Black Market migrated from a custom platform to Shopify Plus, unlocking scalability and streamlined management.
Fusion5 delivered a flawless launch with zero bugs, integrated Shop Pay for higher conversions, and built a supplier portal for efficient fulfilment. Ongoing support drives CX innovation, laying the foundation for AI-powered service and loyalty.
The problem
The original site was built over 10 years ago, and whilst it had served the business well, was aging and in need of replacement.
When Black Market launched its third iteration years ago, no platform could deliver the premium wine retail experience they envisioned - so they built their own. The custom solution fueled growth and cemented their space as a market leader. But as technology evolved, maintaining that edge required a modern, scalable platform. To stay ahead, Black Market turned to Shopify Plus.
The solution
Pocket Square by Fusion5 worked closely with Black Market's founder and wider team to run through a comprehensive UX Discovery process.
Our goal was to deliver a new iteration of Black Market that built on the foundations of their success. Rather than starting from scratch, we focused on evolving their existing strengths — modernising the experience without losing the familiarity and trust customers value. The result: innovation without disruption.
We looked beyond the wine industry, drawing inspiration from global best practices, even those outside the category. Our goal was to create an experience centered on discovery — taking cues from platforms like Netflix to deliver intuitive, personalised journeys for every customer.
Once the customer journey, UX, and UI were perfected, our development team brought the vision to life. We implemented key technologies like Klaviyo for advanced email flows and Okendo for customer reviews, enhancing engagement and trust. A custom supplier portal within Shopify enables wine partners to view and download orders easily, while larger suppliers benefit from an API for automated order ingestion. To support hospitality and trade clients, we built a dedicated Trade Experience—offering access to trade-specific products and pricing through the same seamless interface.
The result
The new site was an instant success, receiving amazing feedback from customers and suppliers and more importantly through increased conversion rate and revenue growth.
The Black Market team now have access to modern, scalable technology through Shopify Plus, Okendo and Klaviyo, allowing them to adapt and innovate their customer experience with ease.
Conclusion
This project struck the perfect balance between evolving the Black Market brand and commerce experience with the latest technology and best practices — while preserving the core elements that have allowed the business to secure their spot as a leader in this space.
"After the decision to move away from our high-functioning but quickly aging custom build, we spent three years discussing, crafting, revising, altering and rigorously testing our Shopify site design with the goal to enhance both our customer and supplier experience whilst still retaining our signature Black Market look and feel, and to elevate our tech stack to the highest benchmark in online retail. My biggest thank you to Lance O'Grady, Amy Wang and the whole Pocket Square team, and our friends at Shopify, Klaviyo and Okendo. We well and truly couldn't have done it without you."
Holly Brending | General Manager of Black Market
