3 min read
Why UAT hurts and what good actually looks like
This is the first in a series exploring why UAT is one of the most consistently painful phases in retail technology...
WHERE RETAIL TECH FLOW AND TESTING MEET CERTAINTY
Retail tech that actually goes live. Confidently.
Spike is the independent testing and assurance partner for retailers who refuse to leave technology success to chance. We de-risk your biggest programmes, protect your releases and make peak trading predictable.
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Do these sound familiar?
The challenges we hear from retail technology leaders every week. If one of these resonates, we should talk.
Releases feel "nearly ready" until late testing exposes risk
The last sprint becomes a crisis every time.
Nobody owns the end-to-end view
Suppliers say their part works. You're not sure the whole does.
Integration issues surface too late
Legacy and modern platforms don't talk. Until they do, badly.
UAT drains your business teams
Manual, slow and always the bottleneck before go-live.
Peaks amplify every uncertainty
Black Friday reveals what you didn't know was broken.
AI piles on the pressure
Vibe coding, shadow AI and new systems all need governing and human testing.
The Spike difference
Whatever retail tech challenge you're facing, Spike can deliver on quality.
Go deeper to see where we help, what you get and see real proof.
Land Big Change
Integrate, test and launch with confidence
For complex ERP, ecommerce or platform transformation programmes where stakes are highest.
Release Features Fast
Go live faster, at sprint cadence
For teams who release continuously and need quality built into every sprint - not bolted on at the end.
Scale for Peaks
Trade through your biggest moments
For Black Friday, major promotions and high-volume trading - tested against real retail patterns.
Spike's Graded Test Approach for Retail AI tech
AI tools are being embedded into retail technology at every level, from individual productivity hacks to business-critical automations. It doesn’t all carry the same risk s o why apply the same level of testing to everything?
At Spike, AI and new ways of working underpin all three focus areas. Whether your team is implementing AI-driven systems or navigating vibe coding and shadow AI risk, Spike's Graded Test Approach gives you a proportional, evidence-led way forward.
At Spike, AI and new ways of working underpin all three focus areas. Whether your team is implementing AI-driven systems or navigating vibe coding and shadow AI risk, Spike's Graded Test Approach gives you a proportional, evidence-led way forward.
Click to read our practical reference for retail technology teams adopting AI who want to test smarter, not just more.
How we deliver: The FLOW method
FLOW is our proven four-phase delivery approach. Every engagement has a clear structure, defined deliverables and the evidence your teams need to make confident decisions. No surprises. No heroics.
What our clients say
Having now worked with the team at Spike for over 2 years, I can confidently say they are a quality testing partner who I will be happy to use on any future transformation programmes.
The team at Spike not only moulded very well into the wider team, they showed flexibility in the areas that mattered. I have no hesitation in recommending the team at Spike as a testing partner.
Programme Director
Commerce Cloud Transformation
The Spike team has been exceptional: committed, professional, and seamlessly integrated with ours. Their partnership mindset and innovative approach have truly set a high bar.
Darryl's empathetic, hands-on leadership has been central to our successful collaboration. His steady guidance has ensured smooth progress and strengthened cross-team alignment.
Head of QA
Netsuite-dependent UK Retailer
We have seen a reduction in production incidents and improved stability and performance around releases.
This continues to increase stakeholder confidence in our platforms and reduces costs from needing to respond to incidents and rework release features.
Head of Salesforce Platform
Leading UK omnichannel retailer
Overall very positive engagement. The leadership team were very accommodating and helped in securing the resource at short notice.
Project Lead - Credit
Leading UK Electrical Retailer
Your testing team did a great job for us to land our Colleague Desktop programme (Salesforce Service Cloud). I really appreciated the flexibility and pragmatism of the approach taken whilst still ensuring that the testing was robust.
The evidence of that is clear from the very low level of defects we encountered through hypercare. I'd also like to thank you for the quick turnaround of additional resources to help support our UAT process.
