Ben Peters
BT Fresca / Expedite
Specialist Ecommerce Digital Media Agency
BT Fresca / Expedite
Fresca, established in 2000 and headquartered in High Wycombe, was an independent e-commerce agency providing fully managed and hosted e-commerce services to over 20 retailers, including Thomas Pink, Great Little Trading Co., Habitat, Moss, Whistles, Harvey Nichols, and Mosaic Fashions—the parent company of brands such as Oasis, Karen Millen, Warehouse, Shoe Studio, Principles, and Coast.
In February 2008, BT acquired Fresca to enhance the e-commerce and IT integration capabilities of BT Expedite, its retail solutions division.
This acquisition enabled BT Expedite to offer a comprehensive e-commerce platform with highly customizable web storefronts and flexible integration capabilities.
The integration facilitated multichannel retailing solutions, including functionalities like ‘click-to-collect,’ by combining Fresca’s expertise with BT’s delivery mechanisms.
Summary
BT Fresca | London | 2012 – 2014
Senior Project and Account Manager (TAM)
BT Expedite provided innovative, scalable technology and business solutions tailored to the retail industry, enabling enhanced customer engagement, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth. As part of BT’s retail specialist division, BT Expedite empowered retailers to thrive in a competitive market by offering proven e-commerce platforms and seamless IT integration.
In my role, I was responsible for managing the full project and account lifecycle for the implementation of international e-commerce retail solutions and marketing initiatives. Acting as the primary point of contact, I developed strong, trusted relationships with clients, ensuring their strategic objectives were met while supporting their day-to-day operations.
The Technical Account Management (TAM) role was critical to fostering long-term partnerships with clients. Fresca’s reputation for delivering exceptional support and guidance relied heavily on our ability to offer a customer-centric approach, combining deep technical expertise with a clear understanding of retail business priorities.
Fresca’s Java-based platform was a proven, robust solution for the demands of retail e-commerce, particularly for FMCG clients. Its scalability and reliability attracted leading brands seeking efficient and high-performing digital platforms. My responsibilities included onboarding clients, defining strategies, and overseeing business-as-usual operations, ensuring seamless delivery of their retail expectations throughout the full development lifecycle.
The role required a blend of project management and account management skills, including the orchestration of Agile/SCRUM delivery teams comprising technical developers and creative resources. This flexibility was vital in responding to the fast-paced challenges of the FMCG market. By delivering rapid turnarounds for marketing campaigns and technical initiatives, I ensured clients consistently exceeded customer expectations.
I also contributed to a continuous improvement program, leveraging performance analysis and engagement reporting to identify opportunities for growth and optimization. My commercial awareness and industry expertise allowed me to align Fresca’s offerings with evolving market demands, driving both client satisfaction and business success.
Advocating for the customer’s needs and success was at the core of my role, ensuring Fresca upheld its well-deserved reputation for delivering exceptional e-commerce and technical solutions.
Responsibilities
- Day to day operational partnership with clients, supporting their business objectives through domain expertise and complementary technologies
- I defined and documented business requirements in a SOR / SOW based definition process.
- Responsible for business development and revenue generation on my specific accounts.
- Managing all escalations and monitored service delivery, running reports, and statistics, reviewing KPI’s.
- Conducted site visits to the customer to maintain relationships, explore revenue opportunities.
- Define and implement clear communication and escalation procedures.
- Support and Change request management – prioritisation, resource allocation and stakeholder management.
Achievements
- The planning, specification and implementation of online retail solutions including store front, mobile, catalogue management, administration, click and collect + POS retail systems for major high street retailers.
- Consultant responsible for the implementation of Dunnesstores.com, Ireland’s largest retailer. (£300k)
- Development of bespoke digital solutions for niche brands GLTC and Farrow and Ball.
- Coordination of the offshore and internal project teams to the purpose of a combined, on-time delivery.
- High Street FMCG clients – Dunnes, Farrow and Ball, GLTC, Warehouse, Karen Millen, Oasis, WHSmiths, Cousins.
- I facilitated workshops and business analysis for the scoping and defining new projects.
Major Clients
Projects and Achievements
Late start for Establsihed Irish Retailer
Dunnes of Ireland
Dunnes Stores has 142 stores throughout Ireland, the UK and Spain, employing almost 15,000 people. They are Ireland’s largest retailer providing a unique offering of fashion, food and homewares under one brand.
Online however they had been slow to adapt to the market changes, to the point where competitors like Penneys and ex employees have gone on to set up strong online presence with brands like Primark. Also the business has had to compete with its EU competition including Tesco, ALDI and Lidl.
The pressure was therefore on to hit the market with a strong presence that built upon the long tradition that its founder Ben Dunne had set out and the family owned business continues to this day.
Working with the inhouse team and under the strict governance of the Dunnes management, I worked along side them in Dublin to layout a strategy and product hierarchy that would reflect the customers expectations of Dunnes a well as facilitate a new dynamic, a new online retail experience that would give access to a whole new market for Dunnes across Europe and the world.
Dunnes Stores
Dunnes Stores launched in Ireland 75 years ago and revolutionised the concept of retail in Ireland by promising “Better Value” to its customers, the people of Ireland. A family business, then and now promise to respond to our customers’ changing needs.
