Case Study: CRT achieves a personalized online rural marketplace and increased market share with Episerver CMS

CRT’s new online strategy for rural marketplace

Combined Rural Traders (CRT) is a South Island, shareholder-owned co‑operative serving 23,000 mainly farming customers through a large field sales force and FarmCentre stores. CRT aimed to become New Zealand’s number one rural services provider but its existing website and third‑party shopping facility couldn’t support bringing most of its operation online — including a catalogue of over 20,000 products — or deliver the level of dynamic, farmer‑focused interaction the business required.

Intergen was engaged to implement Episerver CMS 5, integrate Active Directory and MondoSearch, and deliver a visual redesign and phased rollout that enabled the new “My CRT” marketplace connecting farmers with 2,300+ suppliers. The solution added Choices Rewards and monthly invoicing, boosted online personalization and convenience, reduced paperwork and travel for time‑pressed farmers, and helped CRT increase market share and secure a leading position in the rural online marketplace.

CRT

Roger Rennie

CIO