An-Hacking : episode 4 ✌️
Gen Z, OMS, some Shopify apps, onsite video, a massive design on Prestashop ...
Hello all! 👋
I hope you’re doing well this morning, that April has been a particularly good month (as all months should be!), and, most importantly, that you’re ready for this fourth episode of An-Hacking. Buckle up—it’s a dense one 🥵
To those joining us for the first time, welcome!
As a reminder, An-Hacking is a free newsletter focused on retail and e-commerce, where I share news, hacks, and solutions I come across daily. This episode’s program is jam-packed (though, to be fair, I said the same about the last two episodes—I really need to work on my superlatives!).
Lastly, thank you all for reading, and don’t hesitate to share An-Hacking with those around you, leave your thoughts and comments on the episodes, and let me know if there are any specific topics you’d like us to cover in the future 🤓
Much love, 💚
On today’s program :
GenZ focus 🥵
What is an OMS anyway?!
3 Shopify apps worth a closer look 🔎
Musical interlude
Onsite videos: the new standard!
A UX/UI gem on PrestaShop 🤯
Bonus: 3 podcast episodes to listen to 🎧
Allez let’s go ! 🚀
1. A study on Gen Z… Finally !! 🥵
I initially planned to include this as the bonus for Episode 4, but the topic is so vast and rich that it deserves an entire chapter!
To me, this is one of the most under-explored topics in terms of knowledge: the expectations and habits of Gen Z.
I frequently look for data on Gen Z for two main reasons:
I was born in 1995, so it’s the generation I’m closest to (my sister is part of it).
Gen Z is, in my opinion, disrupting many consumer norms, like the polarization of fast fashion vs. second-hand, the rise of genderless products, or the desire to track the carbon impact of their purchases. And trust me, the generation after them—Alpha—is going to blow us away! 🤯
We touched on this topic in our deep dive into the Good Weird website and the Bluebird Climate solution in the previous episode 👈
And as if by magic (it’s not magic—it’s talent and hard work), PrestaShop and Payplug partnered with OpinionWay to conduct a large-scale study with over 1,000 consumers, focusing heavily on Gen Z (15% of the sample) with one simple goal: to (try to) understand how Gen Z’s consumption habits differ from those of earlier generations.
The results? Groundbreaking. This study is a bombshell 💣
Here are two key insights that personally stood out to me 👇
Nearly a third of Gen Z consumers shop primarily on mobile apps, compared to just 18% of the rest of the population. I’m personally convinced of the power of mobile apps in brand strategy. I often mention solutions like Makappi, which allows brands to replicate their Shopify store into an iOS and Google Play mobile app. Mobile apps offer key advantages in terms of cost (unlimited push notifications) and performance (ultra-fast page load times).
Influence and video as purchasing drivers for Gen Z? While 95% of this generation consult reviews before buying, nearly 1 in 3 watches YouTube videos before making a purchase—double the rate of other generations. Gen Z also relies more heavily on social media than the rest of the population. In this context, a solution like Loyoly is incredibly relevant, enabling your community to become ambassadors for your brand through rewards and referrals.
For the rest, I invite you to download the full study right here 👈
2. What is an OMS anyway ?!
It’s become a ritual (another one, after the mid-episode musical interlude): since Episode 2, I’ve welcomed a guest on An-Hacking to dive into a topic where they can be considered a specialist.
This week, I want to talk about OMS—a topic briefly mentioned in the very first episode of this newsletter. It’s a hot subject when it comes to information systems (IS), inventory management, and unified commerce.
To help us unpack it, I’m thrilled to welcome Kevin Bessat, Head of Partnerships at OneStock 👇
An Order Management System (OMS) is a core software component within the commerce ecosystem, coordinating and optimizing order management with a unified view of inventory. This includes stock located in stores, warehouses, in transit, or even in production (future stock). An OMS is typically integrated with all key components of the commerce ecosystem (POS, ERP, CRM, WMS, etc.), making it the cornerstone for managing and processing orders.
