Case Studies

The problem

The leading design firm Nicole Miller has two lines of business: an apparel design and production firm in New York City, and a set of 22 branded retail boutiques across the country. Each business unit ran on its own computer system, which meant that the merchandise was managed using entirely different codes: UPC codes on the apparel side, and SKUs on the retail side. When the retail division received merchandise from the apparel division, the inventory had to be manually entered, and all the merchandise re-ticketed, by hand—an enormous waste of time and opportunity for error.

The solution

Nicole Miller’s apparel division had been using ComputerCare’s CAMS software to manage its business since 1996. So they asked ComputerCare to solve the problem of the disparate system at retail. The ComputerCare team converted the retail system to UPC codes, and hooked up the retail purchase order system to the CAMS sales order system. At the same time, they connected the CAMS shipping system with the receiving system at retail.

The result

Nicole Miller management now has an integrated view of its business. UPC codes control inventory company-wide. The retail staff can enter a single purchase order, and the order flows through the entire organization. The stores receive advance notification that goods have been shipped, and they easily match up the merchandise when it arrives.

With no more re-ticketing, the retail staff is freed up to do what they are hired to do—sell to customers. “It’s been a tremendous time saver,” says Estelle Rose, Nicole Miller’s CFO. “With scanners to read the UPC codes on our hangtags, we no longer have to be concerned that the wrong sticker will be attached to the merchandise, and we can focus on other issues and opportunities. The ComputerCare team made us infinitely more productive across the business.”

The problem

Dynamic Team Sports, based in Downington PA, has a successful business selling jerseys and uniforms through sporting goods dealers to schools, camps and communities across the country. The base business offers teams a choice of tops and bottoms in several styles and colors, across various sports categories, like basketball, baseball, softball, soccer, volleyball and lacrosse.

In 1998, Dynamic saw an opportunity to extend its business to custom designs, whereby teams could select their jerseys with unique colors and patterns, and get their team logos and member numbers dyed directly into the fabric. Dynamic bought a Canadian company that had mastered the custom production process. But they knew that custom orders would require higher customer service levels than either Dynamic or the Canadian manufacture could deliver. Sports teams need to be sure that their uniforms will arrive in time for their season openers. In short, Dynamic had to both control the manufacturing process and communicate to customers the status of their orders at any stage.

The solution

ComputerCare was called in to install a CAMS system in the Canadian plant. The software allows the company to monitor every element of the jersey manufacturing process: cutting, art development, art transfer, sewing, and shipping. The ComputerCare team installed PCs equipped with bar code scanners on the shop floor, which keep track of goods as they pass from station to station. The system not only records the arrival and departure of goods at each station, it also forecasts when items will go out the door.

The result

Dynamic’s custom jersey business is booming. Dynamic now knows the status of each order and is able to keep a keen eye on trouble spots, which prevents production bottlenecks. The company can tell each customer the exact delivery date of every order. Their next step? Dynamic now plans to integrate the CAMS system with its website, which will allow customers to track their orders themselves, online. No more worries about whether those jerseys will arrive on time for the opening game!

The problem

Maxx New York, a fashion handbag company, was running its business on a set of spreadsheets. Their system did not allow Maxx management the kind of information they needed to track production, and—worse—they were experiencing sizable charge backs from their retail customers relating to EDI violations.

The solution

Maxx decided to install the CAMS system. The CAMS technology allowed them to communicate with their retail customers using the proper documentation, and create labels and documents that matched customer specifications. Furthermore, CAMS gave Maxx the ability to understand the nature of their charge back problem. First, they analyzed their charge backs, and classified them. Then, they identified the problems with the highest priority and put in place the appropriate solutions. This process allowed Maxx to focus on activities that would generate the greatest payoff, instead of bouncing from crisis to crisis.

The result

Their EDI problems vanished. And, best of all, their chargeback problem evaporated. The bottom line: Maxx was not only more profitable, they were able to serve a wider range of retail customers and open up entirely new business opportunity. “With ComputerCare’s CAMS system,” says Andrea Luchino, vice president of operations, “We are now in control of the business.”

The problem

In 1997, when Michael Sklar joined his father’s apparel business, he walked into a productivity nightmare. The place was running on outdated processes, with next to no automation or modern systems. So he brought in ComputerCare’s CAMS system to run ERP at Betsy & Adam.
As the company grew, so did Michael’s need for additional help from the CAMS system. A while back, Michael realized that while CAMS doing a fine job of running the inventory and reporting, the real decision-making at Betsy & Adam was being managed via Excel spreadsheets. So he asked ComputerCare how data could flow from CAMS to Excel and back.

The solution

A customization project was undertaken to enable seamless import and export, saving the company thousands of dollars and days of inefficient data transcription activity. The system also triggers email notification to the relevant managers, with the updated spreadsheet attached, to alert them to the change.

The result

“What used to take us days and weeks of work, we do now in 5 minutes,” says Michael. “We have rolled the solution out to every department in our business, from finished goods inventory, to piece goods inventory, open order reports and—most important—gross profit reports. Our managers are now really able to stay on top of their pieces of the business. It’s a godsend.”
Fueled by Michael’s knack for continuous innovation in his company processes, Betsy & Adam has grown to eight times the size they were when he joined the business. And CAMS has been there every step of the way. “It’s amazing to me,” says Michael, “That a single system has been able to support all our needs as we grew.”

The problem

The roots of cosmetics giant E.L.F. go back to the 1980s and a sportswear company called Justin Allen. The firm was growing so fast, it moved from a 25,000 square foot warehouse to one with 100,000 square feet. But its computer system was not up to the task. As a result, Justin Allen experienced severe problems delivering on customer expectations. So when searching for a new system, they took extra care to visit references and actually view the potential solution in real time, using live data.

The solution

ComputerCare’s customers were able to demonstrate how the software could support large volumes, and ComputerCare won the Justin Allen business. The ComputerCare team did an extensive study of the new warehouse’s physical layout, and created a bin location system that allowed their allocation process to handle small orders as well as large, without anything falling through the cracks. They also modified the process to produce “waves,” or pullsheets, which not only told the user where to find the goods but also defined what transfers were needed to the forward locations and flow racks.

The result

According to Frank Pisani, CFO and COO, the system was efficient enough for him to run a $40-$50 million dollar business through the warehouse with only 24 people. “Not only did we need fewer people to process orders, our quarterly inventory count was a snap, because ComputerCare’s tracking had been so accurate,” he says.

In 2004, as the sportswear business moved overseas, Pisani launched a cosmetics business. E.L.F. grew quickly, far surpassing Justin Allen in sales, and still relies on ComputerCare for its financial systems, such as accounts receivable, general ledger, inventory drawdowns, and EDI. E.L.F. sells by the carton to trade accounts like Target, and by the piece directly to consumers online. The ComputerCare system is able to support both, integrating seamlessly into the e-commerce platform.