Custom store locator development for Cushman & Wakefield Belgium

In 2020, Cushman & Wakefield Belgium faced a critical challenge: the digitalization of its B2B store locator: a central tool for its retail and commercial real estate business

Historically, this store locator existed as a paper and PDF document, used both as an internal and a commercial reference.

A resource that, over time, became:

• Costly to maintain
• Slow to update
• A source of recurring errors
• Difficult to use in the field

Each new version of the document required tens of thousands of euros, not to mention the indirect costs associated with data errors, inconsistencies, and transmission delays between teams

Cushman & Wakefield then launched a deep strategic review:
👉 Moving from a static format to a professional mapping platform—live, reliable, and sustainable.

Context and challenges of digitalizing the store locator

Cushman & Wakefield Belgium’s store locator is a strategic B2B tool, primarily intended for teams active in the retail sector.

The tool must allow for:

• Quick analysis of a geographic area
• Assessment of a zone’s commercial potential
• Presentation of concrete projects to professional clients
• Decision-making based on reliable data

Before reaching out to KERN IT, several attempts at mapping projects had already been made.

The verdict was clear:

• Standard solutions couldn't handle the load
• Performance degraded as data volume grew
• Tools remained stuck as POCs, difficult to use in daily operations

The company already had Efficy CRM, but it was underutilized for geographic purposes.
The data existed, but it was neither readable nor visually actionable.

Why generic mapping solutions fail

This is a challenge we regularly encounter at KERN IT.

Generic store locators and 'turnkey' mapping tools

• Work for simple use cases
• Quickly show their limits on complex B2B projects
• Cannot hold up over time when faced with significant data volumes

In the case of Cushman & Wakefield Belgium, the challenge wasn't just 'having a map,' but building a professional mapping application integrated into existing processes.

A search for a custom mapping solution

Cushman & Wakefield wasn’t looking for another software to stack on top. The goal was to leverage their existing assets, specifically the Efficy CRM, while adding an advanced mapping layer.

The constraints were significant:

• Over 12,000 data points to display
• High performance requirements
• Daily use by sales teams
• Expected stability over several years

In this context, Cushman & Wakefield Belgium chose KERN IT as their partner.

The KERN IT approach: architecture, trade-offs, and sustainability

At KERN IT, we never start a mapping project with technology. We begin by understanding real-world usage, internal frustrations, and past failures.

Our role in this project was to:

• Deeply analyze the business problem
• Define what needed to be done
• And, just as importantly, define what should not be done

👉 Certain enticing technical choices were deliberately set aside in favor of stability, performance, and maintainability.

A professional mapping platform connected to Efficy

The heart of the solution lies in a tight integration with the existing ERP, rather than seeking to replace it.

Technical foundations and data management

• Connecting the back office to the Efficy instance
• Controlled synchronization between the CRM and the mapping platform
• Data cleaning, structuring, and validation
• Implementation of tools for visual error correction

A key takeaway from the project:
👉 Mapping visualization allows for the immediate identification of data inconsistencies, leading to a long-term improvement in CRM data quality.

Advanced management of retail geographic data

Today, the platform manages over 12,000 data points, with a strict requirement for both readability and performance.

Key mapping features

• Custom store locator development with server-side clustering
• Advanced performance optimization across all screens
• Multi-criteria search engine designed for professional use cases
• Data enrichment with business-specific metadata

GIS data and business mapping

• Import du cadastre
• Import de fichiers géographiques sur mesure
• Manipulation SVG avancée pour une visualisation cartographique métier précise
• Calcul du drive time
• Définition et analyse des zones de chalandise

Aide à la décision commerciale

• Statistics by geographic sector
• Population data
• Purchasing power data
• Specific module for shopping center floor plans
• Mapping edition and manipulation tools

Every feature was designed to meet a concrete use case, not to add unnecessary complexity to the tool.

The business benefits of a custom store locator

The implementation of this custom business mapping platform has profoundly transformed Cushman & Wakefield Belgium’s practices.

• Significant time savings for teams
• Reduction in data errors
• Continuous improvement of information quality

Financial gains

• Elimination of recurring costs related to paper and PDF documents
• Reduction of indirect costs from errors and data re-entry
• Better efficiency in decision-making processes

Business gains

• A powerful tool for presenting retail projects during client meetings
• A clear and immediately actionable geographic vision
• Professional support for B2B sales and negotiations

A mapping platform, stable since 2020

The store locator developed by KERN IT has been in production since 2020.
Today, it stands as a stable, high-performance, and scalable business mapping platform, deeply integrated into Cushman & Wakefield Belgium’s daily operations.

This is a crucial point.
👉 A complex mapping project is not judged by its launch, but by its ability to remain reliable and useful over time.

Who is this solution for?

This type of custom store locator development is primarily designed for:

• B2B commercial real estate players
• Multi-site retail networks
• Companies handling large volumes of geographic data
• Organizations where data is a strategic asset

This is not an off-the-shelf solution.
It is a professional platform engineered for demanding business needs.

Why choose a custom mapping solution?

This project illustrates a key point
👉 Mapping only becomes truly useful when it is designed as a business tool, not just a simple visualization.

A custom mapping solution allows you to

• Fully leverage complex data
• Enrich an existing CRM without compromising its stability
• Build a sustainable and scalable tool
• Directly support sales performance

Do you have a store locator or business mapping project in mind?

Are you working on:

• A B2B store locator
• A professional mapping application
• A GIS platform for your company
• A CRM and mapping integration

For over 10 years, KERN IT has been supporting companies in developing custom mapping solutions that are stable and perfectly aligned with their business challenges.

👉 Let’s talk about your project.