Turning a Fragmented Legacy System into a Scalable SaaS Engine

Turning a Fragmented Legacy System into a Scalable SaaS Engine

Nicklpass operates a SaaS platform that provides organizations with access to premium online publishers including newspapers, magazines, and digital media platforms. To deliver this service at scale, Nicklpass relies on a complex software ecosystem that manages users, organizations, publishers, pricing, authentication flows, and automated access to third-party platforms via browser extension and login scripts. The platform serves tens of thousands of users across hundreds of organizations and plays a critical role in Nicklpass’s core business model.

The Challenge

When we joined the project, the platform was built on a heavy legacy foundation that was not designed for scale or high operational load.

Key business data including publishers, pricing, credentials, organizations, and user mappings were distributed across external tools such as spreadsheets, documents, and third-party services, creating fragmentation and limiting system reliability.

This resulted in:
  • Strong dependence on manual operations for core business processes
  • Poor performance when working with large datasets
  • Lack of automation across key workflows
  • No bulk operations or advanced data management tools
  • Incomplete and unstable system modules
  • Critical business processes breaking end-to-end workflows
  • High operational load on customer support and sales teams

Even basic operations — such as moving users between organizations or generating usage reports — required hours of manual work.
This significantly limited the platform’s ability to scale and grow efficiently.

Our Solution

We optimized and extended the existing legacy system by introducing a new automation and scalability layer on top of the current architecture.

Our work focused on stabilizing core business processes, centralizing data, and building new product capabilities that enable operational efficiency and self-service without rewriting the platform from scratch.

The result is a modernized SaaS ecosystem that enhances the existing system with scalable, automated, and business-oriented functionality.

Key Solution Components

  • Centralized Data Architecture - Migrated business-critical data from external spreadsheets and documents into the platform database.
  • Bulk Operations & Workflow Automation - Implemented bulk actions for users, organizations, groups, publishers, and credentials.
  • Advanced Reporting & Analytics - Built a real-time reporting system for key business processes and flows.
  • System-Wide Activity Logging - Added full audit logs for all critical system actions.
  • Sales Pricing & Package Engine - Developed a pricing calculator for building custom publisher packages and commercial offers.
  • Self-Service Customer Portal - Built a portal for customers to manage subscriptions, organizations, users, usage, and payments.
  • Credential Expiration Monitoring - Implemented automatic validation and expiration checks for publisher credentials.
  • Infrastructure & Performance Refactor - Refactored legacy code, completed unfinished modules, and optimized system performance.


80%
of core operational workflows are automated
1,300
operational hours saved annually
14%
New user acquisition increase

Web App

Tech Stack

Frontend Icon

Frontend

Next.js, Stimulus.js, React

Backend Icon

Backend

Ruby on Rails

Database Icon

Database

PostgreSQL

Infrastructure Icon

Infrastructure

Heroku

AI Icon

AI

OpenAI, embeddings, vector search

Impact & Results

The transformation delivered operational efficiency gains across the organization. By streamlining core workflows and eliminating manual bottlenecks, the company now saves over 1,300 operational hours annually. Support ticket resolution became 35% faster, while overall customer support workload dropped by 40%. With 85% of business-critical data now managed internally, the team significantly reduced dependency on external spreadsheets and third-party tools. Manual operations were cut by more than 95% for key processes, resulting in an 300× time compression for critical workflows. 

By automating data flows, the team reduced sales deal preparation time by 50%. This not only improved internal efficiency but also accelerated decision-making, resulting in a 50% faster deal closing cycle and enabling the sales team to focus more on strategy and revenue growth. 

Beyond operational and sales improvements, the transformation delivered measurable financial and growth impact. Support automation generated over $18,000 in annual operational cost savings, while the new scalable architecture enabled growth without increase of headcount. The business achieved 5.8% year-over-year revenue growth, with SaaS subscription revenue rising by 14%. The platform now processes $90,000 in annual transaction volume while maintaining a stable average revenue per user of $22 ARPU — demonstrating sustainable monetization.

Client say

Sumorwuo Zaza

MateCube's efforts have resulted in a 70% reduction in the client's sales cycle and churn. The team has provided timely, above-the-scope deliverables and communicates via WhatsApp and Zoom. MateCube's ability to simultaneously architect and develop has been a hallmark of their work.

Sumorwuo Zaza

CEO @ Nicklpass

CEO @ Nicklpass logo

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