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Home›Technology›Ecommerce Replatforming Glossary

Ecommerce Replatforming Glossary

Replatforming conversations are full of jargon. Here is what it actually means.

Vendors, agencies and consultants all use the same handful of terms when talking about ecommerce replatforming, often without explaining what they mean in plain language. This glossary defines the terms that come up most often in platform, architecture and integration conversations, so you can hold your own in any meeting about your ecommerce future.

We have written these definitions independently of any platform vendor. Where an example platform is given, it is included to make the term clearer, not as a recommendation.

Platform, Hosting & Commerce Models

Ecommerce platform

An application that provides the core functionality needed to sell online, including product catalogue, shopping basket and checkout.

Replatforming

Moving an online store from one ecommerce platform, or a significant part of its technology stack, to another. Read our vendor-neutral replatforming guide.

COTS (Commercial Off The Shelf)

A ready-made ecommerce package sold or licensed to other businesses to use, rather than something built entirely from scratch. Adobe Commerce and Magento are commonly cited examples.

SaaS (Software as a Service)

A cloud-based ecommerce platform where the vendor hosts the application, manages updates and handles infrastructure, and the merchant accesses it as a subscription service. Shopify and BigCommerce are commonly cited examples. SaaS is the more accurate and current term for this model; some older glossaries use PaaS, which technically refers to a broader infrastructure layer rather than a packaged commerce application.

Vendor

The company that owns and licenses an ecommerce platform, such as Adobe, Shopify or BigCommerce.

Systems Integrator (SI)

A delivery partner qualified to build and support a website using a particular ecommerce platform.

Architecture & Integration Terms

API (Application Programming Interface)

A defined way for two systems to exchange data without needing custom, hard-coded integration. APIs are what allow an ecommerce platform to share product, order or customer data with an ERP, a marketing tool or a third-party app.

Headless commerce

An architecture where the ecommerce platform handles backend logic such as catalogue, pricing and checkout, but does not control the frontend presentation. A separate system, often a CMS, displays the content to the customer. Explore solution architecture.

Composable commerce

An approach where a business builds its commerce stack from multiple specialised, best-of-breed components, such as search, checkout and content, connected through APIs, rather than relying on a single all-in-one platform. Headless is one ingredient of a composable approach; composable is the broader strategy of assembling the whole stack this way.

Microservices

A way of building software as a set of small, independent components that each do one job, rather than one large connected application. This lets a business use only the part of a system it needs, for example accessing only product ratings from a reviews service without using its full functionality.

CMS (Content Management System)

Technology that lets an ecommerce team create, edit and publish content to a website, such as landing page banners and blog posts, separately from the core commerce platform.

ERP, Orders & Fulfilment

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)

An enterprise application that handles core business data and processes such as product information, inventory, finance and reporting. Read our ERP integration guide.

OMS (Order Management System)

An application that controls how different order types are processed and routed once an order is placed, passing information between the ecommerce platform, the ERP and fulfilment systems.

WMS (Warehouse Management System)

An application that handles the physical fulfilment of an order, including picking, packing, shipping and tracking, and passes order status updates back to the OMS.

EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)

A structured standard for exchanging order, invoice and shipping data electronically with trading partners, most commonly required by large retailers. Read our EDI integration guide for FMCG.

B2B trade portal

An ecommerce environment built specifically for trade customers, supporting account-specific pricing, credit terms and bulk ordering. Explore B2B trade portals.

Governance & Emerging Technology

Digital steering committee

The working group that governs a digital or ecommerce transformation programme, bringing stakeholders together at a regular cadence to steer priorities, blockers and decisions. Read more on digital steering committees.

Digital transformation governance

The discipline of coordinating internal teams and external delivery partners around a single transformation roadmap, with clear accountability and oversight. Explore digital transformation governance.

RFP (Request for Proposal)

A formal document used to invite and compare proposals from prospective platform vendors or delivery partners against a defined specification. Read about RFP and tender management.

Agentic commerce

AI systems that can take actions on behalf of a buyer or business, such as researching, comparing and purchasing products autonomously, rather than simply recommending them. Explore AI opportunity mapping.

Replatforming Glossary · FAQ

Common questions about ecommerce replatforming terminology

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Ecommerce replatforming is the process of moving an online store from one ecommerce platform or significant part of its technology stack to another. It can mean a full migration to a new platform, or a more targeted change to one part of the stack while other systems stay in place.

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