Naturecan, a CBD health business based in Stockport, was founded by former Myprotein CEO, Andy Duckworth, and entrepreneur Paul Finnegan. The company, which started in 2019, has seen rapid growth, with sales expected to exceed £11 million in 2022 and projected revenue for 2023 to be over £18 million. Despite its success, Naturecan faced a significant challenge. With a large percentage of its sales in Asia, Europe, and the United States, the company was dealing with orders coming from multiple platforms globally. This situation necessitated a robust back office software system to improve efficiency and closely monitor stock levels.

Nooz Optics, a France-based eyewear brand, was facing significant operational challenges despite its global success. The company, known for its innovative sunglasses, reading glasses, and children’s eyewear, had four successful Shopify-powered websites in multiple regions, including Europe, UK, Canada, and the USA. However, its internal systems were struggling to keep up with the increased orders, manual workflows, and a lack of visibility. The company was spending a significant amount of time and energy on time-consuming manual processes and stop-gap spreadsheets. This was not only inefficient but also affected the company's Trustpilot score, which was at a low of one.

P.volve, a US-based exercise brand, experienced a significant increase in popularity during the pandemic as at-home workouts became the norm. As the company expanded, it faced the challenge of managing increasingly complex operations. The brand operates through a Shopify Plus webstore, subscription management software, Stripe, online marketplaces Amazon US & Canada, and from three studio spaces based in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. It also uses a third-party warehouse in Illinois. With the goal to further expand, the company needed a progressive operational system that could alleviate the team from time-consuming manual inventory tasks and provide a central source of truth for full visibility and accuracy as they scaled. The implementation of this system coincided with the pandemic, which sent sales into overdrive, adding to the complexity of the situation.

Piglet in Bed, a UK-based online bedding business, was facing operational challenges due to its rapid growth. Launched in 2017 with a simple Shopify website and a limited product range, the company quickly gained traction, becoming the third fastest-growing homeware retailer in the UK. The brand's success attracted big-name retailers and investors, leading to an upgrade in its website, marketing, and operations. However, as orders started flowing in from both the UK and the USA, the company's existing solution was causing operational headaches. The team was losing time tracking numerous spreadsheets, and CFO Axel Stelk recognized that their increasingly complex processes needed a stronger support system. Despite interviewing several legacy ERP providers, they were unable to find a satisfactory solution.

Porcelain Superstore, an online-only direct-to-consumer (DTC) tile shop, faced the challenge of maintaining operational efficiency while offering free tile samples to potential customers. This unique business model, which bypasses the need for a physical showroom, required the company to send out 4,000 tile samples every week. However, this approach left no room for error or delay in back-office operations. The company was previously using TradeGecko, a basic standalone Order Management System (OMS), which was not sufficient to handle the high volume of samples and the growing demands of the business.

Run Gum, a performance-enhancing chewing gum company, was facing significant operational challenges due to its rapid growth. The company was selling directly to consumers and wholesale to major retailers like Target, Walmart, and Amazon, as well as a few smaller stores. As orders increased, managing multiple sales channels became a logistical nightmare. The company was using a basic Order Management Solution (OMS) and numerous spreadsheets to manage operations, along with the inventory software, Stitch Labs. However, Stitch Labs lacked the functionality to handle the complexities of Run Gum's omnichannel growth. The increased channels, sophisticated workflows, and order complexity led to error-prone reporting, gaps in data, and system lag due to the increased volume of orders. The staff was spending hours manually transferring EDI numbers between systems, making the process time-intensive.

Snow, a leading oral cosmetics brand, was experiencing operational chaos despite its phenomenal success and celebrity endorsements. The brand, best known for its transformative teeth whitening kits, had sales exceeding $100M a year and was experiencing a 90% year-on-year growth. However, behind the scenes, the brand was struggling with operational issues. The multichannel, Shopify Plus-powered brand was dealing with frequent stockouts that were frustrating its customers. The brand was in desperate need of a solution that could handle the volume of orders and offer the necessary functionality. Traditional ERP solutions like Netsuite were found to be overly complex, while lower-end solutions like Order Management Systems (OMS) were unable to handle the volume of orders Snow was dealing with.

Unimart.com, a multimillion-dollar retail outfit based in Costa Rica, experienced a 350% growth since the pandemic. The company, which started in electronics sales, quickly expanded to cover a full roster of categories. Their business model is complex, consisting of Shopify Plus-powered direct-to-consumer sales, a B2B arm for corporate customers, and a separate API stream supplying brand loyalty programs. Initially, Unimart.com used a traditional legacy ERP provider to consolidate its multichannel processes. However, the company soon faced issues with disjointed data transfers and found the system ill-suited to their business model. Alternative legacy ERPs were considered but were deemed financially unviable due to their all-in-one nature and clunky connectivity. The decision to switch to Brightpearl came at the start of 2020, just before the pandemic-induced sales surge, which further strained Unimart.com’s existing systems.

