Marshall Wolf Automation Builds a Future-Ready B2B Experience with BigCommerce
See how customizable, cost-effective and reliable BigCommerce is and why we built it that way.
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25-30%
of time reclaimed from platform maintenance
100+
hours saved annually
1984
year founded
Turning the gears on a smarter B2B strategy
For more than 40 years, Marshall Wolf Automation, a women-owned industrial automation distributor, has been a trusted source for industrial products, serving customers through both outside sales and ecommerce. As buying expectations shifted, however, the company’s legacy platform struggled to keep pace.
“We are a hybrid company with both outside sales and ecommerce,” said Tyler Jensen, Director of Technology at Marshall Wolf Automation. “In the last few years, ecommerce has become much more important for us.”
As ecommerce took on a larger role in the business, it became clear that their current platform was holding them back. Recognizing the growing need to serve modern B2B buyers, the team set out to find a flexible, future-ready ecommerce solution. That search led them to BigCommerce.
CHALLENGE
A legacy platform that slowed everything down.
Before moving to BigCommerce, Marshall Wolf Automation had spent years on Magento. Over time, the platform became harder to manage and more time-consuming to maintain.
“Every change required a lot of work,” said Jensen. “It was really difficult and time consuming to get basic things done.”
One update in particular became the breaking point. “It took me about eight weeks to get through all the testing,” Jensen recalled. “We spent months working on it, and then the site was exactly the same as it was before.”
For a small, agile team, the return on effort wasn’t sustainable. At the same time, pricing pressure added urgency.
“Our contract was nearing renewal, and they nearly tripled our price,” said Beckie Sullivan, Director of Ecommerce and Marketing at Marshall Wolf Automation.
It was clear the team needed more than just a new ecommerce platform — they needed one that could simplify operations, reduce overhead, and support the pace of modern B2B sales.
“Our contract was nearing renewal, and they nearly tripled our price.”
BECKIE SULLIVAN, DIRECTOR OF ECOMMERCE AND MARKETING, MARSHALL WOLF AUTOMATION
SOLUTION
Built-in B2B features that simplify buying.
When evaluating new platforms, the team prioritized strong B2B functionality, ease of use, and flexibility to support a lean operation.
“We looked at Shopify, but they seemed very focused on B2C,” said Jensen. “BigCommerce seemed like they were going in the B2B direction. We really wanted the ability to do quotes, customer-specific pricing, and add different payment types.”
With BigCommerce B2B Edition, the team delivered all three out of the box — no custom development required. Native support for quoting, Net 30 terms via Resolve Pay, and customer-specific pricing helped modernize the buying experience while streamlining internal workflows.
“BigCommerce has helped us improve the buying experience by giving us the ability to do online quotes and offer customer specific pricing,” said Jensen. “We also were able to implement a bunch of payment methods very easily,” added Sullivan.
That shift toward self-service made a big impact. “It’s something that people had to call in for before,” said Jensen. “And with the younger generation of buyers, they don’t always want to call in. Having the ability for them to order online at any time is a really big benefit for us.”
Developer-friendly tools that save time.
As the sole developer managing Marshall Wolf Automation’s ecommerce stack, Jensen needed a platform that offered both control and simplicity. With BigCommerce, he found both.
“I can install an app on our sandbox, test it, see how it works with everything,” said Jensen. “If it works, I can move it to production in minutes. If it doesn't work, I can also uninstall it in minutes and try another route.”
Unlike their previous Magento setup, where every update required complex testing and deep technical involvement, BigCommerce allowed the team to move quickly and safely. Changes no longer meant downtime or risky workarounds.
The app ecosystem was also a clear upgrade. “We’ve had a lot of luck with the app partners,” said Sullivan. “If an app doesn’t work, it’s not a problem. We can remove it right away.”
More than just time savings, the shift brought peace of mind. “I trust BigCommerce. I did not trust our previous platform. Everything was done with kid gloves, and we had to quadruple check everything before pushing something live. I don’t feel that way at all anymore,” shared Sullivan.
