Swiss Sense
Swiss Sense is a leading player in the European sleep market, with more than 125 stores and a webshop across the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Denmark. The family behind the brand has made quality beds since 1918, and Swiss Sense was named Retailer of the Year 2023-2024 in the sleeping category. Operating across five countries and every channel makes payments a genuine unified commerce challenge.
The challenge
A retailer active in five markets and across stores and online accumulates real complexity in its payment setup. Swiss Sense’s unified commerce contract, rates and costs had not been put under scrutiny for some time, and for an internationally active business that is exactly where cost quietly builds up, in transaction routing and commercial terms that no longer reflect what the market offers.
The approach
EcomStream optimised the contract, rates and costs of Swiss Sense’s unified commerce payment provider, and went a step further with advanced payment scheme routing optimisation. Routing transactions more intelligently lowers processing cost without touching the customer experience, a lever most merchants never reach because it sits below the visible layer of the contract.
A large part of the value was acting as a neutral counterpart to the PSP, taking the discussion on content rather than relationship, and then monitoring the effect in the dashboard until the savings were actually realised rather than just agreed on paper.
The outcome
The combination of contract improvement and smarter scheme routing reduced monthly provider costs by around 20 to 25 per cent, a considerable saving that Swiss Sense can now redirect into growth. The payment infrastructure is leaner and more cost-effective across all channels and markets, while the checkout experience stayed seamless throughout.
“At Swiss Sense we came into contact with Ramon, in the period between April 2023 and November 2023. Together we managed to achieve significant savings on the costs of the Payment Provider using a rational approach.
Ramon’s contribution and expertise is that he can take the content neutrally with the PSP and monitor the effectiveness at the back (in your dashboard).
He is thorough and continues to pursue until the savings are actually achieved, in a pleasant way.
I would suggest you definitely start a conversation with him, especially if you have not been monitoring your contracts and solutions for a while and are internationally active.”
Stefan Schuyleman
Senior E-commerce & Marketing Manager (Omnichannel) / Supervisory Board member NIMA
Video transcript (summary)
Payment service providers can be a complex topic, and we knew we needed expert insight. Because you can either assume you’re getting a good deal, or be certain of it. We chose certainty.
Working closely with Ramon, we evaluated what would truly fit our needs: solutions that work across all stores, integrate online seamlessly, and deliver real value. We also took a critical look at the marketing claims of the payment service providers, to separate the noise from what really matters. Unified commerce, omnichannel solutions. It’s about uncovering opportunities and having the right conversations with your payment service provider.
We made this a joint effort, together with the business and Ramon from EcomStream, to focus on the key topics that add value. By managing this effectively and making solid agreements, we were able to reduce our monthly provider costs by about 20 to 25 per cent.
I’m very glad we took this opportunity, because it has delivered significant results, and it has been a smooth, enjoyable experience. That’s why I say: get ready to be surprised yourself.
