IT overhaul launches Brandlines into big time

Philip Crawshaw

Brandlines puts some of the best-known groceries into our shopping bags, but a technology overhaul is turning the company into a brand itself.

The Palmerston North-based import, distribution and marketing company generates $60 million in annual revenue from brands including Werther's Original, Chupa Chups and Lindt Chocolate.

The company says a $600,000 IT services upgrade has helped it win a contract with Shell, which ultimately resulted in a 25 per cent increase in revenue.

Owner Philip Crawshaw said the previous IT system was nearly 20 years old and on its last legs, but he was reluctant to upgrade because of the cost and upheaval.

"But the IT guys said, 'Look you're running into risks, if it does fall over now you're in serious difficulties'."

Under the old system, technical support was limited and non-communicating accounting and inventory systems required manual transfer of data to run business reports, which could have caused accuracy problems.

"When a report could be proved to be wrong even slightly, then people didn't have faith in it," Crawshaw said.

Brandlines chose to upgrade with an integrated Microsoft package, including Windows Server System, Windows XP Professional operating system, Office Professional 2003, Axapta enterprise resource planning and mobile pocket computers running BizTalk.

Corporate services director Joy Chapman said the system was chosen in September 2003, and the first aspects were integrated in January 2004. "We were doing it in a hurry ... because we thought the risk of not doing it fast was a bigger risk to the company," she said.

Crawshaw said improved stock control had reduced the dumping of dated product in half, which had saved the company about $150,000 a year.

Sales can now access the details of 3500 customers, data on 1500 stocked items, and place orders in real-time while on site. Warehouse staff receive orders on tablet PCs and use barcode scanners to record stock movements, including more than 6000 daily picks, in a wireless, paperless operation.

Crawshaw said the upgrade gave Shell the confidence to award Brandlines a national confectionery contract in March.

"Shell came and crawled over our business ... without Axapta there would have been no chance. We couldn't have done it without this platform," he said.

Ironically, greater flexibility in sales management went hand-in-hand with increased discipline in the warehousing operation, he said.

"That was the hardest thing ... probably that contributed to most of the early difficulties on the stock control side," he said. "[Staff would say], 'Look I know the computer is wrong so I'll do it this way and I'll shift things around', and then it didn't work next time because [the system] didn't know that you'd shifted it.

"And then you knew the computer was wrong, and it was, but it was your fault."

Microsoft chose Brandlines' upgrade as one of only two worldwide to showcase at a mid-market business summit held in Seattle earlier this month.

Microsoft said Brandlines was an excellent example of the reasoning behind the summit - it was a mid-size business with large enterprise needs, but small-business resources.

* Who: Philip Crawshaw, owner.

* What: Distribution, marketing and wholesale company.

* Where: Palmerston North.

* Why: "We love to build brands."

* Owen Hembry was a guest of Microsoft at the mid-market business summit.