Tradelink Masterfully Adopts New Tools to Modernize Ecommerce

Australia's oldest plumbing merchant demonstrates the viability of digital

With 150 years in the industry, Tradelink is Australia’s oldest plumbing merchant. It’s longevity and success can be attributed to an ongoing commitment to saving time and creating convenience for tradesmen and home renovators, respectively. With tradition and experience at the fore, the business continues to pursue new tools to modernize its offering. 

A major step in this modernization is its adoption of a seamless and efficient ecommerce solution to match the scale and scope of the brand’s physical offering. With more than 200 branches across Australia, 300 cars in operation and 1300 team members serving its customers, this was no small feat.

Tradelink required a platform that could support the volume of its business while being able to digitally emulate the in-store shopping experience. 

Challenge

Finding the quickest path to value

Prior to BigCommerce, Tradelink’s back-end system was relatively static. It performed more as a content management system with limited ecommerce functionality. In building its new site, Tradelink knew it would need best in breed tools and features to get the speed, flexibility and connectivity it desired. 

This is where Luke Naish, Executive General Manager at Tradelink, enters the scene. Known for his keen focus on crafting and reinvigorating the digital DNA of retail giants, Luke put his extensive general management experience, spanning telecommunications, consumer electrical and bulk goods, to work. Right from the start he focused his attention on what the company needed to digitalize its business.

“The question we asked ourselves was, ‘how do we find the quickest path to value? We didn't have 12 months to get things done, we had six months,” Naish recounts. “We needed speed. We needed flexibility. We needed connectivity, but most importantly, we needed to demonstrate the viability of digital. BigCommerce had what we were looking for and it was cost effective, too.” 

Solution

Creating a true omnichannel experience with BigCommerce

Tradelink desired a platform that could seamlessly connect and adapt to its B2B, B2C and B2G environments. Being that its customers were constantly on the move, quick response times, fast page loads, accurate search functionality and mobile-readiness were key. Turns out BigCommerce was the solution Tradelink was looking for. In November 2020 the company launched on the platform.

“The references we had around BigCommerce were very good. We felt that it had a good outlook around technology integration. It seemed a little bit more robust than Shopify. Going with BigCommerce just seemed to make sense and we are happy with our decision,” said Naish.

Tradelink flexed the full potential of BigCommerce’s open API solution to deliver an online storefront to rival its highly esteemed in-store experience. Naish tapped several third-party apps like consumer reviews with Trustpilot, marketing automation with dotdigital and merchandizing with Klevu, to get it done. “At the end of the day, it's a platform, but it's a platform that enables, with great plug-in versatility,” Naish said.

With an estimated 15,000+ live products available, enabling customers to filter and find the products they’re looking for is essential. And to further enhance the buyers’ experience, Tradelink’s site includes a virtual showroom allowing customers to connect directly with a consultant. 

To complement this infrastructure, Tradelink employed Matter Design to deliver a frontend, UX design that upheld the trusted branding and accessibility associated with the heritage merchant. 

Results

Making headway

The combination of small localized operations and larger-scale commercial outfits is proving to be the golden ticket for Tradelink. BigCommerce has enabled the brand to ignite a latent market opportunity and pursue customers that were not previously tailored to. The release of its B2B environment in Q1 2022 further helps to bolster the company’s online offering. All of this has resulted in some fabulous outcomes.

In comparing November to April 2021 to May to October, 2021, Tradelink saw a 346% increase in customers, a 373% increase in orders and a 338% increase in revenue. “We're doing more in a day now, than what we did during the entire month of January 2021. The sales have been tremendous. Our traffic is up fivefold,” said Naish.

Looking Ahead

The platform providing confidence

Naish is proud of the journey the business has undertaken online thus far, but also understands the importance to maintain the momentum —remaining nimble to the needs of its customers and the technology available to support them. 

“We're looking into the future, and the success that we've had to date has given us further confidence that we're on the right path. We're making headway. We're quite excited about where we're going and BigCommerce is helping us get there.”

Published: January 2022