Freedom - Best Tech Awards 2025 Customer Experience
Reimagining retail: Freedom’s connected commerce experience transformation Download the DocumentSAP Australia and New
Zealand Best Tech Awards
2025
Zealand Best Tech Awards
2025
Best Tech SAP
Industry WebsiteProduct and Services Featured SAP Solutions
Retail
Home
furnishings
www.freedom.com.auFurniture, Homewares,
Omnichannel Retail
SAP Commerce Cloud, SAP Open
Payment Framework (OPF)
Since 1981, Freedom has helped Australians shape and style homes they love. But as customer expectations required increasing real-time convenience,
broader choice, and seamless service, their legacy systems couldn’t keep pace. Freedom needed a platform that could scale with its ambition and meet
customers wherever they are.
Freedom set out to re-platform its entire digital ecosystem – starting with SAP Commerce Cloud as the foundation. The result is a more connected, responsive
experience that empowers customers to shop how and where they want. By extending SAP’s Assisted Service Module (ASM) and integrating SAP’s Open
Payment Framework (OPF), Freedom equipped in-store teams to seamlessly sell and process returns for third-party dropship products, creating a truly unified
omnichannel experience.
It’s a retail-first in the Australian Furniture and Homewares sector, and a bold step towards deeper flexibility, choice, and convenience for customers.
Reimagining retail: Freedom’s connected
commerce experience transformation
Customer Experience
Industry WebsiteProduct and Services Featured SAP Solutions
Retail
Home
furnishings
www.freedom.com.auFurniture, Homewares,
Omnichannel Retail
SAP Commerce Cloud, SAP Open
Payment Framework (OPF)
Since 1981, Freedom has helped Australians shape and style homes they love. But as customer expectations required increasing real-time convenience,
broader choice, and seamless service, their legacy systems couldn’t keep pace. Freedom needed a platform that could scale with its ambition and meet
customers wherever they are.
Freedom set out to re-platform its entire digital ecosystem – starting with SAP Commerce Cloud as the foundation. The result is a more connected, responsive
experience that empowers customers to shop how and where they want. By extending SAP’s Assisted Service Module (ASM) and integrating SAP’s Open
Payment Framework (OPF), Freedom equipped in-store teams to seamlessly sell and process returns for third-party dropship products, creating a truly unified
omnichannel experience.
It’s a retail-first in the Australian Furniture and Homewares sector, and a bold step towards deeper flexibility, choice, and convenience for customers.
Reimagining retail: Freedom’s connected
commerce experience transformation
Customer Experience
Challenges
Freedom’s legacy commerce platform was falling short in areas that mattered most to customers. It couldn’t support the experiences people now
expect as standard – fast, flexible fulfilment; consistent checkout; reliable stock information; and personalised, relevant search.
More critically, it gave the business no tools to improve those experiences. Even minor changes required vendor support. There was no extensibility,
no upgrade path, and no ability to integrate with modern CX platforms.
The core challenges included:
• Checkout failure and instability – The platform couldn’t maintain sessions reliably, leading to frequent transaction failures and lost revenue.
• Out-of-sync inventory and order data – No webhook or real-time capability meant what customers saw online often didn’t match fulfilment
reality.
• No personalisation or intelligent product discovery – The search experience was static, making it hard for customers to find what they needed
or discover relevant items.
• No support for click-and-collect or flexible fulfilment – Customers couldn’t choose where or how to receive their orders.
• Inability to scale online assortment – Product onboarding was manual, making it hard to expand SKUs or support dropship.
• No pathway to integrate new tools – The architecture couldn’t support industry-standard platforms like Mirakl, Coveo or OPF, blocking any
opportunity to evolve.
Freedom’s team recognised these weren’t issues they could optimise around. The only path forward was to move to a platform built to support
modern customer expectations – and to integrate tools purpose-built to solve these specific pain points.