👉 Key Advantages of an OMS:
Increased Sales:
Unified inventory ensures product availability across all sales channels, significantly boosting sales opportunities.Operational Efficiency Optimization:
By linking and centralizing data on products, locations, and carriers, the OMS identifies the best way to process each order, reducing delivery times and cutting transportation costs.Improved Customer Experience:
More delivery options, omnichannel experiences, precise and real-time delivery promises, and product availability all contribute to higher customer satisfaction.Enhanced In-Store Experience:
An OMS unifies online and in-store experiences through services like order-in-store or in-store returns, reducing competition between channels and offering seamless interactions.Business Impact:
Far from being "just" a logistics tool, the OMS is the single source of truth for managing and processing orders for retailers. It’s a business growth lever, positively influencing key metrics like stockout rates, order cancellation rates, incremental revenue, and profit margins.
In Conclusion:
An OMS goes far beyond merely managing orders; it becomes a strategic solution that synchronizes the entire commerce ecosystem. Its impact spans inventory management, customer experience, and logistics. Adopting an OMS means choosing a refined, strategic approach to commerce management and driving growth across all channels.
And you can find Kevin on LinkedIn (he posts a lot, and it’s always insightful!) – plus, for your information, OneStock just launched a native integration with Shopify 👈
3. Shopify apps worth a closer look
And we’re back with another medley of Shopify apps I’ve recently discovered or tested (don’t worry, I’ve got enough material for another 10 episodes 😂).
In my endless and insatiable quest for new apps, I occasionally stumble upon hidden gems. The beauty of Shopify’s App Store lies in its sheer abundance: over 10,000 apps are currently available 🥵.
As you navigate this vast marketplace, you sometimes uncover solutions you never knew existed or tackle challenges you hadn’t fully considered before.
Today, I’m sharing 3 apps that really caught my attention and had me exploring their potential:
🩵 Cart X
Post-purchase upselling is rapidly becoming a key strategy—and for good reason: increasing the AOV (Average Order Value) is a goal for every brand. A well-thought-out and optimized upsell can become a powerful lever for growth. For example, offering a complementary product B worth €18 alongside product A priced at €49 can easily boost your AOV (the reverse scenario, not so much). Tools like Nosto excel at pre-purchase upselling.
Post-purchase, however, is another great opportunity for upselling, provided you use the right tool and strategy. That’s where Cart X comes in. It offers:
Post-purchase offers with countdown timers,
A "thank you" page with coupons and discounts,
Performance tracking for each product,
OCU (One-Click Upsell) functionality.
🩵 Hideship
The team at Nextools (the creators of this app) is undoubtedly one of the most impressive lab-app teams I’ve come across in recent months. Their mission is to allow merchants, regardless of their Shopify plan, to customize their checkout with display rules.
Hideship focuses on shipping methods, enabling you to hide, sort, and rename shipping options based on:
Specific products in the cart (e.g., hiding relay point delivery for fragile items),
Geographic zones,
Order value thresholds,
Dynamic shipping rates tailored to your rules.
🩵 Instant
As I often say, one of the great advantages of e-commerce is the ability to test and analyze actions with minimal constraints (e.g., a CTA at the top of a product page vs. one placed lower down). One of the remaining challenges, however, is implementing these A/B tests: deciding which part of the site to test, how long the test should last, etc.
Instant makes setting up A/B tests much easier. It allows you to:
Measure conversion rates based on sessions (using Shopify’s native tracking),
Create personalized URLs for experiences outside of your existing pages,
Manage all of this through a super intuitive, plug-and-play app.
These apps demonstrate how much innovation is happening in the Shopify ecosystem. Whether it’s boosting AOV, customizing the checkout experience, or optimizing your site’s performance with A/B testing, these solutions are worth a closer look! 🚀
Interlude musical
Recently, I revisited (or rather, re-listened to) this gem of an album by the brilliant Freddie Gibbs: Alfredo (released in 2020). To me, this album marks a turning point in his career, especially when compared to his previous solo album, Freddie, from 2018. His voice feels more confident, the influences are more diverse, and the basslines are lighter yet more refined.
Alfredo, produced by The Alchemist, is simply stunning. From start to finish. It offers something for everyone and, in my opinion, is the perfect vibe to kick off your day... while reading An-Hacking, of course! 😎
Here’s the track Something to Rap About, featuring the incredible Tyler, The Creator. 🎶
There we go !
4. Onsite videos : the new standard !
One topic that fuels every UX/UI optimization discussion and has been constantly evolving over the years is onsite video content in e-commerce.
In my view, onsite video content has revolutionized how consumers interact with brands and products, much like podcasts have transformed how we engage with news and culture.
