Two systems that could not agree on inventory
A hosiery retailer's growing online store and its third-party logistics partner kept different inventory counts. Customers paid for the difference, in refunds.
The brief
An integration that could not disturb the wholesale business
The client is a large national retailer of hosiery and accessories with an established customer base. As the online store grew, it needed to connect to logistics and inventory management software run by a large third-party partner.
The obvious solution, replacing the incumbent system, was unavailable. The client ran a high-volume wholesale business on that same infrastructure, and the third party managed wholesale orders and inventory counts through its own proprietary system.
So the integration had to work inside existing processes rather than replace them, and satisfy two organizations with different operating requirements.
What we did
Ask the floor what it actually needs
We started with the operations and fulfilment teams rather than with a software shortlist, and defined the required functions from what both partners were actually doing.
- Interviewed the operations and fulfilment teams to identify the software functions that would resolve the issues on both sides
- Identified three potential custom software solutions with development partners capable of meeting both sets of needs
- Selected the most viable option after in-depth exploration of each
- Developed the standard operating procedure for ongoing internal management
The numbers
After integration
| Metric | Change | Reads as |
|---|---|---|
| Refunded orders from inventory mismatch | Under 2% of volume | Result |
| Customer sentiment on ordering | Improved | Corroboration |
About Gild
Gild Group is a fractional ecommerce team for mid-market Shopify brands. Performance, retention and storefront operations run by one embedded group of senior operators on a fixed monthly retainer. Charleston, South Carolina, since 2014.