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CASE STUDY

Multi-marketplace ERP, EDI and logistics automation for a US consumer electronics brand

A multi-brand consumer electronics company selling through Amazon, Walmart, HSN, QVC, Costco, Shopify and eBay ran on bookkeeping software with everything else done by hand. We migrated it off Sage onto a custom ERP with native EDI, multi-warehouse inventory, landed cost, live carrier rate shopping and reporting, and we continue to develop it.

CLIENT
A US consumer electronics and camera brand
INDUSTRY
Consumer electronics and imaging, multi-channel retail and distribution
ENGAGEMENT
Custom ERP architecture, development and long-term support, in continuous development since go-live
STACK
ASP.NET, C#, SQL Server, MVC, jQuery, ANSI X12 EDI, Amazon SP-API, Shopify API, eBay API, FedEx API, UPS API, USPS API, ShipStation, SQL Server Agent, OCR processing
THE PROBLEM

Seven sales channels, several warehouses and imported inventory, run from bookkeeping software and manual work.

  • Sage handled bookkeeping, but orders, inventory and shipping decisions were all managed manually alongside it
  • Each marketplace had to be checked and processed separately, with no central order view
  • No real-time inventory position across the owned warehouse, third-party logistics partners and marketplace fulfillment programs
  • Shipping labels and carrier selection were manual, with no way to compare live rates
  • No systematic tracking of duty, tariff, freight and landed cost on inventory sourced from overseas manufacturers
  • Retail partner deductions on remittances were reconciled by hand
  • No centralized management reporting, and no way to check whether resellers honored minimum advertised pricing
WHAT WE BUILT

One system, built around how the work actually happens.

01Off Sage, with the operating history intact
02Native EDI inside the ERP
03Every channel in one order queue
04Multi-warehouse and multi-3PL stock
MIGRATION

Off Sage, with the operating history intact

Customers, vendors, items and transaction history were migrated from Sage into a browser-based ERP covering order-to-cash and procure-to-pay, with a full general ledger, receivables and payables, so the business changed systems without losing its records.

EDI

Native EDI inside the ERP

Direct trading-partner connections for Amazon Vendor Central, Walmart, HSN, QVC and Costco with 850, 855, 856, 810, 846 and 997 documents, polled on schedules as short as ten minutes. Every job is tracked on a monitoring dashboard, and there is no third-party EDI middleware in the chain.

ORDERS

Every channel in one order queue

Amazon Vendor Central and Seller Central (SP-API), Walmart, HSN, QVC, Costco, several Shopify storefronts, eBay and direct wholesale accounts land in one system. Vendor Central purchase orders are accepted or rejected back to Amazon from the same screen that shows system, 3PL and allocated stock.

INVENTORY

Multi-warehouse and multi-3PL stock

Real-time inventory across an owned warehouse operated with a logistics partner, a second third-party warehouse and Amazon fulfillment locations, with warehouse transfer orders and an Amazon inbound shipment request action for FBA.

LANDED COST

International purchasing and landed cost

Ocean and air freight purchase orders carry ETD, bill of lading, ETA and vessel details, and the ERP calculates landed cost at receiving from tariff classification, duty, tariff, harbor surcharge and freight per item.

SHIPPING

Live rate shopping and label automation

FedEx, UPS and USPS are called live on each order across every configured service, using the client's negotiated carrier accounts. The lowest-cost option is selected and every carrier response is logged, with cartonization logic and a guaranteed-delivery engine for time-sensitive channels.

OCR + AR

Documents and deductions reconciled

Packing slips received over FTP are OCR-processed and matched to their sales order, with an exception queue for anything that does not match, and tracking numbers are read from marketplace-sourced labels. Retail deductions such as freight, returns, co-op advertising and allowances are reconciled against invoices.

REPORTING

Reporting, royalties and MAP monitoring

A self-service reporting engine with saved templates, exports and scheduled email covers sales, inventory, purchasing and royalty or commission reporting for licensed brands. A separate bot monitors reseller listings against minimum advertised prices and flags violations.

TECHNOLOGIES

What it runs on.

ASP.NETC#SQL ServerMVCjQueryANSI X12 EDIAmazon SP-APIShopify APIeBay APIFedEx APIUPS APIUSPS APIShipStationSQL Server AgentOCR processing
OUTCOME

What changed.

  • The business moved from bookkeeping-only software to one ERP running orders, inventory, purchasing, shipping and accounting
  • Orders from every marketplace and wholesale channel are managed from one system instead of separate portals
  • Inventory stays synchronized across warehouses, logistics partners and marketplace fulfillment programs
  • Shipping labels are generated automatically, with carriers chosen by live negotiated rates
  • Landed cost is calculated automatically on imported inventory instead of in spreadsheets
  • EDI jobs run on schedule with their status and exceptions visible, so rejected documents are diagnosed rather than escalated
  • Manual work is reduced across order processing, shipping, returns and deduction reconciliation
  • Reseller pricing is monitored continuously against MAP agreements

This page shows no percentages or figures because none have been confirmed by the client for publication. Where a number is not verified, it is left out rather than estimated.

ONGOING VALUE

After go-live.

The ERP is the operational backbone of the business and has been in continuous development since it went live, with production alerts routed directly to our team. Current work adds an AI assistant so staff can ask plain-language questions about ERP data such as inventory, orders, customers and sales.

RELATED INDUSTRIES

Where this work applies.

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