These videos serve different purposes and take on various forms, including:
Embedded Stories (Instagram, TikTok, etc.)
These have become a must-have—turning your e-shop into a showcase of your social media presence. It’s also, in my opinion, a fantastic way to fully leverage the mobile format, which has become the primary device for onsite navigation and e-commerce shopping. (In France, more than 1 in 2 payments is now made via mobile.)
Take a look at La Belle Boucle, for example 👇
Video UGC (User-Generated Content):
From unboxing to product demonstrations, reviews, and analysis, video UGC has become the norm. These videos help reassure your consumers by allowing them to relate to their peers.
As a reminder, more than 75% of consumers say that reviews and ratings impact their purchase decisions. Video UGC is an incredibly powerful conversion driver!
One emerging and highly effective trend is product test videos (whether influencer-created or not). These provide a clearer view of how the product works or looks in action—take Good Weird, for instance, a site we analyzed together in a previous episode. 👇
Interactive Videos:
This is a small revolution in the world of chatbots—providing answers to consumers’ questions about product usage through video content.
With a solution like Vendeo, you can build a video-based question-and-answer funnel. This is exactly what the brand Caps Me has implemented to address queries about their products, such as usage instructions, cartridge compatibility, and the types of coffee that work with their machines.
Check it out here 👇
5. Mimétique : a UX/UI gem on PrestaShop
Ah, this one is a moment I’ve been awaiting—it allows me to wrap up this 4th episode of An-Hacking on a theme I absolutely love: design ✨
Over time, websites have become true works of art, with UX teams showcasing ever-increasing levels of talent. Among my favorites are sites like Bonsoirs (by Numbered), DIJO (by Moon Moon), and the -1 store (by W3Lead).
But recently, I experienced a double knockout 👋
The first was a UX slap, the kind I absolutely love. The second? A platform slap—one that shattered a common misconception I’ve often heard in conversations: yes, you can deliver an exceptional UX/UI experience on PrestaShop!
And the website of Mimétique is the perfect example of this 👇
Just look at this masterpiece… everything is here; it’s a masterclass from A to Z:
A header in the brand’s colors, displaying a message to drive conversions—like free delivery above a certain amount, for example.
Dynamic banners with reassurance messages (green composition, made in France, etc.), all on a bold, flashy background color.
A sticky menu—just the way we like it—ensuring smooth navigation with everything within easy reach.
Two hero colors that appear consistently throughout the shopping journey. It’s bold, it’s memorable, and it reinforces the brand’s identity. (Pro tip: stick to 1–3 hero colors, as we discussed in the previous episode about the Great Jones site.)
A super clear subscription plan on every product, using the Ciklik x Payplug module, which allows you to build subscription models in a plug-and-play way.
Onsite videos (workshop presentation, founder interviews) paired with a wealth of reviews. (As Partoo highlights, 76% of consumers say reviews and ratings influence their purchase decisions.)
Product visuals on 3D backgrounds, all rendered dynamically.
The brand’s identity is strong and cohesive—a great inspiration for any shop!
And all of this… on PrestaShop. 😎
Bonus : 3 podcasts episode to listen to (FR)
Because An-Hacking is all about sharing best practices, today I’m highlighting a few people with great stories to tell 🎙️
Here are 3 podcast episodes that left a strong impression on me and that, I’m certain, will interest many of you:
Kim shares the story of the Digital Native Club (DNC), a community close to my heart as I was one of the very first members to join over three years ago. Kim Attaf, Head of Community at DNC, is undoubtedly one of the people I love working with most and deeply admire.
For context, DNC is the largest e-commerce and retail brand community in Europe, boasting over 700 members 🤯.
This time, we’re diving into the brand side of things with one of my favorite entrepreneurs, Laureen Schein, founder of La Belle Boucle and La Belle Boucle Studio.
In this episode, Laureen reflects on her journey, sharing her successes and failures, including how she and her team managed to generate €8.5M in annual revenue in just 4 years, all through organic growth 🥵.
If there’s one person you need in your network when it comes to Shopify, it’s Christophe.
In this insightful (and sometimes complex) episode, he dives deep into the power of Shopify, its ecosystem, and the platform's roadmap.
Wishing you an amazing week, friends 🫶
And if you haven’t already, feel free to share An-Hacking with your network 👇 or leave a review for this episode 🥳