CodeixLab designed and built a halal discovery platform where people find verified businesses, suppliers, mosques, products and locations. The product is part directory, part marketplace and part operations system for listing owners and verification partners, delivered on the web and as a mobile app.
Project overview
- Industry: Marketplace and local discovery
- Services: web application development, mobile app development, SaaS product development
- Platforms: Public website, owner and admin dashboards, iOS and Android app (Expo)
- Tech stack: Ruby on Rails, PostgreSQL, Turbo, Stripe, Google Maps, Expo (React Native), Noticed for notifications
The challenge
Trust is the main product problem. A directory is only useful if people can understand location, certification, categories, business details and verification status at a glance. If one listing is wrong, users stop believing the rest.
Three groups need different tools. Visitors need fast, location-aware search that works on a phone. Business owners need a way to submit and manage listings and pay for premium placement. Verification partners and admins need structured review workflows with approvals, rejections and certificate expiry, so the badge on a listing actually means something.
Our approach
One source of truth
The Rails application owns listings, verification, billing, notifications, roles and admin operations. Every surface, web or mobile, reads from the same records, so a verification decision made by a partner is reflected everywhere immediately.
Typed API contracts for mobile
The Expo app consumes typed API endpoints for bootstrap data, search, authentication, saved businesses, notifications and map flows. Clear contracts let the web and mobile teams move independently without breaking each other.
Verification as a workflow, not a checkbox
Partners review submissions with approval, rejection, notes, metadata and expiry dates. When a certificate expires, the listing’s status changes automatically, which keeps the directory honest without manual policing.
Resilient mobile experience
The app includes fallback behaviour so the interface does not go blank when the API is slow or unreachable. Cached bootstrap data keeps categories and recent results usable on weak connections.
Key features
- Location-aware search with city, country, category, certification and distance filters
- Map views powered by Google Maps
- Owner listing management with Stripe-backed subscription plans
- Verification partner workflows with approvals, rejections, metadata and expiry
- Saved businesses and push or in-app notifications
- Admin moderation and operations dashboards
Engineering decisions that mattered
- Search matched to intent: users search by place and need first, so filters were built around location and certification rather than generic keywords.
- Paid placement without losing trust: subscriptions affect visibility features, never verification status.
- Offline-aware mobile: graceful fallbacks matter more than animations when connectivity is patchy.
What this means for your project
Directories and marketplaces in the UAE and the wider region live or die on trust and location. If you are planning one, read our guide to designing marketplace and directory search around trust and location, see the custom marketplace platform build, or book a free consultation.
Outcome
A trusted discovery platform with location-aware search, partner verification workflows, owner and admin roles, typed mobile APIs and paid listing operations.