VANTA Backend

The backend API for Vanta E-commerce — a powerful, scalable, and easy-to-maintain system that powers the Vanta website.

This backend is specially designed for dropshipping today and can easily scale to own inventory & fulfillment in the future.

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✨ Key Features

• Google Sheet Auto Sync — The #1 feature requested by the client.
  Just edit the Google Sheet → products appear on the website automatically (syncs every 2 minutes).

• Full REST API for products with filtering and search.

• MongoDB as database for fast and flexible data handling.

• Category Support: Men (VantaBlack), Women (VantaRozze), Others (tech, gadgets, accessories, or anything).

• Variant Support (colors, sizes, etc.).

• CORS Ready for frontend integration.

• Vercel Serverless optimized (fast cold starts, reliable).

• Production Ready error handling and logging.

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🛠 Tech Stack

• Runtime: Node.js + Express (JavaScript)
• Database: MongoDB Atlas
• Google Sheets Integration: Google Sheets API v4 + Service Account
• Cron Jobs: Auto sync every 2 minutes (node-cron)
• Deployment: Vercel (Serverless Functions)
• Security: Helmet, CORS, Environment Variables

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📁 Project Structure

vanta-backend/
├── server.js                    # Main entry point
├── config/
│   └── db.js                    # MongoDB connection
├── models/
│   └── Product.js               # Product schema
├── routes/
│   ├── productRoutes.js         # GET products, filter, search
│   └── syncRoutes.js            # Google Sheet sync (manual + auto)
├── .env                         # Environment variables
├── vercel.json                  # Vercel configuration
└── package.json 

🔑 Environment Variables (.env)

PORT=5000
MONGO_URI=your_mongodb_atlas_connection_string

# Google Sheets
GOOGLE_SHEET_ID=your_google_sheet_id
GOOGLE_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_EMAIL=your-service-account@project.iam.gserviceaccount.com
GOOGLE_PRIVATE_KEY="-----BEGIN PRIVATE KEY-----\nYOUR_LONG_KEY_HERE\n-----END PRIVATE KEY-----\n"

# Cloudinary (Recommended for images)
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=your_cloud_name
CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=your_api_key
CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=your_api_secret

FRONTEND_URL=https://your-frontend.vercel.app

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📊 Google Sheet Format (Important)

Your Google Sheet must have these exact columns in Row 1:

ProductID	Title	Description	Price	SalePrice	Images	Category	Variants	SKU	Status
VB-001	...	...	1499	1299	url1,url2	Men	Black-M,Black-L	...	Active

Notes:

• Images: Multiple Cloudinary URLs separated by comma
• Category: Must be Men, Women, or Others
• Variants: Comma separated (e.g. Black-M,White-L)

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🚀 API Endpoints

Method	Endpoint	Description
GET	/	Health check
GET	/api/products	Get all active products
GET	/api/products?category=Men	Filter by category
GET	/api/products?search=shirt	Search by title
GET	/api/products/:productID	Get single product
POST	/api/sync/manual	Manual sync from Google Sheet
GET	/api/admin/stats	Admin statistics

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🔄 How Sync Works

• Auto Sync: Runs every 2 minutes automatically
• Manual Sync: Can be triggered via /api/sync/manual
• Compares ProductID and updates/creates/deletes products
• Very reliable and fast

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🖼 Image Recommendation

Use Cloudinary for best performance:

1. Upload images to Cloudinary
2. Copy direct URLs
3. Paste multiple URLs in Images column separated by comma

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📦 Deployment

Backend is deployed on Vercel as serverless functions.

Important: All environment variables must be added in Vercel Dashboard → Settings → Environment Variables.

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🔮 Future Ready

This backend is built to easily support:

• Real inventory management
• Order tracking
• Payment integration (Stripe, bKash, etc.)
• Supplier automation (AliExpress, etc.)
• Admin dashboard

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📞 Support & Contact

For technical issues:

• Check logs on Vercel
• Verify Google Sheet columns and Service Account permissions
• Make sure environment variables are correctly set

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Built for Vanta E-commerce
Backend by Salman Toha — April 2026