USA Lab, a Michigan-based lab equipment brand, experienced rapid growth, quadrupling in size within a few months. The company, which specializes in B2B equipment for labs and universities and DTC equipment for hemp and CBD production, began to face challenges with overselling and inventory management. In an attempt to address these issues, USA Lab opted for Cin7, a retail operating system platform. However, the platform failed to deliver on its promises, leading to further complications for the fast-growing brand. The company's experience with Cin7 highlights the risks associated with opting for a 'cheap fix' when it comes to retail operating systems.

US Cutter, a premier vinyl cutter supplier in the USA, was facing operational challenges as it expanded its business. The company, which started on eBay in 2005, had grown significantly, introducing vinyl cutting to thousands of start-ups, established businesses, and hobbyists. To support its multi-channel growth, which included a BigCommerce-powered website, online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, and two retail stores, US Cutter needed a robust operational infrastructure. The company was using CORESense, a small ERP provider for basic multi-channel operations. However, as the business scaled, US Cutter outgrew the platform, which was plagued by instability and frequent downtime. Despite receiving funding for better software, the company struggled to find a tech solution that would meet its multi-channel needs.

Wexel Art, a female-led, Austin-based framing and art retailer, was facing challenges in managing its backend operations. Despite its impressive growth rate of 89% in the last year, the company was struggling with a time-intensive inventory system and a mix of various technologies like Quickbooks, Shopify, and SPS Commerce. The lack of a central source of truth was leading to hours of manual data entry and a loss of valuable time and accuracy. The company was also looking to expand into new categories and needed a system that could handle the increased volume and complexity of operations.

AMF Magnetics, the largest supplier of permanent magnets in Australia, was facing challenges in managing its complex business operations. The company caters to a diverse range of customers, from large B2B orders to specialist medical equipment and casual D2C customers, and deals with multiple suppliers in different locations. The company's commitment to uncompromising customer service added to the complexity. Despite digitizing to some extent and using MYOB desktop software for inventory and accounting, the company found its operational processes inefficient and limiting its growth. The need for a digital transformation was evident, but the path to it was unclear.

Arms of Eve, an ethical fashion accessory business, was co-founded by Aaron and Kerryn Langer. After running a successful wholesale fashion business in Los Angeles, they decided to start a new, ecommerce-focused fashion business in Australia. They set up a Shopify store and began selling fashion accessories at weekend markets. Their business model was successful, and they were approached by Australian ecommerce marketplace The Iconic. However, as their business grew, they faced a significant challenge: inventory management. To sustain and increase growth, Arms of Eve needed a robust inventory management system and the right team to help them use it to its full potential. Their current system was not able to keep up with the increasing complexity and volume of their inventory, leading to inefficiencies and potential loss of business.

Big Music, a music business founded by Richard and David Berkman in 2009, had grown significantly over the years. The business had over 800 students coming in for music lessons, 30 music teachers, and a music product business that sold both online and in their Sydney street-front retail premises. However, the Covid-19 pandemic brought new challenges. While the slump in foot traffic was compensated by a surge in eCommerce, the unique nature of the music business made online selling potentially problematic due to the huge price range of music products. Big Music had been using an inventory management system called Lightspeed, which they had customized over the years to fit their business. However, with the increase in eCommerce sales volume and the modernization and cloud trend in the business software landscape, they found themselves outgrowing Lightspeed. When Lightspeed announced it was winding down, Big Music needed a bigger and better solution.

Cath Kidston, a renowned fashion retailer known for its nostalgic, hand-painted floral print fashion, bags, kids wear, and home furnishings, faced a significant challenge in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The company, which had grown from a single retail store in 1993 to 136 retail outlets worldwide by 2014, was forced to close 60 of their UK and Japanese retail locations in early 2020 due to commercial challenges. This situation could have spelled the end for most brick-and-mortar businesses, but Cath Kidston saw it as an opportunity for a new beginning. The company decided to relaunch the brand as a direct-to-consumer (D2C) ecommerce business while maintaining its B2B franchise and wholesale operations. However, the transition was not without its challenges. The company's existing enterprise resource planning software (ERP) was not only expensive and complex but also lacked technical documentation, making integration difficult.

