Retail is evolving faster than ever before. Rising customer expectations, technological leaps, and intense innovation pressure are driving change at a pace that overwhelms many organizations.
Today, customers expect not just products, but seamless, personalized experiences—across all channels. From smartphones to web and app to the physical point of sale, information must be consistent, inventory available in real time, and product recommendations tailored to individual needs. Services must be deployed quickly, data used intelligently, and customer journeys orchestrated with flexibility. While customers take seamless omnichannel experiences for granted, many retailers still struggle with technological limitations.
Old Legacy Systems Are Holding Back Innovation
Many retailers are hitting the limits of their historically grown IT landscapes. Monolithic platforms that once promised stability and integration now slow down innovation: New features take months, and even small adjustments require complex processes.
On top of that, vendor lock-ins restrict flexibility, and technical complexity continues to rise. This often leads to dependence on large releases and long development cycles that can hardly keep pace with the market.
Increasing Pressure on Mobile Commerce and POS
The gap between expectation and reality becomes particularly evident in mobile commerce and at the point of sale. More than two-thirds of all online purchases now take place on mobile devices—“mobile first” has long been standard and is increasingly becoming “mobile only.” Customers expect ultra-fast load times, intuitive interfaces, and personalized offers in real time.
At the same time, the POS is making a comeback—it is no longer just a sales location but a showroom, service hub, and experience center within the omnichannel mix. Retailers use their stores for click & collect, ship-from-store, personal product advice, events, or loyalty programs. As a result, the POS becomes a key component of a seamless customer journey.
Customers today expect:
omnichannel loyalty programs
real-time inventory information
consistent brand and product information
seamless transitions between online and offline
smooth usage of services across all devices
However, many companies cannot meet these expectations or can only do so to a limited extent. The reason: rigid commerce systems that cannot quickly integrate new customer journeys, touchpoints, or services.
Technical Bottlenecks of Monolithic Systems
Technical Bottlenecks of Monolithic Systems
The challenges of classic commerce platforms can be traced back to a few core issues:
Lack of an API-first Architecture
Integrations take a long time, interfaces are limited, and adjustments are complex. Modern commerce platforms need flexible APIs to easily integrate AI features, external services, or new frontends.Monolithic Codebases Without Microservices
Individual functions can hardly be scaled or developed independently. Changes in one area often require extensive testing or complex release processes—making innovation slow and expensive.No Headless Structures
Frontend and backend are tightly coupled. New touchpoints such as voice, digital signage, or app experiences can only be integrated with significant effort. Design iterations also become more difficult.No Unified Data Layer
Customer data is trapped in separate silos—in the shop system, POS, CRM, or ERP. This prevents a true 360° customer view and makes real-time personalization, cross-channel insights, or AI-driven services nearly impossible.
These technical barriers lead to:
slow time-to-market
high licensing and development costs
increasing technical complexity
an innovation backlog that slows down the entire organization
How Modern Architectures Unlock Innovation Again
Retail is moving at high speed—and only flexible, modern architectures can keep up. What’s needed are systems that don’t slow innovation down but accelerate it. The increasing pressure on IT and commerce shows: It’s time to critically question outdated structures and create real agility.
This is exactly where we come in: Our experts at diva-e Conclusion analyze your system landscape and develop a custom-built setup that supports your long-term growth.
The goal: scalable services, real-time data flows, and the freedom to deploy new customer journeys quickly and without heavy release processes. Summed up: Technology that adapts to the business—not the other way around.
