WOCKEN

Whether wholesale, professional service or rental shop, the range of services offered by WOCKEN is extensive. A wholesale and service company, WOCKEN currently has 300 employees, 13 sites and operates in a wide range of industries. The central warehouse in Meppen, Germany comprises an operational area stretching over 27,000 m2, including a 6,500 m2 covered storage area with 40,000 stored items. In the interview, eCommerce Manager Wolfgang Klemme explains why WOCKEN chose to use Shopware.

WOCKEN leading the way in B2B

Finding a digital home is not an easy step for many B2B companies. Particularly with industrial companies, it can take a long time to replace or supplement traditional distribution channels. As the first Shopware shop using the B2B Suite to enable their digital B2B sales, WOCKEN is a digital pioneer in this regard.

"With Shopware, WOCKEN decided to use a modern, up-to-date shop system to replace an outdated online presence with an order catalogue", explains Wolfgang Klemme, eCommerce Project Manager. Contemporary and innovative features were particularly necessary for the B2B functions in the online shop.

Customary in the B2B segment, customers expect a wide variety of functions in an online shop. By using the rights and roles management in combination with the implemented budget management and release process of the B2B Suite, WOCKEN affords a great deal of flexibility, which is indispensable in a B2B environment. In addition to conventional sales activities, WOCKEN has integrated a "sales representative function" into its B2B Suite. This allows their sales representatives to access specific customer accounts and place orders as part of individual consultation appointments in the customer's name.

Connection to SAP customer systems

The technical connections to WOCKEN's digital presence include a symbiosis between the shop and SAP by means of an OCI interface. In order to achieve a highly scalable architecture, WOCKEN outsourced the entire media and asset management from Shopware and implemented an external DAM system (Digital Asset Management), which the online shop uses to directly access all media. This central data management in the DAM system, in conjunction with the PIM system of OpusCapita and Shopware, prevents the unnecessary transfer of data and ensures the media is always up-to-date in the shop. In addition, high flexibility in the availability of the media is also guaranteed for other channels such as print catalogues and brochures. The aim is that eventually 400,000 items will be offered in the online shop.

Wolfgang Klemme explains that WOCKEN wants to pave new paths in B2B by implementing Shopware’s Shopping Worlds in the project: "Shopware offers huge freedom in the design and presentation of technical products, professional content and services. In a conservative industry, the option of telling stories and presenting technical products in an emotional way is a new and interesting design approach for us.”