Dock & Bay, a beach towel company, was struggling with inventory management. The company had a simple yet significant problem: they didn't know where their towels were. They were using spreadsheets as a temporary fix, but this method was proving to be inefficient and unreliable. Their main pain points were a lack of inventory visibility and an inability to do stock forecasting. The company needed a solution that would provide them with accurate, real-time inventory data and allow them to forecast stock levels effectively. They also needed a system that could handle the complexity of their operations, which included sales through Amazon and their own website, as well as distribution through five warehouses run by third-party logistics (3PL) partners in different regions.

Glorious, a rapidly growing gaming peripheral product seller, was facing a significant challenge with their inventory management. The company had been using Stitch Labs for inventory management since its inception, which had been sufficient while the company was small. However, as Glorious experienced rapid growth and harbored plans for further expansion, Stitch Labs was no longer able to meet their needs. Glorious required a more robust solution that could handle their increasing inventory and order volume. They also wanted to improve their customer service by fulfilling orders based on customer location. Initially, Glorious had only one warehouse in Salt Lake City, which led to varying transit times for customers across the United States. They needed a system that could help them understand their order volume geographically and expand their third-party logistics (3PL) locations accordingly.

Heart Water, a sustainable water brand based in Austin, Texas, faced significant challenges in managing its inventory. The company, which uses a unique patent-pending technology to harvest rainwater for bottling, was struggling to break into a market dominated by established brands from giant corporations. To compete, Heart Water needed an inventory system that provided modern selling tools and could handle multichannel selling seamlessly. The company sells both direct to customer (D2C) and wholesale (B2B), requiring a system that could keep track of production, batches, and SKUs regardless of the sales channel. Prior to implementing a solution, Heart Water was managing inventory with a combination of QuickBooks Online and an Excel spreadsheet, a method that was proving to be inefficient and inadequate for their growing needs.

Heritage Building, initially a supplier of recycled timber, expanded its business to include other building materials like doors, windows, light fittings, and bathroomware. This expansion led to complex inventory requirements, especially as the business dealt with second-hand goods where each item was unique. Initially, the company used MYOB and spreadsheets to manage its inventory, but this system proved inadequate. After struggling with MYOB for almost nine years, Heritage Building sought the help of SMB Consultants, a new business in the cloud software implementation and coaching industry. SMB Consultants set up Heritage Building with Lightspeed, a best-of-breed inventory management solution at the time. However, as the second-hand market became less viable and the world of online business rapidly evolved, Lightspeed failed to keep up, leading to growth stagnation due to manual tasks and error fixing.

Lockabox®, a UK-based small business, was facing challenges in managing its inventory as it grew. The company, which manufactures lockable storage containers, was struggling with coordinating stock between its 10 warehouses across the globe. Their existing system was not capable of handling the increasing number of SKUs and sales. The company was also dealing with the complexity of managing multiple Amazon and WooCommerce sales channels, as well as third-party logistics (3PL) and fourth-party logistics (4PL) partners. A significant challenge arose when one of Lockabox’s® 4PL partners failed to log a shipment of 700 units with a retail value of £30,000, which could have led to a costly catastrophe.

When Lenny Vainberg, CEO of ModaConcrete and TerraFlame, acquired the company, it had a few promising products that were gaining traction in retail. However, beneath the surface, the company was struggling. Revenue was not meeting expectations and there was a lack of visibility between manufacturing and fulfillment, making it difficult to understand the true product and operating costs. The operations were in a raw state, with no inventory management system in place. The company needed a robust solution, but the ERP systems Vainberg had worked with in the past required significant time and capital resources, which was a huge investment for a company at this early stage. They needed a solution that was cost-effective, efficient, and could provide the visibility they needed to manage their operations effectively.

Pine Apparel, an apparel wholesaler, was struggling with outdated inventory and accounting systems that were not in line with the company's growth. The company was still operating as a small business, with inventory recorded on Excel sheets and processes documented in Google Drive. Sales were manually deducted, leading to a rush among the team. When Elise Ellis, the Director of Operations, joined the team in 2019, she was tasked with modernizing the company. However, she faced the challenge of finding an inventory solution that would best suit the business. The apparel industry has unique requirements, such as the need to record items sold as bundles and single stock items, and to manage a range of colors and sizes for the same item. Any disruption in the inventory chain could halt sales, adding to the complexity of the situation.

