Shopify Partner fusefabric launched four years ago in Europe with the goal to bring Shopify services to established enterprise-level businesses with an international presence or ambitions to have one. This means fusefabric has two areas of focus: one part is about designing and implementing the full range of Shopify offerings for its customers; the other is to also fully integrate Shopify with customers’ existing and emerging technology stacks.
fusefabric perceived a gap in the market when it came to large, enterprise-level customers, both in terms of introducing Shopify and then making it work seamlessly with what might be an extensive existing technology infrastructure. Co-founder Simon Hamblin says that, having recognised the opportunity, “We entered straight into the enterprise space, and stayed there. We also saw a gap around integrating Shopify back into existing enterprise architectures, and so we focused on creating a strong capability for that integration part.”
Here are three ways this approach has enabled fusefabric to drive growth—for both its business, and its clients.
- Staying one step ahead with unified commerce
Simon says that working as a Shopify Partner and being witness to its growth has been both exciting and rewarding:
I remember having conversations back in 2020, addressing concerns whether Shopify was the right platform. Will it grow? Will it scale with us? And I remember saying to them, it'll be fine: they're always one step ahead. And even when your business gets there, they'll be on to the next stage, so then you can grow with them. And that's been true for the last four years.
– Simon Hamblin, Co-founder, fusefabric
The company has benefited from Shopify Markets, which allowed it to identify, target, and sell its services to international businesses and those with a goal of becoming international. Another big boost has been using Shopify to power unified commerce, says Simon: “Having a single platform where you can run D2C channels, B2B channels, POS, and other in-store systems, all from one single platform has allowed us to get into that enterprise space.”
Shopify POS has also offered important advantages when it comes to working with customers with established retail presences, allowing them to create a consistent experience: “Whether you're shopping online, going into a store, shopping in a store, collecting from a store. That unified experience for the customer; Shopify provides that really well.”
The company’s focus on enterprise integration has led to fusefabric developing its own products, as well as implementing Shopify services to drive unified commerce. Its platform to integrate Shopify with enterprise architectures, Enterprise Connect, is the result of £1.5 million of investment by fusefabric and currently has a team of 25 developers working on it. In 2024, fusefabric will have 30 enterprise customers using Enterprise Connect to process around £1.2 billion in gross merchandise volume.
- Driving key customer wins
A key early milestone in fusefabric’s growth was the opportunity to work with Flying Tiger, Copenhagen. The company, which was established in 1995, currently has 950 retail stores across Europe and turns over hundreds of millions of pounds. Fusefabric was the agency that launched Flying Tiger’s ecommerce arm across 27 countries back in 2020, a feat that was, remarkably, executed over the course of one afternoon.
fusefabric combed the extensive Shopify app ecosystem to find suitable software and added translation services and other elements to quickly create a storefront. “Everyone was really taken aback,” by the rapid rollout, says Simon, and it helped establish a positive mentality around future ambitions. The system was then rapidly refined as the company monitored sales and customer feedback, and worked to integrate it with Flying Tiger’s other business processes.
More recently, fusefabric has been working with Newcastle United Football Club on a full platform rollout for its online and offline retail operations (“almost like a business in a box”). Starting from almost a blank slate, fusefabric implemented a full platform to support the business, with Shopify and a number of supporting systems. The rollout took four months and was conducted entirely remotely. Simon says: “Now they're operating with a D2C channel and POS channel all running through a nice, simple, single store integrated into their backend system.”
- Finding a niche while fueling the cycle of success
fusefabric’s laser focus on the enterprise segment and its particular needs has paid dividends.
The company has doubled its revenues every year for four years and has grown to 65+ full time staff. Simon believes it's important for new entrants to the Shopify Partner ecosystem to find their niche, since such an approach has helped it find differentiation in a burgeoning market: “Perhaps pick a particular industry or niche to go after as a partner, and get to know that really well”.
Going forward, there’s every chance the company’s success will accelerate. fusefabric has formed a strategic alliance with fellow Shopify Partner Swanky to enter into new customer relationships together, drawing on the particular expertise of each agency to be able to meet broader demands alongside deeper specialization. Customer reactions have been extremely positive, says Simon: “The client's going, ‘Wow. So I can engage with one of you, but actually I get all the services across both of you guys. This is brilliant.’”
