HTM Pharmacy Case Study: E-commerce Synced Across 20+ Outlets

HTM Pharmacy is a local pharmacy chain with over 20 outlets in the northern region of Malaysia.

The company wanted to digitise its sales and reach customers beyond its brick-and-mortar branches. In other words, HTM Pharmacy needed an online channel that would work alongside its existing outlets, not replace them.

• Launch an e-commerce site to widen HTM Pharmacy's reach.
• Show customers only the products that are actually available.
• Reflect stock held across more than 20 separate outlets.
• Keep the online inventory up to date automatically, without manual re-entry.

Spacebar worked with HTM Pharmacy as both business consultant and web developer. That dual role mattered, because the hardest part of this project was operational rather than visual.

A multi-branch retailer holds stock in many places at once. For example, an item might be sold out at one outlet yet plentiful at another. If the website shows stock that isn't there, customers lose trust quickly. On the other hand, hiding items that are in stock means lost sales.

We therefore looked beyond the storefront. The site needed a reliable link to every outlet, with stock levels flowing in continuously. Our UI and UX design work then made sure customers experienced all of this as one simple online pharmacy.

E-commerce website

Our web development team launched HTM Pharmacy's e-commerce site. It gives customers a way to buy from the pharmacy online, wherever they are.

Cloud inventory across every outlet

The central challenge was reflecting inventory from more than 20 outlets on the website. So the answer was an automated cloud system that links all the outlets together. It updates the inventory on the e-commerce site in real time, so online stock matches what the branches actually hold.

Consultancy alongside development

In our consultancy role, we advised on the e-commerce launch as well as delivering the build. That way, we could weigh technical and business decisions together.

HTM Pharmacy now sells online through its own e-commerce site, reaching customers beyond its physical stores. Behind the scenes, an automated cloud system connects its outlets and keeps online inventory current in real time. As a result, the chain can grow its online sales without staff updating stock by hand.

• Inventory is the hard part of multi-branch e-commerce. Plan the stock link between outlets and website before you design product pages.
• Real-time sync protects customer trust. Selling items that are out of stock leads to cancellations and complaints.
• Treat online as an extra branch. A website should extend your outlet network, not compete with it.
• Choose a partner who understands operations. Consultancy and development together help connect the website to how your business really runs.