Programme Director
Retail Contact Centre Programme
They are always willing to suggest ways to overcome problems and accommodate our needs. Nice to work with!
Netsuite Project Manager
Outdoor Equipment Retailer
I find it hard to identify one key thing above everything you do well. But I think it would have to be 'accountability'.
I have a lot of suppliers working for me, and when things get tough I often find their problems becoming mine.
With your team that doesn't happen; there's never a panic, responsibility is never ducked and I never become the 'delivery person of last resort'. Such a refreshing change!
Head of Technology
Retail Fulfilment - Online Retailer
Very competent work and a team that is outcome focused, well structured and easy to work with.
Programme Director
Supply Chain - Electrical Retailer
Spike have been very flexible, going above and beyond to support us where we have faced challenges — for example UAT test scripts and providing resources at such short notice and helping us to keep to our timelines.
Also providing valuable input into other areas outside of their remit to ensure we are set up for success.
Project Manager
Salesforce Transformation Programme
Thanks for being such a great supplier to work with, always flexible and fast and great to interact with on a daily basis.
Delivery Lead
Major UK Electricals Retailer
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Spike FAQ
The questions we hear most often from retail technology leaders.
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What does Spike actually do?
Spike provides independent testing and assurance across complex retail technology estates. We make delivery risk and readiness visible early so teams can land change without last-minute chaos - whether that's a major platform launch, a continuous release cadence, or peak trading preparation.
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When should a retail team bring Spike in?
Typically when: go-live confidence feels low; multiple suppliers create unclear accountability; integration or legacy systems keep causing issues; UAT has become painful or unmanageable; peaks or promotions are approaching; or AI systems are being introduced and need governing.
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What changes when testing is done properly?
Teams experience fewer late surprises, calmer releases, clearer go-live decisions, predictable cadence, and less reliance on heroics. In short: change lands without last-minute chaos. N Brown reduced their test cycle from 12 weeks to 12 hours, saving £1.3m per year.
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What kind of systems does Spike test?
ERP (NetSuite, SAP, Dynamics 365), WMS, POS, ecommerce platforms (Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Shopify Plus), CRM, payments, data platforms, APIs, headless architectures, legacy systems and integration layers. We focus on end-to-end retail journeys, not isolated components.
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How does Spike help with peak trading and performance risk?
Through integrated non-functional testing, i.e. performance, scalability, resilience, failure scenarios and recovery, tied directly to retail peak patterns and real-world volumetrics. Not On The High Street validated 3 million monthly site visits under peak load. One Azure MACH platform we tested handles 25 million peak orders.
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Who do you work with?
Retailers whose business relies on technology including fashion, electricals, lifestyle, D2C, marketplaces and omnichannel. We work with delivery, engineering, product and programme teams who need confidence in end-to-end quality. Our clients include Currys, Lovehoney, N Brown, NOTHS and Ooni.
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Why isn't supplier testing enough?
Suppliers test their component. Retail failures happen between systems. Spike provides the independent, cross-supplier test governance, execution and evidence needed to ensure the whole estate works together, not just the individual parts.
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Why is end-to-end testing so difficult in retail?
Retail estates evolve over years. Legacy meets cloud, estates merge, partial migrations happen, multiple suppliers are involved, and deep integration creates hidden dependencies. These surface as late risk unless you test real customer and operational flows, not just isolated components.
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How does Spike help with UAT?
We reduce heavy, manual UAT by shifting assurance earlier and supporting acceptance with risk-based evidence, automation and meaningful real-world journeys. We make UAT more focused, efficient and valuable - reducing business load while increasing confidence.
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How does testing change with AI-driven systems?
AI introduces non-determinism, data quality risks and new acceptance patterns that traditional testing approaches don't handle well. Spike's Graded Test Approach (G0 to G4) gives retail teams a proportional approach to governing AI risk - from personal productivity tools through to mission-critical AI systems. AI helps us test better, but it does not replace human expertise.