REACT DEVELOPMENT
React development.
Component architecture that holds up as an application grows, and state management that does not become the source of your bugs.
STRUCTURE AND STATE
The decisions that stop React getting messy.
React makes it easy to start and offers no opinion about how to organise anything. That is why codebases can begin cleanly then become difficult around the fifty-component mark: no consistent structure, props threaded through five layers, and components that do too much to reuse.
The other recurring problem is state. Treating server data as client state, then storing it globally, creates work just to keep it synchronised. Separating genuine client state from server data removes an entire category of bugs.
THE FOUNDATIONS
Component structure and state boundaries are early decisions that cost far more to change later.
WHAT I BUILD
Interfaces that keep shipping.
New frontend work and careful improvements inside applications with an existing codebase.
New application frontends
Interfaces built from approved designs with a practical route into production.
Existing React feature work
New product work that follows the conventions already serving the team.
Component libraries
Reusable components and design systems that make future work faster and more consistent.
Performance work
Bundle size, render behaviour, data fetching, and large-list performance.
Incremental refactoring
Structural improvements without stopping the product from shipping.
Modern React migrations
A sensible route from older patterns to current React where the change is useful.
HOW I BUILD
A frontend system with clear boundaries.
The technical approach stays intentionally simple so the next developer can understand it quickly.
Composition over configuration
Small components combined together, rather than large components controlled by dozens of props.
Server data separated from client state
React Query handles server data. A store is used only for genuine client state.
TypeScript throughout
Typed props and API responses catch errors before they reach production.
Colocated code
Related components, logic, and styles live together rather than being scattered by file type.
Accessibility as standard
Semantic elements, keyboard navigation, focus management, and usable states are part of the build.
REACT OR NEXT.JS
Choose the framework when it earns its place.
Plain React is right for internal tools, dashboards, and applications behind a login where SEO is irrelevant and server rendering adds complexity for nothing.
Next.js is the stronger choice when pages need to be indexed, initial load speed matters commercially, or server rendering and routing are part of the product requirement. Most public-facing products justify it. Most internal tools do not.
“Use React for the application you have, not the framework trend of the moment.”
COMMON QUESTIONS
React, clearly scoped.
The practical questions before new React work or an inherited codebase starts.
Can you work in our existing React codebase?
Yes. Existing conventions are matched rather than replaced for their own sake.
Which state management do you use?
React Query for server data. Redux Toolkit or Zustand for genuine client state, if it is needed at all.
Do you build the backend too?
Yes, although frontend-only engagements are common.
Can you fix a slow React application?
Usually. Most problems come from render behaviour, bundle size, or data fetching patterns.
Do you write tests?
On the logic that matters: business rules, complex components, and critical paths.
Class components or hooks?
Hooks for new work. Existing class components remain unless there is a reason to change them.
Need React development?
Send the designs or the repo. You will get a clear scope and a sensible technical route forward.

