🔑 BarterKey - the story of the key that opened not only doors, but also eyes

Winter 2016.
The attic of a single-family house in Gypsy Forest, a magically located district of Bielsko-Biała. It was there, at a desk overlooking trees and deer tracks in the snow, our first major project was born.

Back then we were still called Code Town.
We were a team of several people with a head full of ideas and a heart for creating things that make sense.

It all started with a simple question that was asked during a conversation with a friendly businessman:

"Why is it still so difficult for local companies to exchange what they have for what they need?"

Instead of letting the thought go in passing - we wrote it down. And then we invited dozens of business owners for meetings and brainstorming sessions. We listened. We took notes. We drew the first mockups. And that's how the idea was born: A platform for exchanging products and services between companies - with the option to negotiate before the transaction.

We called it BarterKey - because it was supposed to be the key to cooperation based on trust and reciprocity.

Heart, code and great hope

We built the platform from scratch - backend on .NET Core, database on SQL Server, architecture ready for development and integrations. We designed the UX to be as intuitive as a conversation over coffee. The color red in the logo - the only accent - symbolized energy, courage and readiness for action.

We were proud. We were filled with the feeling that we were creating something worthwhile - a tool that can realistically help local businesses.

BarterKey was not just a platform.
He was our manifesto: Technology can bring people together and foster local cooperation.

A reality that cannot be programmed

We launched the platform. We promoted it. We met with entrepreneurs. We educated. We showed how easy it is to exchange services and products without involving cash.

But something didn't work.
The companies - despite their interest - were not ready to exchange without money.
The trust that barter needed has yet to take root.
The system was working. The process was refined. The need-but not common enough.

With pain in our hearts, but with full knowledge, we have decided to end the project. BarterKey has gone into the archives, and its Facebook profile - called "Reciprocity is OK" - to this day reminds us of this chapter of our history:
👉 https://www.facebook.com/BarterKey

💡Technology did not let us down, it gave us the future

Although BarterKey has not captured the market, gave us something priceless:

• We built the first major system from scratch,

• We learned to talk to users and design for them,

• We made mistakes that later helped us to act faster and better.

And above all: We have proven to ourselves that we can build something of value - from idea to implementation.

BarterKey was our test field. It is on him that we learned to integrate systems, create flexible architectures and build products with the real user in mind.

This experience opened the door for us to more projects - for banks, logistics companies, public institutions. The technology we harnessed then, today works for our clients every day.

🔚 Epilogue with an open door

BarterKey was a start.
Not a failure - but foundation.

Because every line of code, every conversation with an entrepreneur and every hour of work - got us to where we are today.
At Digital Templars, we believe that even projects that have not hit their stride can be the key to the future. You just have to store them well - and know when to try to open them again.

BarterKey was our the key to maturity as a team.
It was then that the road began, which a few years later led us to transform Code Town into a Digital Templars - a company that today implements advanced systems for the railroad, banking or logistics industries.