Discover what's possible with D365 Commerce
Dynamics 365 Commerce propels Città Design onto the global stage
Città Design, a New Zealand-based designer and retailer of contemporary homeware and furniture, took a leap as an early adopter of Microsoft’s eCommerce solution with a bold vision: to bring their brand to the global market.
Being a pioneer pays off. Città Design, a New Zealand-based designer and retailer of contemporary homeware and furniture, took a leap as an early adopter of Microsoft’s eCommerce solution with a bold vision: to bring their brand to the global market.
Known for their characteristic blend of form and function, Città was ready to transcend local boundaries and become an international brand. To achieve this, they set out to implement a robust and scalable eCommerce platform. Along the way, they carved out a path to realize their vision with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce.
Reaching the tipping point
Città was founded as a family-owned business that aims to make world-class design style and functionality accessible to customers that want to create unique living spaces. Since then, the company has evolved into a prominent player in the New Zealand furniture and homewares market, recognized for its quality and characteristic design. Over time, they grew into a fleet of twelve brick-and-mortar stores extended by a network of over 300 Stockists and over 500 total B2B customers worldwide.
But with their commitment to responsible craftmanship and developing original aesthetics, Città knew they could organically drive success in even more markets. They simply needed a way to reach new customers around the world and connect them with the quality and attention to detail that characterizes their brand at home.
Outgrowing the local ecosystem
Previously, Città maintained a bespoke platform for their eCommerce needs. While this solution offered a high degree of customization, it came with some drawbacks. Their infrastructure’s complexity made it time consuming to maintain and hampered their ability to scale their business into new channels and markets. Chief Operating Officer Emmett Vallender explained: "Our previous platform demanded more time and resources, making it difficult to keep up with our international growth ambitions."
To drive global expansion with their own infrastructure, Città had to rethink their eCommerce strategy. The company decided to implement Dynamics 365 Commerce because of its unparalleled scalability and of course, its integration with their existing Microsoft ERP. Emmett added, “Connecting directly to our ERP meant real time updates and stock insights, and the ability to seamlessly push and pull products and content across different channels was a game changer.” Città set out to find a partner who could help them implement this platform in a seamless, scalable manner.
True global practice
Achieving such growth in the short term required an international partner with the right expertise. In this area, HSO’s experience and commitment to customer service stood out. Although they were not based in-country, HSO offered round-the-clock support with a global team and open communication channels, which was crucial to keeping the project on track. As Emmett highlighted, "HSO understands best-in-market products and helps adapt them to our business. Their continuous support and proactive problem-solving approach have been instrumental in our success.”
When speaking about the moment companies should look at transitioning to a partner with a global reach, Emmett offered the following: “In hindsight it’s a very simple answer. We accomplished more in fewer hours with HSO, because they have previously done it with 25 global customers,” said Emmett, “in contrast to our previous local partner’s experience with just two customers in one region.”
Città’s online store has grown in strength. Emmett proudly shared, "We went from plateauing and achieving average YOY growth to driving strong growth through both new and existing channels."
It lowers the investment threshold to stand up new country specific sites and gives us the ability to edge out into those markets whilst making sales and improvements along the way.
Multiplying market opportunities
Since implementing HSO’s solution, Città has seen remarkable online growth. With Dynamics 365 Commerce, their site is now the highest performing channel to market in New Zealand, handling both B2C and B2B transactions efficiently.
“In the last three years, our B2C site went from ranking third in our channels to market, to a consistent first place,” Emmett said. “The trajectory has been incredible.” While Microsoft continues to invest in improving Dynamics 365 Commerce, the platform’s inhouse control has already enabled Città to better compete in existing markets and enter new ones with relative ease.
Now, Città’s biggest focus is not how to open new channels in new regions but keeping up with the flow of orders shipping from their New Zealand-based warehouse to new locations. “It’s a great problem to have,” Emmett said.
On top of that, they can now easily deploy B2C channels in new markets, uncovering more paths to sell their products. This has opened direct-to-consumer lines that ensure the brand is represented as intended by the design studio. And instead of commissioning tweaks through an external provider, they can remain flexible and react to market changes quickly and cost-effectively.
“Our eCommerce website’s sales continue to grow in strength. We’re seeing well above average growth in all B2C channels to market.
From New Zealand to the world
With a new, scalable eCommerce infrastructure, Città is well-equipped to realize their global ambitions. They plan to build on their capabilities and enhance data integration to distill insights from new campaigns and enable centralized decision making. Emmett confidently expressed that their vision is within reach: "Our goal is to become a globally recognized design brand." In the future, the integration of advanced analytics and AI-driven insights will enable Città to stay ahead of trends and continue to expand.
Emmett noted, "HSO’s team brought a wealth of market knowledge, technical expertise and willingness to think outside the box which gave us confidence that they could help us execute our vision." With the heavy lifting done, Dynamics 365 Commerce, and a proven strategy, Città is poised to keep expanding all around the globe.
Unlock new potential in your business by requesting a free Commerce Agility Check.
Is your organization looking to expand their market reach as well? Join our commerce experts for a free Commerce Agility Check.
In this one-hour session, an HSO expert will help you better understand how Dynamics 365 Commerce can support retail organizations like yourself stay ahead of industry trends by leveraging composable commerce. Shortly after this conversation, you'll receive a one-page summary of what your 2D architecture could look like with Dynamics 365 Commerce.