R.M.Williams takes its legacy to the next level with Unified Commerce

The well-loved boot maker and leather brand faced the daunting challenge of navigating the disconnected payments ecosystem with a traditional banking setup. Limited by the traditional banking system, R.M.Williams was unable to build the seamless in-store shopping and payments experiences that matched its artisanal craftsmanship.

Additionally, the brand’s ecommerce system was disconnected from its physical stores, restricting the types of cross-channel shopping experiences, like click and collect, it could provide to its customers. This disconnection also presented another challenge – R.M.Williams wasn't able to access data insights on customer behaviour and loyalty.

With a traditional banking setup, the brand was also not able to build seamless shopping and payments experiences for its customers in stores.

The complexity of the payments ecosystem also meant that R.M.Williams had to deal with up to 10 payment service providers and integrations with payment methods offered to customers. This is not news – according to our research, close to 50% of businesses looking to reduce the number of payment service providers (PSPs) they partner with, work with three to four PSPs. Managing numerous PSPs made it difficult for R.M.Williams to onboard new and relevant local payment methods that its consumers trusted.

R.M.Williams wanted to partner with a financial technology platform that stood at the forefront of innovation and could grow with it. The Australian retailer needed a payments partner that could simplify the payments process, including supporting relevant local payment methods.

In other words, R.M.Williams was looking for Adyen.

One platform, one integration

The fragmented payments ecosystem creates complexities that can be simplified with one integration to Adyen's single platform. R.M.Williams can consolidate its online and in-store payments flow into a single solution, reducing up to 10 integrations to just one. The single integration enables R.M.Williams to create seamless and streamlined internal processes, including reconciliation and reporting.

With one contract and integration to Adyen's platform, R.M.Williams can easily go global with local acquiring, simplifying cross-border transactions. Adyen's local acquiring licenses in markets like Europe, the United Kingdom, and the United States empower the brand to make the most out of each transaction from key operating markets. The retailer can lower business costs with local acquiring and provide a more seamless payments experience for its customers by offering trusted local payment methods to them.

Lastly, partnering with Adyen unlocks seamless integrations with our partners, like NewStore, a turnkey omnichannel store solution. With Adyen's all-in-one fintech platform and a NewStore-powered omnichannel store experience, R.M.Williams is armed with modern POS solutions, payment methods, and features to meet customers when, where, and how they want to pay.

The right mix of payment methods

R.M.Williams can unlock internationally recognised and local payment methods like AliPay, Afterpay, WeChat Pay, and ZIP, all with one integration to Adyen's single platform solution. This vastly differs from the 10 integrations and contracts the Australian brand previously handled. With around 55% of consumers globally abandoning their online shopping cart or leaving the store if they are unable to pay how they want, offering the right payment methods mix is crucial. By supporting a comprehensive selection of payment methods, R.M.Williams is able to provide a more seamless checkout experience, both online and in stores, to customers.

The power of unified commerce

R.M.Williams connected its online and offline payments in one system with unified commerce, taking its payments flow to the next level. “The integration with Adyen enables us to seamlessly connect our in-store systems to our online ecosystem. This unified approach transforms how we serve our customers, ensuring a consistent and enhanced experience across all channels," Peter notes.

With unified commerce, the brand can craft flexible cross-channel customer shopping journeys that nearly 40% of consumers globally want. These customer experiences include cross-channel returns and click-and-collect services.

By connecting data from all sales channels, R.M.Williams can better understand its customers' shopping behaviours. "By leveraging payments data through Adyen's Unified Commerce solution, we gain a better understanding of our customers' shopping behaviours,” Peter explains. “These insights empower us to make data-driven decisions that enhance customer experiences and drive meaningful engagement."

The Australian brand can make more data-driven decisions and engage customers further, turning transactions into loyalty.

A revenue boost

The value of partnering with the right fintech platform goes beyond mere payments. A platform that combines payments, data-rich insights, customer loyalty, risk management, and revenue optimisation is the key to growth for retail brands like R.M.Williams.

With Adyen’s suite of products to optimise revenue, the Australian retailer can unlock more revenue using data and machine learning. Not only is the brand able to get more out of every transaction, it can also leverage every opportunity to convert their customers. With Least-Cost Routing (LCR), all transactions from R.M.Williams run through the best-performing processing routes for higher authorisation rates and lower costs.

Additionally, Adyen’s risk management solution enables R.M.Williams to strike the right balance between risk and revenue with a robust fraud detection and prevention solution. "One of the biggest challenges for any retailer looking across an omnichannel environment is creating a seamless experience for customers across these channels," Peter explains. "We work with Adyen to create seamless experiences through compliance, security checks, and enhanced fraud prevention."

The Australian retailer built an effective risk management strategy with Adyen, enabling it to tackle different types of risk and protect customers and revenue.

What's next for R.M.Williams as it takes its enduring legacy to the next level?

Through working with Adyen and our revenue optimisation suite, R.M.Williams has experienced an overall boost in authorisation rates, reaching 94.1%. Additionally, the brand is now able to offer a unique mix of payment options to meet the demands of its customers with a flick of a switch.

Cashierless stores are the future of retail, and R.M.Williams is right at the forefront of this innovation. With Tap to Pay on iPhone, the retailer is revolutionising customer experiences in stores, offering consumers convenience and security in payments. "With Tap to Pay on iPhone, our store team members can provide personalised assistance and complete checkouts seamlessly anywhere on the floor, eliminating the need for shoppers to wait in line while creating a faster, more engaging in-store experience." Peter adds.

Tap to Pay on iPhone controls 95% of in-store payments at all R.M.Williams stores.

Looking ahead, R.M.Williams is exploring new solutions and features from Adyen to help realise its ambitions, while taking its legacy to the next level. The retailer is currently exploring LCR for Tap to Pay on iPhone in Australia and rolling out Tap to Pay on iPhone in other key markets.

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