Finding the Right Distribution ERP

Leaders in distribution in the UK are always looking for ways to improve service and provide value to customers. In a competitive market with many challenges, having the right ERP to achieve the vision of your business is critical. Your ERP solution should reflect the specific needs, metrics, and best practices of your industry.

Reach Your Goals

With a growing operation, you also need the right functionality, usability, and integration capabilities to run a business efficiently and effectively—especially if your daily operations include orders from a variety of channels like online, phone, and click-and-collect. When looking to choose and implement a new system to help your business lean into the future of distribution, there are several key capabilities to seek out:

1. Improved processes and optimisation: Streamline and automate your order picking, inventory management, financials, customer service, and other core processes while reducing errors, costs, and delays.
2. Single source of truth: Leverage a centralised and consistent database that stores and updates all the relevant information across your business including products, prices, customers, suppliers, invoices and transactions. This eliminates data silos and duplication, and helps ensure that everyone across the organisation has access to the latest data. 
3. Improved reporting and business intelligence: Get a comprehensive and real-time view of your performance and profitability, with customisable dashboards and reports that display key metrics and indicators.
4. Scalability to support growth: Choose a cloud-based system that can easily adapt and scale to the changing needs and demands of your business, without requiring costly and time-consuming upgrades or maintenance. 

“By implementing Epicor Prophet 21, we expect to see significant improvements in our productivity, accuracy, customer satisfaction and competitive advantage, as well as a fast return on investment. We are confident that Prophet 21 is the right ERP system to support our vision and goals, and to help us grow and succeed in the market.”  – Sarah Ryan, Managing Director │ BES Limited

Insights and Integration

BES Limited is a 49-year-old plumbing, heating, and gas supplies business offering over 15,000 products available for next-day delivery. When Managing Director Sarah Ryan found herself looking for a new, cloud-based system, she knew that it had to provide superior intelligence, integrate well with existing systems, and help provide a seamless shopping experience on their eCommerce website. According to Ryan, “We were using a legacy ERP system called MFour, which served us well for a while, but it soon became outdated and inadequate for our growing and complex operations.”

Her search led her to Epicor Prophet 21. Designed specifically for wholesale distributors, Epicor Prophet 21 has particular expertise in plumbing distribution. Ryan immediately noticed the difference. “Prophet 21 can integrate seamlessly with the Koerber Voice Picking System and our Magento eCommerce website, enhancing the efficiency and accuracy of the order fulfilment and delivery,” Ryan says. “[It] also leverages artificial intelligence and data analysis to provide us with actionable insights and recommendations to improve our operations and strategies.” This was particularly important in the plumbing area in which BES Limited specialises, Ryan adds. “One of the main reasons why we chose Prophet 21 was its specific depth in the plumbing distribution vertical. We wanted a system that understood our industry and our customers, and that could provide us with the best practices and solutions for our unique challenges and opportunities. Prophet 21 has proven to be a system that knows our business inside and out, and that can help us deliver the best service and value to our customers.” 

With these streamlined processes and increased productivity, BES Limited is well-positioned to thrive, scale, and grow moving forward. When you’re ready to work with a supportive partner that knows your business inside and out, we’re ready to give you the Insight Advantage you need to get the competitive edge.

Learn more about Epicor solutions.