• Build forms:

  • new/edit product
  • new/edit category

• Reuse form partials

Success Criteria

• Admin can create/edit/delete products
• Categories are assignable to products

---

Milestone 3: Authentication & Roles

Goal: Introduce users and restrict admin access

Tasks

• Generate User model

• Add fields:

  • email
  • password_digest
  • role

• Implement authentication (Devise)

• Add roles:

  • admin
  • customer

• Protect admin routes

Success Criteria

• Users can sign up and log in
• Only admins access admin panel

---

Milestone 4: Cart System (SESSION-BASED)

Goal: Users can add products to a cart

Tasks

• Implement session-based cart:

  • session[:cart]

• Cart actions:

  • add item
  • remove item
  • update quantity

• Create CartController:

  • show
  • add_item
  • remove_item
  • update_item

• Build cart page:

  • list items
  • show totals

Success Criteria

• Cart persists per session
• Totals calculate correctly

---

Milestone 5: Orders System

Goal: Convert cart into an order

Tasks

• Generate Order model

• Generate OrderItem model

• Setup associations:

  • User has_many Orders
  • Order has_many OrderItems
  • OrderItem belongs_to Product

• Add fields:

  • Order: status, total_amount, address
  • OrderItem: quantity, unit_price, subtotal

• Implement checkout flow:

  • create order
  • move cart items → order items
  • clear session cart

Success Criteria

• Orders are created correctly
• Prices are stored at purchase time

---

Milestone 6: Checkout Flow

Goal: Complete purchase process

Tasks

• Create checkout page

• Capture:

  • shipping address
  • phone number

• Add order confirmation page

• Add order statuses:

  • pending
  • paid
  • shipped
  • cancelled

Success Criteria

• User can complete an order end-to-end

---

Milestone 7: Payments (SIMULATED → REAL)

Goal: Introduce payment logic

Phase 1 (Fake Payment)

• Add payment_method
• Add payment_status

Phase 2 (Optional)

• Integrate Stripe
• Handle webhooks

Success Criteria

• Orders track payment status correctly

---

Milestone 8: Polish & Enhancements

Goal: Improve UX and realism

Features

• Product search
• Category filtering
• Pagination
• Image uploads (Active Storage)
• Order history (user)
• Admin order management
• Email confirmations
• Stock updates after purchase

Success Criteria

• App feels like a real product

---

---

Development Philosophy

• Build in small vertical slices
• Make it work → then clean → then improve
• Avoid over-engineering early
• Focus on understanding, not speed

---

Current Focus

Milestone 1: Product Catalog

---

🏁 Definition of Done (v1)

Customer Side

• Browse products
• View product details
• Add to cart
• Place order
• View order history

Admin Side

• Manage products
• Manage categories
• View orders
• Update order status

---

Notes

This README is a living roadmap and will evolve as the project grows.