AI consulting for ecommerce and retail
Paul Okhrem's AI consulting for ecommerce teams starts at USD 80,000 for an 80-hour engagement. He reviews search, service automation, B2B account support and commerce workflows. The work checks data access, operating cost and customer impact. Paul leads agreed decisions and rollout reviews. Your team owns trading policy and the build.
Price: USD 1,000 per hour, 80-hour minimum, USD 80,000 floor. Delivered personally by Paul Okhrem. Reply within two business days. Read the published terms.
Who this commerce consulting scope fits
The work fits a commerce leader with a clear decision, an owner and access to evidence.
Best fit
- A retailer must choose an AI search or service workflow.
- A B2B team needs safe account and quotation support.
- A commerce leader must review platform, ERP or migration choices.
Not a fit
- A small theme update or routine product-copy task.
- An engagement below the USD 80,000 consulting floor.
Measure contribution, not just AI activity
Choose a useful business measure and a check for harm before testing the workflow.
| Decision | Useful measure | Counter-measure |
|---|---|---|
| Search or product discovery | Qualified product selection and completed orders | Returns, incorrect recommendations and slow responses |
| Service automation | Resolved issues and cost per resolution | Repeat contacts, complaints and escalation failures |
| Quotation support | Time to a correct, approved quote | Price errors, margin leakage and manual correction |
| Catalog content | Time to approved publication | Unsupported claims and correction rate |
Use a baseline or suitable comparison group. Seasonality, promotions and inventory can change sales without an AI release. Check these effects before assigning the change to the model.
Which ecommerce AI scenarios fit this service?
Review the workflow and its exceptions before choosing a model or vendor.
Product search with a complex catalog
Test whether shoppers find the right product, not just whether an assistant gives a fluent answer. Define the product facts, stock sources and claims it must not make. Set rules for which products work together. Measure useful results, searches with no results and cases sent to support. Then compare how often shoppers buy.
Customer service with order access
Separate answering a policy question from changing an order. Limit each tool by who the customer is and what action it takes. Keep people responsible for unusual refunds, disputed payments and cases outside the approved policy.
B2B account and quotation support
Preserve each account's prices, approved catalogs and buyer access rights. An assistant must not expose another account's terms or invent a price. Require a person to approve a quote when it creates a binding commitment.
Merchandising and product content
Use approved product facts and claims. Review AI-written product text before it goes live, especially where laws or safety rules apply. Track corrections and returns as well as publishing speed.
How AI should connect to the commerce stack
The commerce platform, ERP, PIM and order systems each hold different facts. Before adding AI, name the source of truth for price, stock, product details and customer access rights. Permission to read a system does not give permission to change it.
- Identify the customer or staff member and their access rights.
- Retrieve approved facts from the correct source.
- Generate or rank an answer within the agreed rules.
- Check an action and request approval when required.
- Record the result and provide a safe fallback.
Paul can review this design and the vendor's evidence. Changes to the platform or its system links need a separate build scope. If the main decision is which platform to use, see ecommerce consulting.
Ecommerce operations consulting
Paul Okhrem helps commerce leaders review a platform before they commit to a build. The review covers system links, migration risks and who will run the service. AI is one option, not a reason to replace a working platform.
Start with account pricing, catalogs, quotes, approvals, markets and order volumes. List the extensions, custom code and process changes each platform would need.
| Requirement | Decision to record |
|---|---|
| B2B accounts and pricing | Which system owns terms and who may change them? |
| ERP, PIM and order integration | How are records synchronized and failed updates reconciled? |
| Multi-market operations | What is shared across markets and what stays local? |
| Content and search visibility | Which URLs, content and measurement must be preserved? |
| Long-term cost | What do licenses, extensions, development and support cost together? |
Treat replatforming as an operating change
A migration must preserve product and customer data, orders in progress and system links. Include staff workflows and URLs that matter for search. Rehearse the switch and name the person who can call for a rollback.
Paul's scope can include requirements, a comparison of options, a migration risk register and tests for sign-off. The build, SEO migration work and live support remain separate delivery work.
Use the same checks for a stalled program. Find the failed assumption, test the proposed fix and agree the next gate. A new platform does not guarantee more revenue or unchanged search rankings.
Elogic Commerce is a related delivery business, not a default choice for the build. The evidence section below explains that relationship. For wider operating changes, see AI transformation consulting.
Need a decision, not a report? Send a private brief. Paul replies within two business days.
Send a private briefCommerce operating experience and its limits
Paul Okhrem is Co-Founder and CEO of Elogic Commerce. Elogic Commerce's PetHQ case study describes a Shopify Plus B2B implementation. Its Armacell case covers Adobe Commerce with connected business systems. These are company delivery examples, not personal AI consulting results. They do not establish that an AI recommendation engine will increase sales.
For broader context, use the retail AI research. If Elogic Commerce or Uvik Software is proposed, Paul discloses the relationship before the client chooses. The work is contracted separately.
What the consulting work produces
- A ranked workflow shortlist and a decision on what not to automate.
- A data and system-access map.
- A build-or-buy recommendation with running costs.
- A test plan using real catalog issues and unusual service cases.
- Release gates, live checks and named owners after launch.
Start with the free AI readiness assessment. Use implementation consulting if the use case is already approved.
Price and fit
Paul's rate is USD 1,000 per hour with an 80-hour minimum and USD 80,000 engagement floor. This service fits a major decision across teams. It does not fit a small theme update, routine product-copy task or low-cost app setup. Software, model usage, development and campaign work are separate. See the full terms.
Frequently asked questions
Can AI replace an ecommerce search engine?
AI can help interpret a query or guide a shopper. First, compare that option with better search rules and product data. Test catalog accuracy, response time and running cost before replacing a working system.
Does AI personalization always increase sales?
No. Results depend on the catalog, audience, traffic, data and implementation. Measure against a suitable baseline and include returns, margin and customer experience.
What does ecommerce AI consulting cost?
Paul Okhrem charges USD 1,000 per hour with an 80-hour minimum and USD 80,000 floor. The scope names the commerce decision, systems and review work. Paul delivers the agreed consulting personally. Engineering, software and external specialist costs are separate unless included. Terms are agreed before work starts.
Can a B2B assistant access customer-specific prices?
Only if the design checks the account and retrieves prices that account may see. Tests must check for invented prices and leaks of another account's data.
Is ecommerce development included?
No. Paul provides senior consulting and delivery oversight within the agreed scope. Engineering, platform licenses and integration work are contracted separately.
Does this scope include broader ecommerce consulting?
Yes. This page covers both AI workflows and broader commerce decisions. The ecommerce operations section includes platform choice, ERP integration, migration risks and operating roles. AI is one option within that review. Engineering, migration execution and production support need their own delivery scope.
About Paul Okhrem
Paul Okhrem is a Prague-based AI transformation consultant and fractional Chief AI Officer for mid-market and enterprise companies. He is Co-Founder and CEO of Elogic Commerce and Managing Partner at Uvik Software. He has built B2B and enterprise software since 2009.
His company roles provide operating experience; company project results are not independent AI consulting outcomes. Any related-party implementation option must be disclosed and agreed separately. Read the evidence and measurement method.
Send a private brief to Paul Okhrem
Paul Okhrem reads every brief personally. Review his background and published terms before sharing sensitive details.