- Client
- Mingly, a Czech dating site focused on safe dating
- What we did
- The complete web application from sign-up to the coach view, together with Česko.Digital
- Technology
- Next.js 14, React 18, headless WordPress, Socket.IO, Azure
BriefWhat did Mingly need?
A working dating site that could expand to other countries. Mingly is a Czech dating site that presents itself as a guide to safe dating. It is run by experts who have worked on dating for more than ten years. The project was created together with the community of expert volunteers at Česko.Digital.
The scope came from a design prototype in Figma and covered dozens of modules, from public pages to user management. The app had requirements that an ordinary dating site does not deal with:
- Matching by valuesUsers first fill in a questionnaire that is used to find a suitable match.
- An expert in the processA coach has to see the user's profile and give feedback on it.
- Accessible to everyoneSupport for blind users was part of the scope.
- Content without a developerThe client manages the About us section, self-development tips and podcasts on their own.
- Ready for new marketsLocalization and a separate deployment for another country.
The project started from scratch. There was no older system to build on, so we designed the architecture, the data model and the deployment from the ground up for Mingly's needs.
SolutionWhat can the app do?
Dating, community and the coach's work in one application. We built it on Next.js with WordPress as the content and data back end. The social features run on BuddyPress, real-time messages on Socket.IO, and the whole solution runs on Microsoft Azure.
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Dating
Sign-up and onboarding, a matching questionnaire about values and plans for the future, browsing other users' profiles, friends and favorites, and LoveReport.
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Messaging and community
Real-time messages between users, rooms for a community of like-minded people, and in-app notifications.
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Expert support
A coach view of the user's profile with feedback, self-development tips, articles and podcasts from WordPress, and courses.
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Operations and management
Profile, settings and support, user management for the Mingly team, subscription packages with the ČSOB payment gateway, and support for blind users.
ArchitectureWhat does Mingly run on?
Next.js on top of headless WordPress, in the Microsoft Azure ecosystem. WordPress gives the client comfortable content management, and BuddyPress a ready-made base for profiles, friendships and groups. We wrote the app's own logic and the entire user interface in Next.js.
| Part | Choice | What for |
|---|---|---|
| Front endinterface | TypeScript, Next.js 14, React 18, Tailwind CSS, Flowbite, Headless UI | A consistent, responsive interface, animations with Framer Motion, charts with Chart.js |
| Formssign-up, questionnaire | React Hook Form, Zod, Jotai | Validating long forms and managing app state |
| Content and databack end | Headless WordPress, BuddyPress REST API, MySQL | The client manages content on their own, social features have a ready-made base |
| Messagingreal time | Socket.IO | Messages and community rooms without reloading the page |
| Identitysign-in and secrets | NextAuth with JWT, Azure Key Vault | Sign-in tied to WordPress users, secrets kept out of the code |
| Operationscloud | Azure App Service, Blob Storage, Application Insights, Docker | Running the app, photos and files compressed in the browser, production monitoring |
| DeploymentCI/CD | GitHub Actions | Separate pipelines for the Czech version, the Spanish version and the test environment |
ExpansionHow did Mingly reach another country?
From the same codebase, with only a different configuration, translation and content. Expanding to other countries was part of the brief from the start. Next to the Czech version at mingly.cz, a Spanish version now runs at mingly.mx. Each country has its own deployment, localization through i18next and its own WordPress instance with content for that market.
ProcessHow did development go?
In two phases, in a weekly rhythm, with the client at the table. We managed the project in Jira together with the client's product owner. Throughout development we held regular weekly meetings with the Mingly team to go through the current state, deal with blockers and set priorities for the next week.
- DesignA design prototype in Figma that defined the scope of every module.
- Phase 1The core of the app: sign-up, questionnaire, onboarding, profiles, dating, messages, LoveReport, the coach view and user management.
- Phase 2Extensions: notifications, subscriptions, courses, community and rooms, support for blind users and the desktop layout.
On Develogi's side, the team was a project manager, an architect, a lead developer responsible for the back end, requirements analysis and mentoring, and a front-end developer.
In the client's wordsHow does Mingly see the collaboration?
“Working with Develogi was great. Communication worked from start to finish, thanks to the weekly meetings we always had an overview of where the project stood, and everything was delivered within the agreed deadlines. When something didn't work, the team got in touch right away and together we always found a solution quickly.” (translated)
Mgr. Kristýna Mertlová and Mgr. Ing. Jakub Mertl, Ph.D., Mingly4