StoryStream

Win the battle for consumer attention with social shopping.

StoryStream is a platform that helps to win and keep consumer attention by bringing immersive, new 'social shopping experiences' to eCommerce storefronts.

Our technology makes it easy to source authentic UGC and social content and turns it into engaging new social shopping formats which can be seamlessly integrated into existing eCommerce storefronts. These next gen experiences provide a more inspiring way for shoppers to discover your products, while giving the visual social proof needed to convince people to buy

Sales Director

Amplience

Satisfying consumers' expectations is increasingly demanding.  To drive high levels of customer engagement, you need to provide rich, engaging and relevant customer experiences to convert more highly.  These experiences need to be fresh and optimised, and to do so across your customer base, needs to be done at scale.  Scale can only be achieved with Dynamic Content and Media - Combine those core capabilities with focussed Generative AI services, and you have the ability to deliver hyper personalised, reactive content.

Since joining Amplience as Sales Leader in 2012, the key objective has been to grow the innovative European Start-up enabling Brands and Retailers achieve greater productivity and reach online.  Working with growing the sales team to win key landmark customers including Shell, Tesco, Marks & Spencers, Otto Group, The Very Group, Sainsburys Argos, DFS, Unilever, as well as grow the business internationally, working to help with the first US customers and growing the business across Europe and the Middle East.  In doing so, also started to grow the B2B business as well.  This has been achieved by working with key partners, including SAP, Salesforce, CommerceTools,and Algolia amongst others, as well Systems Integrators like EPAM, Valtech, Gradient Edge, Wundermann Thompson and many more to help our customers recognise the benefits of an automated,optimised content production.

I currently work with the Strategic Customers in EMEA to help them recognise greater value through growing their use of Amplience, including new Generative AI Content Production opportunities.

Adobe Systems

As Territory Manager for Scene7 in the UK, I was responsible for bringing new customers on to the Scene7 platform and working with existing customers to extract greater value from their programmes, growing their business online that worked to better cement relationships.   I focussed on the Retail and Manufacturing Enterprises to better present their products, reduce their production costs, decrease their online return rates and increase conversion.  During this period, S7 customer revenue growth in this territory was amongst the highest globally - leading to a number of Adobe Achievement Awards.

Territory Manager, Scene7 UK

Provided technical sales support in this developing EMEA territory from its infancy.  Helped establish S7 in the UK and Mainland Europe, introducing the concept and business value of an On-Demand Software service that provided sites with the ability to Dynamically deliver imagery. Both concepts were new to eCommerce in Europe at the time.  Within 18 months we began having wide adoption across the online retail landscape.   Scene7 became an Adobe company in May 2007.

PreSales EMEA - Scene7 On Demand

EzGov Europe

Within this leading e-Government technology platform provider, I was responsible for Identification and detailing of Solutions for customer requirements and RFPs, Solution Architecture, Business & Strategic Consulting for UK Central Government Departments, either working directly with the departments or their System Integration partners.

UK Head of Pre-Sales

Intershop Communications

Technical Director of Europe's leading e-Commerce software vendor, managing UK Pre-Sales, IT, Training, Technical Support, and Consulting Departments for 4 years.  I joined the UK business in its infancy, initially providing all technical services myself.   Within this hyper-fast growth environment, agility was needed to build a strong technical team that could match the extremely rapid sales growth.  Within 3 years the technical team grew to 50 people supporting the sales and delivery aspects of the UK sales office.  The Company IPO'd late in 1998.

UK Technical Director

Supporting tech startups and scale-ups to bridge the gap between innovative products and market success. I help emerging tech businesses translate their technical strengths into clear, compelling business value that accelerates growth and attracts customers.

'Imagine' attending Amplience's Amplify25 at Abbey Road Studios yesterday, what an incredible experience!

Being in the legendary Studios where The Beatles recorded, you could almost hear 'Yesterday' echoing while learning about the future of content creation and AI-powered workflows.  The venue choice was pitch-perfect for discussing how content innovation is 'Coming Together' to reshape retail.

