Direct-to-consumer (D2C) retail was accelerated by Covid-19 as it forced many brands to revisit the way they deliver their product offering and provide additional value to customers.

In early 2021, Breville partnered with commercetools to re-platform its online store to address changing customer needs and to prepare for the post-Covid digital era. 

After relying on the same commerce platform since 2007, Breville recognised the need to create an omnichannel customer experience for consumers to fulfil their coffee needs in a one-stop-shop.

The new system architecture caters for the purchase of Breville’s range of home appliances, including coffee machines and grinders, as well as coffee beans and grounds with the integration of third-party suppliers and allows for a repeat purchase subscription during the initial transaction. More broadly, the solution has enabled Breville to improve its speed to market and deliver new features in a matter of days.

The headless commerce architecture allows Breville to manage its multiple brands available here in Australia and in overseas markets, including Breville, Sage and Beanz, with the ability to add customisation for pricing, bundling and promotions.

commercetools Australia and New Zealand territory director, Joshua Emblin believes the rise in D2C retail has been driven by a brand’s desire to own the end-to-end customer journey.

“Selling direct to the consumer offers several benefits including the opportunity to improve brand trust, enrich your customer relationship management (CRM) system, upsell to customers, as well as offer direct support and assistance with any enquiries such as warranty queries,” he told Appliance Retailer.

“Before partnering with commercetools, Breville’s existing technology stack provided limited support and guidance, and there were no upgrades available to further enhance the experience and meet the changing customer needs of today. commercetools helps brands build experiences and differentiate themselves beyond product and promotional tools with scalability and security at the forefront, in addition to a flexible data model,” he added.