Once you have several thousand items, the usual techniques stop working: the menu cannot fit every section, filters become cumbersome, and search returns the wrong results. You need a different approach.
Sequence
The top level is made of large content groups – brands and suppliers have no place there.
What people actually search for deserves its own page. Everything else goes into filters.
For parts, it is compatibility; for clothing – size and color; for electronics and equipment – specifications.
In a large catalog, on-site search matters more than the menu: most users find products through it.
Tools
Autocomplete, search by SKU and search that tolerates typos.
"For beginners", "for professionals", "for a specific project" – ready-made collections save shoppers from digging on their own.
A must-have feature for technical niches: without it, shoppers will go elsewhere to compare.
Mistakes
We will rebuild the structure around real search queries: categories, filters, search and collections for a large product range.
