In today’s rapidly evolving retail landscape, the ability to deliver seamless, omnichannel experiences and respond quickly to market changes is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity. At the heart of this transformation lies platform modernization: the shift from fragmented, legacy systems to unified, API-driven, cloud-based commerce architectures. This evolution is enabling retailers across sectors—from jewelry and grocery to apparel—to unlock new levels of agility, innovation, and growth.
Legacy retail systems, often built up over decades, are typically siloed and inflexible. They hinder the ability to innovate, slow down release cycles, and make it difficult to deliver consistent customer experiences across channels. Modern consumers, however, expect to move fluidly between online and offline touchpoints, enjoy personalized recommendations, and access services like click-and-collect, ship-from-store, and real-time inventory visibility. Meeting these expectations requires a unified commerce platform that can adapt at the speed of the market.
Platform modernization is about more than just technology upgrades—it’s a holistic reimagining of how retailers operate. By embracing cloud-native, API-first, and microservices-based architectures, retailers can:
Pandora, a global leader in jewelry, faced the challenge of a fragmented e-commerce presence and siloed operations across regions. By partnering with Publicis Sapient, Pandora embarked on a journey to modernize its commerce platform and unify its digital operations. The transformation included:
The results were dramatic: Pandora increased its release velocity, reduced migration time by half, and empowered its teams to innovate quickly in response to changing market conditions. The unified platform also enabled consistent, high-quality customer experiences worldwide, supporting both online and in-store journeys.
The impact of platform modernization extends far beyond jewelry. One of the world’s largest grocery and general merchandise retailers partnered with Publicis Sapient to transform its business over a decade-long journey. Key milestones included:
This transformation delivered tangible business outcomes: $1B in annual revenue from general merchandise, $500M from international grocery e-commerce, and a 35% improvement in order picking rates. The retailer’s agile, engineering-first mindset enabled it to continuously innovate, launch new services, and respond to market disruptions with speed and confidence.
In apparel, platform modernization has enabled retailers to reimagine their brands and loyalty programs. By integrating e-commerce with supply chain operations and expanding loyalty initiatives across both grocery and apparel, retailers have created more connected, emotionally resonant experiences for customers. The adoption of cloud-based, headless commerce platforms has allowed for:
Across all these examples, the business impact of platform modernization is clear:
Publicis Sapient’s approach to platform modernization is rooted in deep engineering expertise, agile delivery, and a relentless focus on business outcomes. By partnering with retailers to design and implement unified commerce platforms, Publicis Sapient helps clients:
The future of retail belongs to those who can blend digital and physical, harness data and AI, and deliver experiences that move people. Platform modernization is the foundation for this future—enabling unified commerce, operational agility, and sustainable growth. Wherever you are on your journey, Publicis Sapient is ready to help you unlock the power of modern commerce platforms and lead the next era of retail innovation.