An Optimized Checkout for a Smarter Shipping Strategy

Offering unique global pieces through an online-only platform

Everyone has a unique sense of style, especially when it comes to the home. And with ever-changing interior design trends, this makes it difficult for customers to know if their purchase last year will be in style for the long run.

That’s where U.K.-based homeware retailer Cox & Cox comes in.

In 2001, Fiona Cox, former stylist and presenter on BBC's popular home makeover series Home Front, founded Cox & Cox. The company is known for its unique, global pieces not found in catalogues.

“The products in our catalogue are carefully handpicked with the individual buyer in mind,” said Aynsley Peet, the company's Ecommerce Director. “Our customers come to us for new ways to transform their space. They want homeware that is easy to live with and that will be with them for years to come. With that in mind, we always couple forward-thinking design with a timeless aesthetic.”

Choosing a robust shipping solution

As an online-only brand, Cox & Cox has a lot of advantages over its competitors.

• Their ability to expand into new product categories
• Their ability to implement new technologies that improve the shopping experience quickly

It's these two things — their desire for flexibility and agility — that led them to ShipperHQ in late 2019. They needed a way to efficiently handle the shipping strategy of their large (and growing) product catalogue.

Optimizing checkout for a smarter shipping strategy

Prior to setting up ShipperHQ, the home goods retailer utilized the native shipping functionality provided by Magento for their Magento 2 ecommerce platform.

“We've been a part of the Magento community for quite a long time, using their M1 platform prior to being one of the first websites to go on M2 in 2017. One big reason we made the switch was the investment in the ERP piece that went into M2. And of course, the opportunity to implement more technologies to further optimize our website.”

Like many other merchants in the Magento ecosystem, Cox & Cox discovered ShipperHQ due to word of mouth. Their agency partner, Space48, mentioned the name first, then Magento themselves. Eventually, meeting key ShipperHQ staff, like our CEO Jo Baker, face-to-face at events such as Magento Live Europe.

“Our business was growing, and we needed a more robust solution. We knew ShipperHQ was the only way to go based on their reputation alone.”

A thoughtfully-tailored shipping experience

The transition to ShipperHQ was seamless and straightforward. Their previous shipping strategy depended heavily on table rates. This allowed them to map out specific rates and methods for a given checkout scenario. But in ShipperHQ, they were also able to easily transfer this information over, and make improvements like new shipping rules, in addition to what they already had.

“One of our biggest drivers for using ShipperHQ is it’s flexibility. Their platform is easy to install, test and setup in Magento. If we need to make a change to our shipping quickly, it only takes us a few clicks before it can take effect immediately at checkout. The amount of time it’s saved us and will save us in the future makes ShipperHQ worthwhile.”

Renewed confidence to take their business even further

With ShipperHQ, the homewares seller found a cost-effective solution that let them take control of their shipping rates and options. Because they sell such a range of goods, simply being able to group all their major product lines, and apply rules that automatically impact what their shipping looks like at checkout, was a game changer.

Prior to launching ShipperHQ on their website, the homeware retailer had experienced record sales growth. They saw an increase of 64% year-over-year in 2020. And over 100% since mid-March 2020 when shelter-in-place related policies and shutdowns started to occur as a result of the pandemic.

Of course, no one could predict this rise in traffic from COVID-19. But investing in technology like ShipperHQ helped the company reach their projected sales number of 3 million for the first time.

“We’re growing like crazy and I don’t think that will stop... Because of the great relationship we have with ShipperHQ, and the confidence I have in their platform, I know our shipping experience is in good hands for years to come.”