Withcontemporary fashion and homewares collections include collaborations with leading Irish designers Michael Mortell, Peter O’Brien, Paul Costelloe, Carolyn Donnelly, Leigh Tucker, Helen James, Joanne Hynes, Paul Galvin, Francis Brennan, Sonya Lennon and Brendan Courtney and professional golfer Pádraig Harrington.
International Ecommerce Services
BT Fresca & Expedite
Established in 2000 in High Wycombe, England, Fresca created an online service to meet the exponentially growing demand for ecommerce capabilities.
The platform was a branded fully managed and hosted e-commerce service which was timely introduced to the market. They quickly found admirers of some niche traditional fashion retailers keen to embrace the new online retail trend and attracted to Fresca involved hand holding process around a new way of sales that was generally new to most of them.
Fresca quickly found over 20 retailers and e-tailers such as Mosaic Fashions (brands include Oasis, Karen Millen, Warehouse, Shoe Studio, Principles and Coast), Thomas Pink, Great Little Trading Co., Habitat, Moss, Phase Eight, Whistles and Harvey Nichols.
The reputation of the business grew and attracted the attention of a number of prospective partners.
The acquisition of Fresca by BT complimented their point of sale business – Expedite and enables them to offer a comprehensive e-commerce platform, highly customisable web store front and the flexible integration capabilities of its e-commerce platform. BTs flourishing networks and server capabilities meant that now the ecommerce platform had limitless capacity.
The new arrangement meant that we were able to offer improved performance and capabilities scaling to meet the expectations of the most demanding global online retailers.
The team worked to rebrand the business to appeal to the broader fashion and FMCG market with an online experience that reflected our stature as a leading provider of multichannel shopping experience for retailers and customers.
BT Fresca
BT Fresca Ltd. provided Web site and e-commerce platform. The Company offers hosted and managed on-demand e-commerce services, customer acquisition and retention services, An in house creative capability implements bespoke designs and campaigns supporting the clients marketing and retail goals.
International Paint Retailer
Farrow and Ball
A global giant in terms of brand recognition, Farrow and Ball had an established bricks and mortar set up and store placement but had yet to commit fully to online retail.
With a well established brand the challenge working with the team and our creatives was to recreate this prestige brand online and give an exceptional level of service to reflect their perceived stature in the market place.
Working with the full farrow and ball team as well as drawing on the resources at Fresca, I coordinated the development of the site concepts from workshops and brainstorming session to inform a strategy that would set the tone for the rest of the build.
Orchestration of the website to display all the product SKUs, colours, sizes, finishes etc was carefully thought through for the best possible customer experience. The UI and UX paramount in maintaining the brand perception and values the business had built over the years.
Often on-site to reinforce the relationship and be available to address any issues or questions that might arise during development I managed the expectations of the customer and ensure the success of the project, delivering benefit and kudos for both Farrow and Ball and Fresca.
Quality Paint
It all started in Dorset, back in 1946, with local pioneers John Farrow and Richard Ball. Farrow was a trained chemist who worked for Ireland’s Agnew Paints during the Second World War, while Ball was an engineer who survived capture as a prisoner of war.
They met at a local clay pit and together shared a passion for making rich colours to original formulations using only the finest ingredients.
The pair built their first factory in Verwood, Dorset, and went on to supply paint for the Ford Motor Company, Raleigh Bicycles, the Admiralty and the War Office.
High Street Stationary Giant
WH Smith
For a hesitant ecommerce adopter the pre sales negotiations is a the challenge. Historically they had managed to weather the early competition from online retailers but a rapidly changing market and the rise of online giants like Amazon meant that WH Smith were force to look at their business model.
The company had a recognised brand that could be applied by the creatives onto the online frame work but the product set was always going to be a difficult element of this project.
WH Smith had over 3 million SKUs at the time, a vast array of books and pencils, magazines, sharpeners, paper etc. Such a wide range of goods and associated options was going to be difficult to display correctly and coherently as well as stock manage in real time.
The site was delivered on time but the vast range of products meant the business was hesitant and allowed themselves a protracted test period in order to manage the expected number of transactions.
But with such a complicated scenario they would always be teething issues, stock management done via the absorption of excel sheets from around the business meant that even with the preparation the launch made the papers but perhaps for the wrong reasons.
Not so Stationary
With over 600 stores on the high street and another 800+ travel stores at airports, train stations, hospitals, workplaces and motorway services, WHSmith is one of the UK’s leading retail groups and a household name.
The first newsagent in the Smith family name opened in 1792, and the company, WHSmith, was created in 1828. WHSmith.co.uk was launched in 1999.
Fresca to BT Fresca to BT Expedite
Specialist agency to high street domination
Fresca was a start up business that worked closely with some key fashion based clients to develop an platform that delivered to the needs of retail of FMCG.
The partnership and special relationships between Fresca and its clients was essential in the begin of any businesses foray into online retail. This agency / family approach to business relationships meant hesitant bricks and mortar clients were quick to adopt and onboard.
The staff accordingly were young and enthusiastic putting in the extra effort when ever needed to go that little bit further than expected.
Corporate working is not for everyone and come the acquisition the loss of the management in what was essentially a family business changed the dynamic of the work place but ultimately the proposition was different with greater investment in the product cam more resilience, capacity and reliability.
Other Projects
A selection from the other significant projects undertaken
Great Little Trading Company
Bespoke brochure site for watch manufacturing startup VECTOR
Warehouse Fashions
direct sales with a direct-to-consumer marketing strategy
Karen Millen
Group based ecommerce site
