Case Study: Shop Apotheke

Shop Apotheke Europe initially looked into analyst reports for a suitable system and evaluated 3-4 PIM solutions. Akeneo, the open source provider, came to their attention through a recommendation, and thanks to the adaptability and scalability ensured by the open source technology, the choice quickly became clear. The interaction between the ERP and Shop Apotheke Europe’s in house PIM development was unsatisfactory. While Microsoft Dynamics AX could manage product master data, the system was not suitable for maintaining product content. The in house developed PIM system itself caused frustration due to its lack of flexibility, requiring repeated programming efforts for adjustments. Additionally, the system was not stable, and outages became frequent. Due to the time consuming data preparation and maintenance, the product lead times and time to market were simply too long, and consumers needed faster responses and updates. Furthermore, product data quality suffered from a lack of transparency, making it difficult to expand the product range. The goal was to replace the home grown system with a scalable, stable, and flexible PIM, streamline workflows, simplify data maintenance, and generate transparency so that international expansion could be advanced on solid foundations. In order to support our international presence and global expansion goals, we needed to become more efficient with our processes and establish solid foundations of product information. Since spring 2018, Akeneo PIM has been in use at Shop Apotheke Europe and is used every day by 25 to 30 users. The system manages 500,000 product SKUs across seven different geographic schemes, including Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Italy, and Spain.

The PIM was implemented in two project phases. In the first ‘Drop-in Replacement’ phase, the old, homegrown system was replaced. A quick transition was crucial as it allowed the team to become productive immediately. Through the second “Change Management” process, employees were brought on board and trained, and the benefits of the new solution were presented. Users quickly adapted due to the intuitive and user-friendly interface. Teams from the IT service company RedTecLab GmbH, Product Data Management, Marketing, and Category Management were involved in this usage optimization.

Thanks to a specially developed ‘Copy-to-channel’ feature, users were able to streamline their workflows almost immediately. Data can now be quickly adapted for regions that require different geographic schemes but share the same language, such as Austria and Switzerland. Additionally, the ‘Bulk Edits’ function in combination with filters, rather than the CSV uploads in the old system, provides significant benefits.

With the new Akeneo PIM, imports have become easy, and the Completeness Score in traffic light colors always provides users with a clear overview of which product data is complete and which needs attention. Product families allow specific attributes to be represented, contributing to the transparency of essential data completeness. The user interface is intuitive and easy to use, and automatic product categorization increases efficiency and saves time.

Open-source provides the desired flexibility

A significant advantage of the open-source solution is its great flexibility and the ability to customize to meet specific needs. This allowed Shop Apotheke Europe to incorporate its own ideas and requirements into Akeneo PIM.

Faster and more secure

The connection between the PIM and the eCommerce shop has become significantly faster, and maintaining existing products is easier and more efficient. New products are also available in the shop much faster. Product data transparency has improved, enhancing control capabilities. This makes the data future-proof, and compliance is also ensured across all geographies.

Built-in product experience community

Shop Apotheke Europe always felt well taken care of and listened to by Akeneo. Regular exchanges and feedback provided a sense of comfort and created a ‘feel-good factor.’