Wishflow

Wishflow is an iOS application that simplifies managing wish lists and gift groups for any occasion. The app enables users to organize wishes efficiently and coordinate gifts within groups, preventing duplicate presents and ensuring a smooth gifting experience.

Users can create, edit, and structure wish lists intuitively. A key feature allows adding wishes via a URL, automatically retrieving metadata such as title, image, and price when available through JSON-LD, OpenGraph, or title tags. This significantly speeds up adding products from online stores or product pages.

Built with SwiftUI, Wishflow integrates seamlessly with a Strapi backend to manage content and user data. The app also leverages native iOS features such as deep linking, calendar integration, notifications, and Spotlight Quick Actions to create a fluid and efficient experience.

Managing wish lists across groups often leads to miscommunication and duplicate gifts. Existing solutions frequently lack coordination features or require manual input for every wish, which slows down the process.

The challenge was to create an intuitive application that simplifies group gift coordination while maintaining flexibility and efficiency. Adding wishes needed to be fast and structured, especially when importing products from online stores.

Additionally, the system required a robust backend architecture capable of handling user data, gift assignments, and real-time updates in a scalable manner.

Wishflow was developed as a native iOS application using SwiftUI. The backend is powered by Strapi as a headless CMS, with PostgreSQL hosted on Aiven.io as the database solution.

All API communication is handled through StrapiSwift, a custom-built Swift package designed to simplify working with Strapi APIs. The app was developed in parallel with StrapiSwift, allowing both projects to evolve together.

To support URL-based wish creation, SwiftSoup is used to parse HTML and extract relevant metadata such as titles and images. Push notifications are implemented using @parse/node-apn, ensuring users stay informed about gift assignments and group activity.

By combining a structured backend with a modern native interface, Wishflow delivers a seamless and coordinated gifting experience.

Wishflow successfully provides a structured and efficient way to manage wish lists and gift groups. Users can coordinate gifts without duplication and quickly add wishes from online stores through automated metadata retrieval.

The app demonstrates a fully integrated architecture between a native SwiftUI frontend and a Strapi-powered backend. Developed alongside StrapiSwift, the project highlights a cohesive full-stack approach.

Wishflow is open source, and the repository is publicly available on GitHub, allowing others to explore the architecture and implementation.