Clark Rubber is one of Australia's most recognised franchises, a heritage brand known for its pool, rubber and foam products, and part of the Australian retail landscape for decades.
Following an acquisition, Clark Rubber began a transformation with a growth strategy built on innovation, customer experience and digital. Core dna was selected to run its franchise eCommerce and digital experience for both franchisees and customers.
The platform went live in 2022 and has kept changing with the business. In 2026 Clark Rubber added a shorter checkout, automatic store assignment for online orders, dangerous goods delivery and bulk tools for product content. [TBC: confirm all 2026 changes are live]
Challenges
Clark Rubber faced several challenges that needed addressing to stay competitive and improve the customer experience.
An inflexible eCommerce platform. Shopify Plus could not support what franchise eCommerce needed, including split ordering, multi-store fulfilment and personalised customer portals.
An inconsistent customer experience. The in-store and online journeys needed to work as one experience.
SEO and digital presence. Robust SEO practice through the migration was critical to holding organic search visibility, one of the basics of franchise website development.
Operational efficiency. Back-end operations had to improve while business as usual carried on uninterrupted.
Core dna Solution
Migration to Core dna. The move was the first step in Clark Rubber's digital growth plans for FY24 and beyond. At launch the platform supported split ordering, multi-store fulfilment and a personalised customer portal, with Phase 2 introducing B2B functionality.
SEO migration and optimisation. Working with SEO specialists StudioHawk, the migration covered search intent mapping, URL mapping and 301 redirects, so Clark Rubber kept the organic visibility it had built.
A better shopping experience. Endless aisles give customers more variety and choice, with detailed product information and content to support the purchase decision.
Collaborative delivery. Clark Rubber's Merchandise, Masterdata, Marketing, Operations, IT and Finance teams worked alongside their suppliers throughout, which kept business as usual running during the migration.
Changes since launch
Clark Rubber continues to extend the platform after launch. In the first half of 2026 it signed off six changes across checkout, fulfilment, shipping and product content.
A three-step checkout. The checkout was redesigned with a cleaner, more modern layout in Clark Rubber's brand colours. Delivery and payment now sit on one page, which takes checkout from four steps to three: cart, checkout and confirmation. The "Please login below" prompt was replaced with a single "Proceed to Checkout" button, and invisible reCAPTCHA screens out bots without adding a step for most customers.
Orders assigned to one store automatically. At launch, a cart could be split across several stores at checkout. In 2026 Clark Rubber took the split out of the checkout. Each order is now assigned behind the scenes to the closest store that can fulfil the whole cart, so the customer sees one simple delivery step. [TBC: how orders are handled when no store in the state can fulfil the cart in full] The free shipping radius also widened from 20km to 50km.
Dangerous goods delivery. Clark Rubber sells pool chemicals and products containing lithium batteries, which need special handling in transit. These products are now flagged as dangerous goods with the code, class and description Shippit requires, and the details can be loaded in bulk. When a dangerous good is in a delivery order, the order is declared to Shippit, a fixed dangerous goods fee is added to the shipping quote, and checkout tells the customer the shipping total includes it, in line with Australian pricing rules.
Product content in bulk. Clark Rubber's team can attach FAQs to products by uploading a spreadsheet of SKUs, questions and answers through the Core dna dashboard. Reviews collected in Reviews.io sync into the site's own reviews every day, so product pages keep Clark Rubber's star ratings and design with no third-party widget or branding. On the automatically generated On Sale page, the team sets which products appear first, product by product or in bulk through the product import.
Results
Improved online engagement. The new clarkrubber.com.au offers a stronger customer journey, with increased online engagement and higher conversion rates.
Operational efficiency. Streamlined operations reduced the need for extensive retail staffing and improved order fulfilment.
Customer satisfaction. Customers get a seamless experience whether they research online or buy in store. Innovations like the app for visualising made-to-order cushions have lifted satisfaction further.
Since the 2026 changes. [TBC: checkout conversion before and after the three-step checkout, free shipping uptake after the 50km change, and dangerous goods orders since launch]
What's Next?
The next planned phase moves free shipping from a distance rule to postcodes. A list of qualifying postcodes, such as metro Melbourne, will decide who gets free shipping, and any store in the state will be able to fulfil those orders. Remote postcodes can be excluded from delivery, and customers outside the list will be directed to in-store pickup. Clark Rubber is also updating how backorders appear at checkout.
[TBC: Phase 2 timing, Darren's approval to share it, and whether to report on the Store of the Future 2025 project here]
