Wood Works of Renfrew

Modern Technology Helps 80-Year-Old Hardware and Lumber Retailer Double Sales and Streamline Operations

Since 1936, Wood Works of Renfrew has been providing the Renfrew and Ottawa Valley communities of Ontario, Canada with expert advice, superior lumber and hardware products, and competitive pricing. Over its 80-year history, the company has been passed down through generations and converted from a sash, door, and custom millwork manufacturer to a retail lumber yard and hardware store. 

The current owners-Bruce Gannon and Laurie Wichers-Schreur - have been committed to maintaining high-quality customer service and a family-run atmosphere. In order to keep up with these foundational goals, they upgraded from the Epicor Dimensions system to the Epicor Eagle N Series retail business management solution. “When we bought the business in June 2016, it was struggling,” said Wichers-Schreur. “We knew that in order to make money and modernize operations, we needed a new business management system. We looked at a few options but ended up staying with Epicor because of their strong partnership and industry-specific software.” 
“Our partnership with Epicor helps us identify potential growth areas. Since moving to Eagle N Series software, our sales doubled in the first year. We went from $1.9 million in 2016 to $3.9 million in 2017. On top of that, we opened a second location,” she added. “The easy-to-use software has given us the right tools to seamlessly manage our inventory and operations levels at both locations.”

Inventory Simplicity 

Inventory is a retailer's single largest investment and asset, which makes it worth managing as carefully as possible. Wood Works of Renfrew has found that through the use of Eagle N Series software, they can more easily keep ideal inventory levels to provide a greater benefit to the business. “Eagle N Series software simply allows us to keep our inventory numbers more accurate,” said Wichers-Schreur. “Inventory fluctuates- special orders, products received, etc.-so being sure that we can properly calculate the right margin and stay on track is critical. The software has helped us speed and simplify our inventory planning, product ordering, and overall shelf management by helping us remove the guesswork out of the entire process.”

Optimized Pricing

 Without careful analysis, prices can end up too high or too low-driving away customers or missing out on profits. Eagle N Series software has given Wood Works of Renfrew the ability to optimize prices in both locations. “We've found the multi-store capabilities in the Eagle N Series solution to be both robust and user-friendly, and that functionality provides the data we need to successfully run both stores simultaneously,” continued Wichers-Schreur. “We can make pricing changes quickly and easily by projecting the impact on sales and margins, then adjusting prices by amount or percentage. This feature ensures our pricing is consistent in both stores for our retail and contractor customers,” she concluded.