Exploring Publishing a Component Library for VC Firms

Date: 2024-12-18 Project: Astro Knots / @knots packages Status: Shelved for future exploration

Background

We have an astro-knots monorepo with a packages/ directory containing @knots/* packages (tokens, icons, astro, svelte, brand-config, tailwind). The original vision was to create a component/UI library similar to shadcn or Material UI.

Current reality: We’ve been focused on shipping client sites, so the packages are more like “reference patterns to copy from” rather than a proper publishable library.

Three Goals Identified

1. Brand Credibility

Having a published component library signals expertise. Projects like shadcn and WebcoreUI demonstrate this approach. For our agency, a published library would reinforce positioning as experts in Astro/modern web dev.

2. Operational Leverage

We specialize in websites for venture capital firms. Currently serving 5, but there are ~4,000 VC firms globally. The goal is to serve significantly more without proportionally growing the team. This requires radical efficiencies - patterns like:

Team pages
Portfolio grids
Investment thesis sections
LP-gated content

3. CDN-Style Distribution (Ideal)

Rather than npm package dependencies, the ideal would be something like Mermaid.js or Reveal.js - include a link/script and get access to maintained components. Updates would flow automatically without sites needing to rebuild or update dependencies.

Technical Challenge

Astro components are server-rendered at build time, not runtime. You can’t <script src="knots.js"> and get Astro components the way Mermaid works with diagrams.

Potential Approaches

Approach	How it works	Tradeoffs
Web Components	Compile to `<knots-team-card>` custom elements, host on CDN	Works anywhere, but loses Astro’s server rendering benefits
shadcn-style CLI	`npx @knots/cli add team-card` pulls source into site	No runtime dependency, version tracking, but still requires rebuilds
Tailwind preset + tokens	CDN hosts CSS, sites use class conventions	Styling stays synced, but components are still copied
Hosted Astro partials	Sites fetch pre-rendered HTML from an API at build time	Complex, but could work for truly dynamic sharing
VC Starter Kit / Theme	Fork-per-client with selective upstream merges	Less “library”, more “template with updates”

Current State (CLAUDE.md Philosophy)

From the existing CLAUDE.md:

@knots/* packages are “copyable pattern references”, not shared dependencies
Patterns flow FROM sites TO packages (extraction), then FROM packages TO sites (copying)
No runtime dependency
Sites must be independently deployable

This is actually closer to shadcn (copy source into your project) than Material UI (npm install and import).

Questions to Revisit

Is the shadcn CLI model sufficient? (npx @knots/cli add team-card copies source with version tracking)
Could Web Components work for interactive pieces while keeping Astro components for SSR content?
Is the real product a “VC firm website starter kit” rather than a generic component library?
What’s the minimum viable version that provides brand credibility without massive maintenance burden?

Components Already Built (Candidates for Library)

From Dark Matter site work:

TeamMemberCard.astro - Compact centered card for team grids
TeamMemberCard--Wide.astro - Horizontal card with pillar badges
SocialIcons.astro - Social link icons with platform detection
Various narrative sections (TheAgingCrisis, ExitPotential, etc.)

Next Steps (When Revisited)

Audit existing @knots/* packages - what’s actually there vs. what’s documented
Decide on distribution model (shadcn CLI vs Web Components vs CDN CSS)
Build one end-to-end example (e.g., TeamMemberCard published and consumable)
Evaluate maintenance overhead vs. efficiency gains

Shelved to focus on current client deliverables. Return to this when bandwidth allows.