Outdoor clothing and activewear retailer, Ellis Brigham, has partnered with leading delivery intelligence platform, Ingrid, to improve fulfilment speed, personalise delivery options and build brand-rich engagement into the post-purchase experience.

Since launching its first store in Manchester in the 1930s, Ellis Brigham has become one of the UK’s most trusted mountain sports retailers. With 15 nationwide stores and an ecommerce storefront, it supplies outdoor enthusiasts with high-quality equipment, from mountaineering to trail running and skiing to snowboarding.

Known for offering personalised, expert-led customer service in-store, Ellis Brigham recognised that there was a disconnect between the high-touch encounters shoppers received before checkout and the friction they often experienced in post-purchase and online delivery experiences.  

Building brand experiences into delivery

Mark Oldham, Head of Operations at Ellis Brigham, described how he’d “wrangled with how to make online experiences and delivery feel like in-store shopping,” while also identifying the need to keep up with Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) brands who were offering a “brand-led feeling online” and “quick and convenient” deliveries.  

In contrast, Ellis Brigham’s delivery experience was lacking clear and accurate delivery timeframes, which often caused customer anxiety. It was also locked into a single carrier booking system, which not only reduced fulfilment choices but prevented the retailer from optimising delivery based on location, channel, urgency or cost preferences.

Meanwhile, outdated legacy integrations were also disrupting its Click-and-Collect capabilities, with orders taking up to seven days to arrive in-store for customer pick-up, rather than being available for same-day collection.  

As part of its digital transformation overhaul, which saw Ellis Brigham re-platform to Centra in partnership with digital commerce agency Limesharp, the adventure-wear retailer implemented Ingrid’s all-in-one delivery experience suite. 

Dynamic delivery performance

The Ingrid platform creates unique delivery experiences that boost CX, grow loyalty, and drive higher ROI. Powered by Ingrid, the solution intelligently orchestrates fulfilment – from delivery windows, pricing and carrier optimisation – to drive dynamic delivery performance.

Deploying Ingrid enhanced Ellis Brigham’s delivery experience at the checkout with clear and defined fulfilment timelines across all shipping options, with real-time stock visibility powering accurate pick-up times for Click-and-Collect orders. 

It also built in greater levels of personalisation, offering customers dynamic delivery fees based on their loyalty tier and past purchasing history. The retailer also used the Ingrid solution to A/B test its free shipping threshold across domestic and international basket values, helping identify and optimise the delicate balance between shipping revenue and conversion rates.

Powering post-purchase engagement

Post-purchase, Ingrid enabled proactive parcel tracking, allowing Ellis Brigham to build brand-owned engagement while keeping shoppers updated with real-time communication from order confirmation to delivery drop-off. 

Multi-carrier integrations also created operational efficiencies with automated rules and orchestration for optimal carrier selection and streamlined Ship-from-Store capabilities.

“By overhauling delivery and underpinning its fulfilment operations with intelligence, Ellis Brigham’s post-purchase experiences now mirror the curated, personalised and brand-rich encounters shoppers receive in-store,” said Piotr Zaleski, CPTO and Co-Founder of Ingrid.

“With technology and orchestration set up so it can now work seamlessly and almost invisibly in the background, Ellis Brigham’s team can focus on their core passion; creating the brand experiences that connect its outdoor enthusiast customers with the best technical gear for their next adventure.” 

Piotr Zaleski, Ingrid

Looking ahead, Ellis Brigham will continue to partner with Ingrid to optimise its operations and delivery experience and is exploring Ingrid Returns as well as further expanding its omnichannel delivery and Ship-from-Store capabilities.