Epicurium’s Digital Transformation
Client: Epicurium
Ecommerce Development & Business Systems
Epicurium’s ordering system worked, but it wasn’t built to sell. I built a WooCommerce shop window on top of it that shows off their full range, stays in sync automatically, and encourages retailers to sign up for trade accounts.
900+
Products, synced automatically
130
Brands with their own page
2500
Trade customers served
Situation
A wholesaler outgrowing its site
Epicurium is a UK wholesaler of healthier snacks. It started in 2005 as a small distributor of ambient pouched meals. By 2012 it had become a go-to supplier for innovative, healthier snacking. Today it stocks over 900 products from more than 130 brands, supplying around 2,500 trade customers from a 25,000 sq ft warehouse.
Challenge
A B2B platform doing a shop's job
Trade customers already ordered through a B2B platform. It did the job, but it looked like an internal system: hard to browse, hard to search, and not doing much to attract new retailers.
- A proper public catalogue showing the full range
- Fast on phones, tablets and desktops
- Better visibility in Google
- More retailers registering for trade accounts
The catch: it had to stay in step with the B2B platform — same products, same prices. Nobody could be re-entering data by hand.
Solution
A shop window on the B2B system
A WooCommerce website that acts as Epicurium’s public storefront, pulling product data automatically from the B2B platform so the two never drift apart.
Search, filters, brand pages and detailed product information make the range easy to explore; enquiry and trade sign-up forms turn browsers into account holders. Nine pieces of work, detailed below.
Nine pieces, one storefront
The detail behind the solution — each one a decision about how a health-food buyer actually finds a product.
1
Automatic product syncing
Products flow from the B2B platform into WooCommerce, so the site stays up to date and nobody maintains two systems.
2
Search that finds things
SearchWP powers the site search, with live results appearing as you type.
3
Filters buyers actually use
Custom filters for nutrition, allergens, religious and dietary requirements, and brand. “Vegan, gluten free, nut free” in seconds.
4
Brand pages
Each of the 130 brands has its own page, and shoppers can filter the whole range by brand.
5
Detailed product information
Advanced Custom Fields hold the extra detail wholesale buyers need, well beyond a standard product listing.
6
Built to be found
On-page SEO across products, brands and key pages to improve visibility in Google.
7
Easy to navigate on any device
Navigation and filtering designed so buyers get from homepage to the right product quickly, especially on mobile.
8
The pages that matter
Homepage, About, Wholesale Information, Blog/News, product listings and individual product pages, plus live chat.
09
Enquiries and sign-ups
Gravity Forms handles enquiries and trade account applications, with automatic notifications so nothing gets missed.
The new WooCommerce front end showcases the full range properly for the first time, and because it syncs from the B2B platform, the catalogue is always right without anyone lifting a finger.
Epicurium now has a catalogue that works as a sales tool: attractive, easy to search, and kept in step with their ordering system automatically.
Your Turn
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