Brilliant presentations on Agentic AI and Content Factories from the Amplience team felt like watching content strategy 'Get Back' to its roots, serving real customer needs.  The customer speakers, particularly in Muhitul's session  (which Included Jayne and Jordan from Primark, Chris from Iceland Foods, Jim Clark from Interflora UK & Ireland,  Patricia from The White Company and Beth McKoy from Liberty.) sharing transformation stories proved that with the right approach, content can be 'Something' truly special.

I also loved the great presentation by Kate Hardcastle MBE, which backs up a lot of what we have been discussing with customers over recent years.

'Here Comes the Sun' moment:  the ‘Ask the Expert’ sessions, headed by Darren Lee's excellent team with direct access to product specialists and developers.  Nothing beats learning from people who 'Come Together' to solve real problems.

Great to catch up with familiar faces, 'it’s been a Long and Winding Road' for many of us in this space, but connections like these make the journey worthwhile.  A quick shout out to just a few James Brooke Darryl Hannah Parminder Meers Matthew Meddings Emily Godfrey Michael Wood Kieran Lane Neil Mistry John Williams Theo Khoja Simone Ruegner Adwoa Jennifer Opoku-Afari Christian Hallerbach and the countless individuals I have missed.

Huge credit to the Amplience team (Especially Isabella, Beth, Olivia) for an 'All You Need Is Love' approach to event organisation, flawless execution from the iconic venue choice to seamless session flow.  In the End, the whole experience reinforced why content truly is becoming business-critical for retailers.

Looking forward to seeing how these innovations 'Carry That Weight' in the market over the coming months.

#Amplify25 #ContentInnovation #RetailTech #Amplience #AbbeyRoad #CustomerExperience

Ijaz Bhattee

Transforming post-sales experiences into smarter engagements. Ex-Adobe | Ex-Amplience | Ex-Intershop

Quick appreciation for Boots UK getting the little things right.

Popped into Boots Oxford Street this week for paracetamol.

55p down to 49p with my Advantage card. Nice touches: discount applied smoothly, receipt included helpful safety advice, and showed my points balance clearly.

Really liked how they made a routine purchase feel considered. The safety information was genuinely useful (not all brands think to include care guidance), and seeing my points progress was a nice reminder of the loyalty program value.

Got me thinking: Boots UK already captures great customer data - location, purchase type, loyalty status. Imagine if they went one step further with something like “Hope your headache clears up! 12 points earned today - you’re 88 points from your next reward.”

Same information, just a touch more personal.  Small detail, but these moments of thoughtfulness can turn a functional transaction into something that makes you smile.

Credit where it’s due, Boots does reliable really well. And sometimes that’s exactly what you need.  InvoTools, can help them orchestrate the 'delight'

#CustomerExperience #RetailAppreciation #PostPurchase #CustomerService

Looking forward to tomorrow’s RetailX Autumn Retail Festival! 🎯

The quality of speakers at these events is always exceptional.  Particularly excited to hear from industry leaders like Sohail Ashraf, Andrew Newton, Daniel Finley, Dmitry Olerinskiy, Tiffany Qiao, Simon Spencelayh, Laura Wakeling, Richard Lallo, and Tom Langley among many many others.

Five summits covering retail media, marketplaces, social commerce and D2C trends - the breadth of expertise and insights these events bring together is impressive. Particularly keen on the marketplace strategy and retail media discussions.

Thanks to Ian Jindal and the brilliant RetailX team for another stellar lineup. These events consistently deliver the caliber of thinking that has kept the industry forward.

Can’t wait to dive into the conversations around how retail is evolving, especially with all the recent changes in how customers discover and purchase products and build on-going customer relationships.

 #RetailMediaX #ChannelXWorld #AutumnRetailFestival #RetailInnovation #MarketplaceStrategy #RetailTech #InvoTools

See you there! 👋

Brilliant day at RetailX Autumn Festival yesterday! 🚀
Five conferences under one roof delivered exceptional insights.
Thanks to Ian Jindal and the RetailX team for another world-class event.

Key themes that emerged:
Discovery at the Point of Joy Daniel Finley’s session with Pinterest explored how genuine product discovery happens at moments of “joy” - clean from social media noise. The laser (AI) vs. browser (social) debate continues, but what struck me is how fragmented discovery points can unify into that perfect purchase moment.  That moment where InvoTools comes into its own.

