How Motel a Miio Scaled an Omnichannel Ceramics Brand Across Europe

Bridging Craft and Commerce

Motel a Miio launched in Munich in 2016 as a six-week pop-up selling hand-painted ceramics discovered on a trip through Portugal. A passion project turned full-blown ecommerce and retail operation, it now runs more than 40 stores and pop-up events across Europe. But rapid growth uncovered a tangle of systems: CRM, inventory, POS and online sales lived in silos. The team needed a flexible backbone to make every sale feel personal, whether in Berlin, Vienna or on a phone screen.

The Challenge of Scaling Intimately

From day one, Motel a Miio aimed to treat customers like friends—knowing their preferences, purchase history and special requests. Yet store staff couldn’t see online orders, and digital customers had no visibility into in-store purchases. Rolling out local payment methods, translating product descriptions and training teams in each country added layers of manual effort. Without automation and a central API layer, complexity kept piling up.

Choosing an Omnichannel Foundation

After vetting several platforms, Motel a Miio picked Shopify for its unified data model, robust APIs and app ecosystem. The move unlocked three pillars:

• Shopify POS integration in stores for real-time order history
• Matrixify for bulk data migration without SEO setbacks
• Shopify Markets for fast local shop setups and payment methods

The team also linked Klaviyo to automate personalized campaigns, tapping customer data across channels.

Impact and Results

Within weeks, store staff accessed full customer histories, turning transactions into tailored conversations. Online shoppers enjoyed consistent transparency at checkout. Key metrics took off:

• 80% of stores live on Shopify POS
• 12% rise in stock turnover from visibility in stationary sales
• 86% jump in automated Klaviyo sends year-over-year

Adding new markets in Italy, the Netherlands and Switzerland became routine—no major tech hurdles, thanks to centralized localization and payment tools. SEO held steady and page speeds improved.

What’s Next?

Having laid a stable foundation, Motel a Miio plans to extend Shopify POS to pop-up events and test advanced analytics apps from the Shopify ecosystem. Transparent inventory, real-time insights and a shared data pool ensure the brand can keep growing without losing its handcrafted appeal.