See how a growing food distributor replaced a fragmented, outdated ERP with Acumatica, on their preferred timeline, and gained the real-time visibility to run a smarter, more agile operation.
In the food distribution business, the margin for error is already thin. Managing perishables, maintaining quality standards, and keeping up with customer demand leaves little room for the kinds of inefficiencies that come with disconnected systems and stale data. One specialty food distributor knew that lesson all too well.
A Business Held Back by Its Own Systems
Since 2015, this distributor has built their reputation on quality. They’re known for their commitment to sourcing RWA (Raised Without the use of Antibiotics) meats, fresh proteins, and seafood, and then incorporating those into convenient classic and contemporary meals. But at a certain point, their business hit a wall.
Their ERP system was outdated, and the cracks were showing.
Without access to live data, the team couldn’t make decisions with confidence. This had the potential to create a significant liability for them in the food industry, where timing and agility can mean the difference between a well-run operation and costly mistakes. On top of that, their data was siloed across multiple systems, which made it difficult to answer critical questions quickly, and their extensive catalog of offerings meant their complexity would only increase over time.
They knew they needed a single, connected ERP solution that could finally bring every part of their operations into focus – but they couldn’t risk bringing their company to a standstill while they made the switch.
A Phased Approach, on Their Timeline
The award-winning Acumatica team at SWK Technologies understood that an all-at-once (“big bang”) implementation wasn’t an option for the distributor’s lean team and busy work schedule. That’s why they designed a phased rollout of Acumatica Distribution Edition, which introduced modules for accounting, sales, inventory, and logistics in stages.
And as each new module went live, the distributor’s operational picture promised to come into sharper focus.
A Platform with All the Right Ingredients
By the end of their implementation, the distributor’s system was positioned to deliver the recipe for ongoing success.
Since their live data could now flow through a single platform, the team would have real-time visibility to make confident decisions across their catalog of 1,000+ SKUs. Intelligent forecasting, automated replenishment, and time-phased planning could help them keep their inventory optimized, while matrix-item support could simplify their product management across multiple variables, such as flavors and pack sizes, without multiplying their administrative load.
And for a food distributor, Acumatica’s embedded WMS support for FEFO (First Expired, First Out) picking and the Distribution Edition’s traceability for lot and serial tracking combine to provide crucial capabilities for reducing spoilage and maintaining product quality standards.
The WMS would also keep the distributor’s warehouse operations tight: automated pick, pack, and ship workflows; real-time inventory tracking; barcode scanning; guided workflows; and EDI automation could help the distributor reduce errors and increase fulfillment speed. Role-based, easy-to-customize dashboards could display the most important information for each employee throughout the day, and shipping carrier integrations could keep logistics on time and in view by providing insight into freight calculations and tracking.
Similar capabilities could extend to sales and procurement. Acumatica would enable the distributor to forecast demand, generate timely purchase orders, manage customer relationships, and reduce carrying costs, all without ever leaving the platform.
Plus, because the business was in Canada, Acumatica’s Canadian Payroll capabilities would be a huge time saver. Managing payroll in Canada means navigating complex provincial tax calculations, electronically filing T4A statements and other CRA submissions, and more. Acumatica would handle all of it within a single unified system for the distributor, eliminating the need for a separate tool and the compliance risk associated with manual management.
Enterprise-Grade Capabilities, Small-Business Pricing
One more thing: this distributor had fewer than 50 employees, which meant the economics of their ERP mattered just as much as its functionality.
Acumatica’s consumption-based pricing model means they weren’t paying for capacity they didn’t need. Instead, they would get enterprise-grade ERP capabilities at a cost that made sense for their lean, focused operation. And they knew that as their company grew, the platform would scale with them.
From Blind Spots to Clarity
The distributor came into the project with siloed data, outdated information, and systems that couldn’t keep pace with their business’s increasing complexity. Today, they have a single platform with end-to-end visibility into live data, and the forward-looking operational tools they need to run a smarter, more agile food distribution business.
That kind of transformation doesn’t happen by accident. It takes the right technology – and the right partner to implement it.
Let’s Find a Solution Together
By partnering with SWK, you’re creating opportunities for your company’s continued success. Contact us today and learn how we commit to enabling success for every one of our clients.