3
Countries
Murad: From Chaos to Creation
Murad needed a cheaper, cleaner path off Magento and a subscription-first global DTC model that could sit on top of Oracle EBS and a messy pile of enterprise integrations. By the time I came in, two agencies were fired, the politics were bad, and three weeks before launch we learned BigCommerce couldn’t settle credit card payments via API
12
Named Integrations
2
Custom Platform Changes
At-a-Glance
Subscription-First Under Fire
This wasn’t a normal replatform. It was a messy global shift from Magento to BigCommerce, built around subscriptions, tied into Oracle EBS and a long list of custom partners, with a rough and tumble client hell-bent on hitting their launch date. My job was to keep the stack together, calm the politics, and leave the business with something it could actually operate.
- Role
- Program Manager & Solutions Architect
- Client
- Murad (Unilever)
- Industry
- Beauty • Skincare • eCommerce
- Timeline
- 2019 Launch + Global Fast-Follows
- Team / Stakeholders
- 15
- Budget / Scale
- $1M
- Systems / Technology
BigCommerce
Oracle EBS
OrderGroove
Contentful
SendGrid
Avalara
Yotpo
Problem
Murad wanted off Magento. For them, the platform was expensive and too dependent on developer support. The problem? The replacement had no room for simplicity. BigCommerce had to sit on top of Oracle EBS, support subscriptions through OrderGroove (an integration that didn't exist), and carry a global rollout across the US, UK, and MY. When I got pulled in, two agencies had already churned, and core order, payment, shipment, and refund flows were nonexistent.
Mandate
I was the person holding together architecture, launch planning, executive escalation, partner management, and day-to-day client survival. In plain English, I was the program manager, solution engineer, and client therapist at the same time.
What I Changed
BigCommerce was going to have to bend to the client, because the client wasn’t going to bend to the platform. Murad was used to Magento, the business was under-staffed, the agencies were unstable, and the only way this was going to ship was if Neely & I documented the real order and payment logic, forced the right escalations, and kept the whole thing from collapsing into blame.
Outcome
Murad got a global launch model, a smooth cutover, and a path off Magento that reduced dependence on a large internal dev team.
Problem Statement
A Re-Platform Nobody Had Under Control
Murad wanted off Magento. The platform was expensive, developer-dependent, and couldn't support the global subscription model they needed to grow. But the replacement wasn't simple. BigCommerce had to sit on top of Oracle EBS, subscriptions had to run through OrderGroove using an integration that didn't exist yet, and the rollout had to cover the US, UK, and Malaysia. By the time I was pulled in, two agencies had already walked off the account and core order, payment, shipment, and refund flows were nonexistent.
The technical complexity wasn't the hard part. The hard part was that Unilever was watching. Murad was a prestige skincare brand inside one of the world's largest consumer goods companies, and a failed replatform wouldn't just hurt Murad — it would damage confidence in the entire BigCommerce enterprise program. There was no margin for another failed agency handoff.
Murad had a strong brand identity.
“
Neely Cox
Enterprise Account Manager, BigCommerce
What I Owned
I Transformed Chaos to Execution
Two agencies had failed before I arrived. My job was to stop the bleeding, own the architecture decisions the prior teams had left unresolved, and get Murad across the line across three markets with a two-person team. That meant driving solution design on the Oracle EBS and OrderGroove integrations, managing partner and executive relationships on both sides, and keeping the client confident enough to stay the course while we rebuilt from a standing start.
- 1
Order model
Mapped and solutioned the Oracle EBS order, shipment, and refund logic that the prior agencies had left unresolved, turning it into documented integration requirements engineering could actually build against.
- 2
Payment escalation
Identified a payment settlement blocker that would have killed the launch and escalated directly to the BigCommerce CEO to force platform changes before go-live.
- 3
Subscription architecture
Defined the subscription model across BigCommerce, Oracle EBS, and OrderGroove, including token vaulting and recurring billing logic that had no prior implementation reference to pull from.
- 4
Global rollout
Sequenced and executed cutover across the US, UK, and Malaysia with zero launch issues, then handed the client a self-service commerce model they could actually operate without engineering on call.
- 5
Client survival
Kept the client relationship intact through two agency failures, a standing-start rebuild, and a tight timeline, earning unsolicited executive thank-you emails from Murad leadership after launch.
Solution
A Global Stack Murad Could Actually Run
I turned Murad's under-documented, partner-heavy eCommerce program into a workable BigCommerce + Oracle + subscriptions model with global rollout logic.
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The stack was hard. The client dynamic was harder. Murad was demanding, highly sensitive with partners, and already on its third agency when launch pressure hit full force. Most of the stack relied on custom partners, thin support, or BigCommerce operating outside the usual playbook. That made the real job bigger than architecture. It was keeping the program moving and the launch date credible.
Impact
Launch, Stability, Independence
Murad got a global launch model, a smooth cutover, and a path off Magento that reduced dependence on a large internal dev team.
3
Markets Launched
2
Custom BC Integrations
0
Launch Issues
0
Magento devs needed
Problem
Magento required heavy developer support.
01
Decision
I translated undocumented Oracle, payment, and subscription logic into something teams could actually work from.
Outcome
Murad launched 3 global markets.
Problem
Marketing changes took weeks.
02
Decision
When the payment-settlement blocker surfaced late, I escalated it high & fast enough to prevent a launch failure.
Outcome
Launch earned explicit praise from Murad leadership.
Problem
Murad's confidence in the program was shaky.
03
Decision
I held the client, partners, platform, and global rollout together long enough to get the launch done and leave behind a model the business could keep using.
Outcome
Murad had a clean path forward post Magento.
“
Van Vuong
Chief Digital Officer, Murad
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