By removing the burden of patches, updates, and testing cycles, BigCommerce gave the team the freedom to focus on bigger priorities — from innovation to customer experience.
A seamless experience for sales, service, and customers.
BigCommerce didn’t just streamline how customers buy — it also transformed how the business supports them after the sale. With tools like the Buyer Portal, Marshall Wolf Automation has been able to improve visibility, reduce manual work, and serve customers more efficiently.
“Having the BigCommerce Buyer Portal makes it a lot easier for our customers to be able to find out all of their information on their account,” said Jensen. “That really takes a burden off our customer service team. People used to constantly call in with questions. Now, their information is all in one place.”
The Buyer Portal also supports more complex account structures. Customers with multiple buyers can access shared order histories and permissions, while sales reps can track quote status and communication logs with ease. “You can get in there and see the customers, order history, quotes, and communications all really easily,” said Jensen.
A major part of this operational efficiency comes from BigCommerce’s integration with NetSuite. Using Celigo, the team connected their ERP system to automatically sync data like orders, inventory, and pricing between platforms. With accurate, real-time data flowing between systems, sales and ecommerce teams can work more efficiently and make faster decisions.
This agility has positioned the company to respond quickly — whether it’s updating product content, testing new apps, or reacting to shifting customer needs. “We are in a much better position with BigCommerce because we're able to quickly respond to the changes in the market,” said Sullivan.
“BigCommerce has helped us improve the buying experience by giving us the ability to do online quotes and offer customer specific pricing.”
TYLER JENSEN, DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY, MARSHALL WOLF AUTOMATION
“We are in a much better position with BigCommerce because we're able to quickly respond to the changes in the market.”
BECKIE SULLIVAN, DIRECTOR OF ECOMMERCE AND MARKETING, MARSHALL WOLF AUTOMATION
RESULTS
Time saved, experience improved.
Migrating to BigCommerce has had a measurable impact on both day-to-day efficiency and long-term strategy at Marshall Wolf Automation.
“For me, the most valuable part about BigCommerce is the updates,” said Jensen. “Previously, I used to spend 25% to 30% of my time in any given year on updates and patches. Now, on BigCommerce, I spend none of my time doing that.”
That shift alone freed up hundreds of hours annually — time that now goes toward customer experience improvements, testing new apps, and supporting sales operations.
Sales teams have also felt the difference. With customer-specific pricing and quoting available online, reps can spend less time on manual tasks and more time building relationships. “It allows our sales reps to build relationships with our customers through our ecommerce platform, instead of just being transactional,” said Jensen.
The move to BigCommerce didn’t just improve the site, it made the whole business more agile. “It was by far the smoothest migration that we've ever done,” said Jensen. “We've done a few ecommerce migrations, and we’ve done a few ERP ones. The Magento to BigCommerce switch was the easiest implementation we've ever done.”
“Previously, I used to spend 25% to 30% of my time in any given year on updates and patches. Now, on BigCommerce, I spend none of my time doing that.”
TYLER JENSEN, DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY, MARSHALL WOLF AUTOMATION
LOOKING AHEAD
Deepening relationships through digital experiences.
With the foundation in place, Marshall Wolf Automation is focused on using BigCommerce to deepen customer relationships and streamline operations even further.
“We're really hoping to continue building on how our sales team uses the platform to help customers,” said Jensen. “It gives them the ability to place orders online, get quotes, access their pricing, and receive faster responses — instead of waiting on back-and-forth emails.”
With tools like the Buyer Portal and ERP integration already live, the team plans to keep refining the experience — shortening response times, improving quote turnaround, and making reorders faster and easier for every customer.
With the flexibility to adapt and the tools to scale, BigCommerce gives Marshall Wolf Automation everything they need to keep evolving alongside their customers.
“We're really hoping to continue building on how our sales team uses the platform to help customers.”
TYLER JENSEN, DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY, MARSHALL WOLF AUTOMATION
Published: June 2025
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