Digital Native Firm Needed Flexible ERP Platform to Integrate Multiple Third-Party Apps into One Seamless System
Kill Cliff was founded by a U.S. Navy Seal who wanted a better energy drink for those in the military. Soon, sales skyrocketed into the multi-millions. But the company operated on QuickBooks, which presented several obstacles to growth. SWK Technologies helped Kill Cliff deploy Acumatica Cloud ERP, gaining seamless connections to Shopify, its 3PL partners, and its contract manufacturers, streamlining organizational processes, and gaining full insight into inventory.
“With SWK Technologies you get a team that isn’t set in its ways, one that really tries to understand your business, and when you’re thrown curve balls, will work with you and Acumatica to find the right solutions.” – Andrew Schutt, Chief Financial Officer, Kill Cliff
The Challenges
As an omnichannel sales company with four contract manufacturers for its products and several 3PLs for distribution, Kill Cliff has a complicated organizational structure. Kill Cliff’s rapid growth surpassed the capabilities of QuickBooks, resulting in back-office operations struggling to keep pace with disconnected systems and manual processes. Additionally, with inventory at contract manufacturers and distributors, it was hard to understand stock levels and was mostly “the best guess on our books,” says Schutts, adding he worried each month about what “unexpected inventory adjustment might need to be made.”
ERP Solution
Kill Cliff sought a user-friendly, cloud-based ERP system that united operations with accounting functionality and evaluated options such as Oracle NetSuite and Acumatica. However, they chose Acumatica for its affordability, scalability, flexibility, and intuitive user interface.
Acumatica Gold Certified VAR partner SWK Technologies Inc., which was named the Acumatica Partner of the Year in 2023 and became an Acumatica Presidents Club member in 2022, took on the brunt of the implementation. “The SWK team saw the challenges from our standpoint and worked closely with us so our people could focus on day-to-day operations,” Schutt says. “SWK really stepped up to make sure the holes in our dam stayed plugged.”
SWK Technologies is one of the largest Acumatica partners with more than 180 employees located in seven offices around the country. The firm has several Acumatica developer MVPs, and specializes in helping eCommerce, distribution, construction, and manufacturing companies digitally transform operations.
“Kill Cliff outsources its manufacturing, inventory management and distribution and as a result had limited end-to-end visibility and tried to use a framework of spreadsheets that didn’t synch up,” says Antonio Carrion, SWK Chief Marketing Officer. “Deploying Acumatica as the record of authority provided the company deep insight into the business that they needed.”
The Benefits
Seamlessly Connected Platform, Positioned for Growth
Acumatica’s open platform allowed Kill Cliff to seamlessly connect its systems so data flows in real-time. Having data in a connected system streamlined operations. Schutt no longer wonders what they may have missed or what may have slipped through the cracks.
Kill Cliff closes a month 50 percent faster. Whereas it previously took until the end of the next month to close, the team now gets it done in two weeks.
Full Inventory Transparency Across Channels, Enabling Expansion and Accurate Forecasting
One of SWK’s main tasks was to integrate all the needed third-party applications Kill Cliff needed to ensure the right products shipped from the right 3PL provider to minimize customers’ shipping costs. SWK also tapped into Acumatica’s standard functionality to build an operations process that notified all vendors when it received a sales order.
SWK built dashboards that allowed executives to monitor and track data including inventory check points that also allowed Kill Cliff to know if it needed to generate inventory adjustments and be aware of any damaged goods.
“There were a lot of weekly calls with SWK just going through issues and figuring out best solutions,” Schutt says. “The SWK team helped keep things in perspective.”
Streamlined e-Commerce Sales through Shopify Connector, Eliminating Manual Processes
Acumatica seamlessly connects to Shopify, which sends data in real time, eliminating manual journal entries. “The data comes in real-time, and we can see what’s gone out and what has not,” Schutt says.
Having full inventory transparency has allowed Kill Cliff to perform multiple accurate forecasts despite having a complex operating environment.
Empowered Continued Rapid Growth and Strategic Decision-Making.
Automating workflows not only saved time but allows Kill Cliff to concentrate on what it does best: selling sports beverages. Schutt highly recommends the SWK team. “You’re going to get a team who isn’t set in its ways, one that really tries to understand your business, and even when you’re thrown curve balls will work with you and Acumatica to find the right solutions.”
SWK Enables Success for Kill Cliff
Andrew Schutt, Chief Financial Officer, Kill Cliff: “With Acumatica, we have a great system that will grow with us.”
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