Data-centric commerce

The power of modern data-centric composable commerce

Dasha Cherniavskaia
Dasha Faulkner
Head of Product Marketing, commercetools
Published 27 December 2024
Estimated reading time minutes

Discover how MongoDB and commercetools are reshaping modern commerce. Explore their partnership's role in creating data-centric, composable solutions for unified customer experiences and scalable growth, with key insights from commercetools’ Michael Scholz.

Data-centric commerce

The retail industry is in constant flux and staying competitive requires more than just keeping up — it demands agility and the ability to scale quickly. Forward-thinking businesses are moving away from restrictive monolithic systems and embracing data-centric, composable commerce architectures that empower them to adapt on the fly. 

Michael Scholz, VP of Product and Customer Marketing at commercetools, explained, “We want to move fast. Everything we do is about incremental innovation allowing retailers to add new channels and adapt quickly to changing markets.” With this philosophy at its core, commercetools empowers businesses to harness the flexibility of composable architecture, setting a new standard for modern commerce.

Sharing common ground on the cloud

commercetools' journey with MongoDB began with a seamless transition to MongoDB Atlas, the cloud-based, fully managed database service. By leveraging MongoDB's expertise in data management, commercetools has been freed from the complexities of data management, enabling the company to focus entirely on its core competency: Revolutionizing commerce. 

"So for us, we actually started out with just MongoDB and we moved very, very quickly to MongoDB Atlas because we don't want to be the custodian of data. We want to focus on what's important to us, which is commerce, and we want to work with technology partners that are best-of-breed and best-in-class in their particular fields," Michael described the strategic decision to partner with MongoDB and adopt MongoDB Atlas. 

Both companies share a cloud-native philosophy, making them the perfect allies. Whether it's Amazon Web Services (AWS) or Google Cloud, commercetools can effortlessly scale up or down to meet fluctuating demands, which is crucial for accommodating peak periods triggered by product launches or influencer buzz.

Navigating constant change with adaptable solutions

Change is the only constant in commerce. From economic shifts to evolving consumer expectations, businesses must be ready to pivot at a moment’s notice. The MongoDB and commercetools partnership offers customer data integration tools to not only navigate but thrive in these uncertainties. Promoting collaboration between business and IT teams enables the adoption of a full-stack approach, ensuring that all stakeholders work together towards a common goal. This alignment between departments eliminates silos and drives organizational growth.

"We want to move fast. Everything that we do is about incremental innovation, and how can you unlock that? If you look at our competitive environment, everything is pretty much either outdated technology or it's a black box type scenario. So it doesn't really give retailers the ability to move fast and act fast and add new channels and things of that nature," Michael said, emphasizing the importance of agility and innovation in a rapidly changing market. 

With a future-proof approach, businesses can adapt and evolve while staying authentic to their brand identity. The ability to quickly launch features, add new channels and respond to customer demands gives retailers a competitive edge and positions them for long-term success.

The power of generative AI for personalization

The integration of MongoDB Atlas Search with commercetools has revolutionized personalization efforts, particularly through AI-driven innovations. Generative AI automates the creation of tailored promotions, enhances product recommendations with predictive analytics  and even streamlines the development of dynamic product descriptions. Michael describes the potential of this technology: "Promotions are low-hanging fruit. AI allows businesses to target customers with precision, ensuring that every message feels personal and timely."

By leveraging AI alongside unified customer data, businesses can craft hyper-personalized experiences that support loyalty and drive conversion rates. Whether it’s a dynamic homepage featuring tailored product collections or real-time marketing campaigns, AI and MongoDB ensure retailers remain steps ahead in delivering what their customers want.

Unified commerce: Delivering seamless customer experiences

Unified commerce represents the next frontier in creating high-quality, consistent customer experiences. With customer data integration from online, offline and mobile channels, businesses eliminate silos that hinder collaboration and ensure seamless transitions across touchpoints. This capability enables a customer to shop online, receive personalized recommendations and return items in-store without any disruptions.

As Michael explains, "Unified data creates a true 360-degree view of the customer. It’s no longer about managing separate channels but orchestrating them as one." This orchestration, powered by MongoDB’s advanced database solutions, allows commercetools to deliver a cohesive customer journey while simplifying operations for retailers.

The perfect pairing for modern commerce

The collaboration between MongoDB and commercetools showcases the power of combining best-in-class, data-centric commerce technologies to solve the complexities of modern commerce. With MongoDB’s robust data platform and commercetools’ composable solutions, businesses gain unparalleled scalability, unified customer data and the ability to innovate with agility. This partnership empowers retailers to deliver exceptional experiences and drive sustained growth in an ever-changing market.


Learn more about data-centric commerce by downloading the white paper The Data-Centric Commerce Guide by commercetools and MongoDB.

Dasha Cherniavskaia
Dasha Faulkner
Head of Product Marketing, commercetools

Dasha leads Product Marketing at commercetools. Software engineer by profession but a creative at heart, she found her happy place in marketing. With 15 years of experience in tech, she concurs that “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” Loves problem-solving, big libraries and 80s music.

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