Freedom’s legacy commerce platform was falling short in areas that mattered most to customers. It couldn’t support the experiences people now
expect as standard – fast, flexible fulfilment; consistent checkout; reliable stock information; and personalised, relevant search.
More critically, it gave the business no tools to improve those experiences. Even minor changes required vendor support. There was no extensibility,
no upgrade path, and no ability to integrate with modern CX platforms.
The core challenges included:
• Checkout failure and instability – The platform couldn’t maintain sessions reliably, leading to frequent transaction failures and lost revenue.
• Out-of-sync inventory and order data – No webhook or real-time capability meant what customers saw online often didn’t match fulfilment
reality.
• No personalisation or intelligent product discovery – The search experience was static, making it hard for customers to find what they needed
or discover relevant items.
• No support for click-and-collect or flexible fulfilment – Customers couldn’t choose where or how to receive their orders.
• Inability to scale online assortment – Product onboarding was manual, making it hard to expand SKUs or support dropship.
• No pathway to integrate new tools – The architecture couldn’t support industry-standard platforms like Mirakl, Coveo or OPF, blocking any
opportunity to evolve.
Freedom’s team recognised these weren’t issues they could optimise around. The only path forward was to move to a platform built to support
modern customer expectations – and to integrate tools purpose-built to solve these specific pain points.
Solution
Freedom’s transformation began by moving to SAP Commerce Cloud – replacing a rigid, outdated platform with a system designed to support customer-first
innovation. Built on a headless architecture using Spartacus storefronts and an SAP Commerce backend, the platform gives Freedom full control over its digital
experience – enabling real-time processing, seamless integrations, and a stable foundation for future growth.
At the heart of the rebuild was a focus on improving how customers browse, buy, and interact across channels. SAP’s flexible, API-first architecture made it possible
to integrate key technologies that addressed critical gaps in the customer journey.
SAP Assisted Service Module
Enabled Freedom to take full control of its storefront and service layer. By extending SAP’s Assisted Service Module (ASM), the team launched “Never Lose a Sale”,
an in-store capability that lets staff sell or return third-party dropship products and out-of-stock items from any location – a retail-first innovation that gives customers
true omnichannel freedom to shop and return their way.
Mirakl
Supported the launch of a fully integrated dropship marketplace. Customers gained access to 40,000+ products from 110 vendors, with consistent service across all
touchpoints. The same infrastructure will support Freedom’s next phase – scaling to 100,000 products and 250 vendors over the next three years.
Coveo
Replaced static search with real-time, AI driven personalised search, lister page merchandising, and product recommendations – driving better discovery, longer
engagement, and a 10% increase in average order value when customers engage with the functionality.
SAP Open Payment Framework
Unified checkout across online, dropship, and in-store channels – removing friction and creating a consistent experience for payments and returns. Freedom was the
first retailer globally to implement SAP Open Payment Framework with Adyen in production, setting a new standard for multi-channel integration.
Together, this SAP-led ecosystem transformed Freedom’s ability to meet rising customer expectations, while highlighting its willingness to lead with innovation and
adopt next-generation capabilities early.
Freedom’s transformation began by moving to SAP Commerce Cloud – replacing a rigid, outdated platform with a system designed to support customer-first
innovation. Built on a headless architecture using Spartacus storefronts and an SAP Commerce backend, the platform gives Freedom full control over its digital
experience – enabling real-time processing, seamless integrations, and a stable foundation for future growth.
At the heart of the rebuild was a focus on improving how customers browse, buy, and interact across channels. SAP’s flexible, API-first architecture made it possible
to integrate key technologies that addressed critical gaps in the customer journey.
SAP Assisted Service Module
Enabled Freedom to take full control of its storefront and service layer. By extending SAP’s Assisted Service Module (ASM), the team launched “Never Lose a Sale”,
an in-store capability that lets staff sell or return third-party dropship products and out-of-stock items from any location – a retail-first innovation that gives customers
true omnichannel freedom to shop and return their way.
