The Brand
Founded in 1979, ITS has grown from a small local business into one of the UK’s top destinations for professional power tools, accessories, and workwear. Catering primarily to tradespeople and DIY experts, ITS carries a 30,000-SKU product catalogue that includes top global brands and a loyal customer base with high expectations for speed, accuracy, and service. In an industry where product knowledge runs deep and competition is fierce, ITS stands out with fast delivery, competitive pricing, and a sharp focus on customer experience.
The Challenges
ITS needed a search and merchandising solution that could keep up with its large-scale product catalogue and serve a customer base that expects to find what they need instantly. Their previous provider offered basic functionality but lacked the control and flexibility required for ITS’s growing needs.
Richard Hughes
ITS wanted more than automation—they needed a platform that could blend intelligence with hands-on precision. With complex naming conventions, overlapping categories, and a customer base that often knows exactly what they’re looking for, rigid systems were slowing them down.
The Solution
ITS evaluated nearly a dozen search and merchandising platforms. Most leaned too heavily on black-box automation or lacked support for both search and category-level merchandising.
Athos Commerce stood out by delivering:
- The ability to balance AI-driven automation with full manual control
- Deep search and category merchandising capabilities
- Seamless integration with BigCommerce, right out of the box
“The ability to override the AI and get hands-on with merchandising—that’s what tipped it,” said Hughes. “If we want to personalize manually, we can. If we want to automate, we can.”
Shortly after replatforming to BigCommerce, ITS migrated to Athos Commerce and was supported every step of the way by a dedicated customer success team.
Post-launch, their merchandisers hit the ground running:
- Using rules and pins to customize brand and category pages
- Reacting in real time to campaign performance
- Empowering non-technical merchandisers to manage their own areas
Richard Hughes
The Results
ITS now has the merchandising agility to match its customers’ precision. Athos Commerce is at the center of their promotional strategy, enabling fast and flexible updates on the fly.
Since implementing Athos Commerce, ITS has seen meaningful gains across key performance metrics:
- Search usage grew 60% year-over-year (2023 vs. 2024), reflecting increased shopper reliance on the search experience.
- Search shoppers spent more in 2024, with average order value (AOV) rising from $239 to $250 year-over-year.
- So far in 2025, personalized recommendations on the zero results page have influenced over $57K in revenue—converting missed searches into measurable results.
“I’m most proud of the success we’ve had with promotions since implementing the platform,” said Hughes. “The team can quickly analyze page interactions, swap products, change the layout, and refresh the page mid-campaign. It’s made a real difference.”
Looking ahead, ITS is exploring AI enhancements, but only where they add true value without compromising control. As the business grows, their focus remains clear: deliver a fast, frictionless shopping experience with full ownership of the customer journey.
Partner with Athos Commerce to transform your ecommerce store. With proven tools and expertise in search and merchandising, we empower businesses to achieve measurable growth. Contact us today to start optimizing your store for success.
