The path that fits you. Nobody pays us for it.
SAP Commerce On-Premise mainstream maintenance ends 31 July 2026, extended until 2027 with a surcharge. With a custom code share above 40%, re-platform is re-implementation, not lift-and-shift. Four paths assessed honestly, no more earned on one than another — sparring until the program runs.
Three data points on market reality — no panic, no downplaying. Those who aren't planning in the mid-market are already too late for big bang; slice strategy remains feasible, but the window is shrinking.
SAP Commerce On-Premise versions 1905 to 2205 lose official mainstream support on the deadline: no security patches, no bug fixes. Extended maintenance until end of 2027 is available with a surcharge and pushes the pressure — but doesn't solve the platform problem.
Source: SAP Product Availability Matrix · as of 2024/2025Active B2B industry Hybris installations in the DACH region: mechanical engineering, automotive suppliers, electrical engineering, chemicals, and construction. Addressable mid-market dense enough for the senior anchor model, but smaller than often communicated. Implementer capacity becomes the bottleneck as the deadline approaches.
Source: Industry estimate from SAP partner ecosystem data 2024Big bang re-platforming fails in the B2B industry context in a significant share of cases due to rollback requirements shortly after go-live. Slice strategy is default, not premium: selection and architecture as separate phases before implementation, then incremental rollouts instead of one large cutover. Specific effort varies by setup and is part of the assessment.
Source: Forrester Replatforming Studies 2023/2024 · BDU Trend Report 2024There is no universally correct path. The choice depends on the ERP stack (75 to 85% of DACH Hybris installs run SAP), existing investments (Salesforce footprint, MuleSoft), B2B complexity, and frontend team maturity. Here is the honest comparison — no vendor bias.
| Platform | B2B defaults depth | Migration effort | Lock-in risk | Complexity profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spryker | Strong: tenants, contract-based pricing, Approval-Workflows natively. | Medium: modular components, clean API, code-first. | Low to medium: code ownership with the customer. | Slice-capable architecture; engineering depth is a prerequisite. |
| Salesforce Commerce | Strong with Salesforce footprint; without existing CRM and Service expensive. | Medium to high: Salesforce data model forces adaptations. | High: Salesforce ecosystem binding, GMV license. | Salesforce org maturity carries most of it; data model adaptation is the bottleneck. |
| commercetools | Medium: B2B features often via partner accelerators, not out-of-the-box. | High: Headless requires a frontend rebuild plus an in-house frontend team. | Low: API-first, components interchangeable. | Frontend team maturity dominates the delivery chain. |
| SAP Commerce Cloud | Strong: codebase close to Hybris, B2B defaults preserved. | Low to medium: lift-and-shift possible with a clean codebase. | High: stays in SAP ecosystem, S/4HANA strategy required. | Clean Hybris codebase carries the lift; otherwise re-implementation. |
Four paths, four clear triggers. Not every configuration fits every path, and no one should let an implementer convince them that the right platform happens to be the one that implementer delivers best.
Tenants, contract-based pricing, Approval-Workflows as load-bearing requirements. ERP stack not uniformly Salesforce. Code-first approach suits a senior engineering team. Grow modularly without GMV license escalation at increasing volume. Deep hub on the Spryker page.
Sales Cloud live in sales operations, Service Cloud for RMA and complaints, MuleSoft as ERP integration layer. Single customer record as a real lever, not marketing. GMV profile fits the license model. Conditional assessment on the Salesforce Commerce page.
Multi-channel with different frontends (storefront, app, marketplace, IoT). In-house frontend team carries the Composable complexity. B2B industry specifics are mapped via custom logic. Investment in engineering maturity, not platform defaults.
S/4HANA strategy is set. Hybris codebase is clean enough to be moved across. Platform change is organizationally not enforceable or risk-budget-wise not feasible. An honest path, not a premium failure. Estimated 40% of the migration quota in the DACH Hybris base.
"Migration" is a misleading frame. Hybris re-platforming is re-implementation in the majority of cases. Three patterns that come up regularly in selection sparring mandates.
Custom code share in DACH Hybris B2B installations is typically 35 to 60% of the codebase. Of that, 40 to 55% is not portable 1:1 to the target platform — meaning re-implementation investment, not migration investment. Those who think "migration" systematically underestimate effort by a factor of 2 to 3.
B2B industry data models typically carry 8 to 15 peculiarities per Hybris installation: corporate-subsidiary-site-buyer hierarchies, contract-based pricing with tiered levels, catalog visibility rules per account. Platform defaults in target systems rarely map these 1:1. Data migration is the underestimated part — and the expensive one.
A large share of Hybris migration projects extends the delivery chain due to underestimated ERP integration depth: order creation, availability check, delivery schedule sync, real-time pricing. Since 75 to 85% of DACH Hybris customers run SAP ECC or S/4HANA, ERP integration is not a footnote — it is the hardest selection filter.
Those who budget "migration" and build "re-implementation" burn money and time in 2026. Frame reset before the RFP, not after three quarters over budget.
We build with you, not for you. Engagements are workbenches, not theatre. Delivery in short loops. Clean handover, then your team carries it alone.
Method in detail
25 years in IT, 14 of them in B2B commerce. Architecture mandates with large enterprises, building and steering distributed expert teams, vendor-neutral project rescue. Focus areas: platform architecture, project rescue, team operations.
Chris Zepernick
Implementer firms recommend the platform they deliver best. Resellers recommend the one that secures their margin. We recommend the one that fits your ERP stack, your Salesforce footprint, and your B2B complexity. Even when that mandate means: stay on SAP Commerce Cloud for now, or switch to commercetools, or buy extended support as a bridge.
How we workMigration path not yet clear? SAP ERP in-house? Salesforce footprint? Custom code share above 40%? A few minutes on the phone and we'll sort out honestly which path holds.