Data Science Reality Check One of the standout sessions focused on marketplace data science and compliance. Key insight  “The best LLM for data is here!” pointing to the brain.  Critical thinking  is still required, especially when navigating GDPR compliance and peer benchmarking.  Large datasets don’t always equal better outputs - data quality and solid engineering remain fundamental.  Dmitry Olerinskiy contributions in both of his sessions I attended  were enlightening.

The AI Scraping dilemma prompted some interesting thoughts around AI bots scraping merchant data.  Are we protecting businesses or blocking discovery channels?  This feels like a whole article topic waiting to be explored!

Partnership-First Marketplaces Simon Spencelayh from Robert Dyas shared brilliant insights on supplier relationships:  “work with merchants the way they want to work.”  Due diligence goes beyond products to partnerships.  Managing KPIs, SLAs, and dedicated relationship ownership makes the difference. Their lean approach to extended range operations was particularly impressive.

The Orchestration Imperative “Orchestration, orchestration, orchestration”  a message that resonated with our belief at InvoTools was well made in one of the sessions about the direction of software.  

The post-checkout experience emerged as equally, if not more important, than initial discovery. Music to my ears given what we do at InvoTools!

Ecosystem Commerce: Andrew Newton from Walmart painted a compelling picture of true ecosystem thinking - buy tyres from any marketplace seller, get them fitted at a local Walmart store.  Sellers become buyers, buyers become sellers. That’s the future.

Personal Observations: The thread connecting all these insights?  The customer journey doesn’t end at purchase , it transforms there.  Whether it’s JD Sports Fashion group expanding through GoOutdoors Marketplace (great insights from Sohail Ashraf) or discussions around paperless returns and seamless customer journeys, the post-purchase moment keeps proving its strategic importance.

And yes, Ian’s quest (self identifying as a cat) to find the right marketplace for his cat hair knitted sweaters provided the perfect session icebreaker! 🐱

Outstanding event with genuine insights. Looking forward to the next one!
#RetailXAutumnFestival #InvoTools #MarketplaceStrategy #DataScience #CustomerExperience #PostPurchase

Marks and Spencer Oxford Street: Reliable as Ever, But Missing the Digital Magic ✨

I recently visited the soon-to-close Oxford Street M&S (is it still soon to close?) for my usual 'essentials' run, and it got me thinking about missed opportunities in customer engagement.

The good: Smooth checkout, Sparks loyalty integration, digital receipts in the app. M&S has built incredible customer loyalty through consistency and quality.

The opportunity: That digital receipt looks identical to the thermal paper one. Same layout, same basic info, couple of generic links.

Here’s the thing, M&S sits on a goldmine of customer data, has one of the most loyal customer bases in retail, and operates an excellent omnichannel infrastructure.  Yet the post-purchase experience feels… static and a little... uninspiring...

Imagine if that digital receipt was personalised to your purchase, your size, your location and suggested complementary items based on your history, reminded you about click & collect services, or even just celebrated your loyalty milestones?

Small changes, huge impact.  M&S has all the ingredients for brilliant customer engagement, they just need to cook with them, Maybe starting with a better smart receipt solution 😀 

What retail brands do you think are nailing the post-purchase experience? 👇

We at InvoTools are always keen to hear where its being done right!

#RetailTech #CustomerExperience #DigitalTransformation #MarksandSpencer #PostPurchase #RetailInnovation

Taplio

Ijaz Bhattee's Linkedin Analytics

's Best Posts (last 30 days)

Want to drive more opportunities from LinkedIn?

Taplio

.css-1jgreyo{background-image:linear-gradient(284deg, rgba(39,43,72,1) 0%, rgba(33,47,183,1) 100%);color:transparent;-webkit-background-clip:text;background-clip:text;}Ijaz Bhattee's Linkedin Analytics

's Best Posts .css-qqfgvy{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);}(last 30 days)

Want to drive more opportunities from LinkedIn?

Ijaz Bhattee's Linkedin Analytics

's Best Posts (last 30 days)