Mirakl
Supported the launch of a fully integrated dropship marketplace. Customers gained access to 40,000+ products from 110 vendors, with consistent service across all
touchpoints. The same infrastructure will support Freedom’s next phase – scaling to 100,000 products and 250 vendors over the next three years.
Coveo
Replaced static search with real-time, AI driven personalised search, lister page merchandising, and product recommendations – driving better discovery, longer
engagement, and a 10% increase in average order value when customers engage with the functionality.
SAP Open Payment Framework
Unified checkout across online, dropship, and in-store channels – removing friction and creating a consistent experience for payments and returns. Freedom was the
first retailer globally to implement SAP Open Payment Framework with Adyen in production, setting a new standard for multi-channel integration.
Together, this SAP-led ecosystem transformed Freedom’s ability to meet rising customer expectations, while highlighting its willingness to lead with innovation and
adopt next-generation capabilities early.
Impact
35% of online sales now come
from Dropship products 17% YoY increase in online traffic$2M+ in NLS-driven revenue
Freedom’s digital transformation has unlocked new levels of performance and control across the business, in stores, and for customers. By shifting to a
composable, scalable SAP Commerce Cloud architecture, Freedom has replaced a rigid system with one that’s agile, responsive, and firmly in the hands of
internal teams.
With full control of the stack, digital teams can now deploy changes faster, enhance experiences continuously, and launch new dropship vendors and products
at scale. In-store staff are equipped with tools that allow them to sell beyond local inventory – offering customers greater convenience and improving
conversion.
Customers benefit from a significantly expanded product range, personalised discovery tools, and the ability to seamlessly buy or return across channels.
What was once a disconnected experience is now unified and customer-first.
Key outcomes include:
• 110+ suppliers onboarded, offering over 40,000 Dropship products
• In-store teams enabled to sell and return third-party products via ASM
• $2 million revenue generated through the NLS program via in-store dropship sales
• 190% YoY growth in Dropship, now making up 35% of online revenue
• Online channel now contributes 25% of total company sales
35% of online sales now come
from Dropship products 17% YoY increase in online traffic$2M+ in NLS-driven revenue
Freedom’s digital transformation has unlocked new levels of performance and control across the business, in stores, and for customers. By shifting to a
composable, scalable SAP Commerce Cloud architecture, Freedom has replaced a rigid system with one that’s agile, responsive, and firmly in the hands of
internal teams.
With full control of the stack, digital teams can now deploy changes faster, enhance experiences continuously, and launch new dropship vendors and products
at scale. In-store staff are equipped with tools that allow them to sell beyond local inventory – offering customers greater convenience and improving
conversion.
Customers benefit from a significantly expanded product range, personalised discovery tools, and the ability to seamlessly buy or return across channels.
What was once a disconnected experience is now unified and customer-first.
Key outcomes include:
• 110+ suppliers onboarded, offering over 40,000 Dropship products
• In-store teams enabled to sell and return third-party products via ASM
• $2 million revenue generated through the NLS program via in-store dropship sales
• 190% YoY growth in Dropship, now making up 35% of online revenue
• Online channel now contributes 25% of total company sales
“”We set out to create a customer experience that felt as effortless
and inspiring as walking into one of our stores. Through SAP
Commerce Cloud and our integrated digital initiatives, we’ve
delivered on that promise – giving customers more choice,
personalised discovery, and seamless flexibility across every
touchpoint. At the same time, our teams now have the control and
tools they need to keep evolving the experience at pace.”
- Paula Mitchell, Digital General Manager, Freedom Australia
and inspiring as walking into one of our stores. Through SAP
Commerce Cloud and our integrated digital initiatives, we’ve
delivered on that promise – giving customers more choice,
personalised discovery, and seamless flexibility across every
touchpoint. At the same time, our teams now have the control and
tools they need to keep evolving the experience at pace.”
- Paula Mitchell, Digital General Manager, Freedom Australia