Interstate Power Systems (IPS), a company that sells high-quality services and products for physical industries, was facing a significant challenge in terms of fleet safety. The company was spending a large amount of money on an external safety consulting agency that was only storing driver files, rather than helping the company improve its safety measures. The company's safety manager, Bill Boyle, recognized the need for a better fleet safety solution. The challenge was further compounded by the Department of Transportation's Federal ELD mandate, which made it crucial for IPS to find a solution that not only improved fleet safety practices but also ensured compliance with DOT regulations.

JMS Transportation, a family-run trucking and logistics business, was facing a significant challenge as the ELD mandate was about to go into effect. Their original provider wanted them to purchase new hardware and undergo a time-consuming installation process. This was not feasible for JMS Transportation as 90% of their drivers were owner-operators. Additionally, the company was struggling with driver safety and coaching. Without the use of dash cams, they had to manually pull telematics reports every morning and coach drivers on events from the previous day. This reactive approach was inefficient and failed to prevent one or two accidents every month. Furthermore, the company was having difficulty tracking their large number of trailers, which was affecting their asset management.

Joseph Distribution, a logistics company based in Hanover, Maryland, was facing challenges in managing its growing fleet. Initially, when the company had only a few vehicles, it was manageable to log hours of service on paper logs, manually input data into an Excel spreadsheet, and update vehicle statuses on whiteboards. However, as the company and its fleet grew, these manual processes became time-consuming and inefficient. The company had split its operations between two teams, fleet and dispatch, which operated mostly independently of each other. David Wilkins, Director of Operations at Joseph Distribution, recognized the need to move beyond these manual processes to maintain the same level of service and communication.

Page Trucking, a family-owned and operated business for over 50 years, prioritizes driver safety and regulatory compliance. However, when the U.S. ELD mandate came into effect, the company faced a significant challenge. The mandate required the installation of Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) across its fleet to improve driver safety and ensure compliance with the Department of Transportation (DOT). However, this move was met with resistance from many of the company's drivers, who were veterans accustomed to paper logs and wary of new technology. Additionally, the Hours of Service (HOS) criteria for assigned routes did not account for certain safety nuances, such as the need for drivers to stop and sleep to avoid drowsy driving, or the option to take longer but safer routes to avoid traffic.

QFS Transportation, a trucking and logistics company with a fleet of around 700 drivers, was facing operational challenges. The company was struggling to streamline operations and improve efficiency with a small office staff. In addition to this, QFS was dealing with around 300 hours of service (HOS) violations each year, a problem they were keen to address. The company had tried a different ELD provider, but found the solution to be cost-ineffective and difficult for drivers, who had to figure out how to purchase their own compatible ELD hardware. This resulted in a lackluster driver retention rate and a higher-than-desirable number of HOS violations. QFS needed a solution that was cost-friendly, easy to use, and reliable to improve efficiency, reduce HOS violation rates, and improve driver retention.

Rosendin Electric, a leading electrical contractor in the United States, faced a significant challenge in ensuring the safety of its over 7,000 employees who frequently travel to and from hundreds of job sites across the country. The company, which prioritizes safety, recognized the need for a solution that would provide visibility into their projects and workers' driving behaviors, such as idling or personal usage of the vehicle. They also sought a way to provide real-time coaching to correct any risky behaviors, including cell phone usage, drowsiness, and speeding. Additionally, Rosendin needed a technology partner that could provide exoneration evidence when their employees were involved in an incident but were not at fault. With a fleet of over 1,200 vehicles, tracking the location and maintenance of their fleet was also a focus for Rosendin, as unauthorized use and theft of assets could be a costly challenge if not addressed.

Roush Industries, a global engineering solutions provider, faced significant challenges with its trucking division. The company's electronic logging devices (ELDs) were malfunctioning, leading to connectivity issues and incorrect driver-trip matching. This resulted in drivers sitting idle, leading to financial losses for the company. Furthermore, the inability to track hours of service (HOS) due to the faulty ELDs led to several HOS violations, tarnishing the company's reputation and causing legal complications. After 18 months of disruption, Roush decided it was time for a change.

Sabel Steel, a family-owned steel and scrap enterprise, was facing growing driver dissatisfaction with their electronic logging devices (ELDs). The ELD solution they were using from a well-known provider was proving to be costly, unreliable, and complex. The hardware was not dependable, and the user experience was complicated, leading to frequent complaints from drivers. Moreover, getting assistance from the provider's customer service was a time-consuming and difficult process. This situation was causing frustration for the DOT compliance and safety manager, Diane Woodruff. The company also faced a significant challenge when one of their trucks was forced off the road and into a ditch by a pickup truck, causing damage exceeding $120,000. Without video evidence to confirm their driver was not at fault, they had to rely solely on the driver’s testimony and the accident report.