PPTCO (Pet Products Trading Company) is a leading supplier and distributor of pet-related products in Saudi Arabia and the MENA region. Since its founding in 2005, the company has been dedicated to enhancing the pet industry and promoting animal welfare by offering high-quality products and services. Starting with just a single container of products from one brand, they have grown exponentially, now handling an average of 60 containers monthly and offering 75 brands across 2,500 retail and online shelves.
PPTCO provides a comprehensive range of pet products, including food, supplements, litter, accessories, feeders, furniture, grooming tools, training items, toys, and medical care products. Their clientele spans specialty stores, clinics, pet hotels, grooming shops, supermarkets, e-commerce platforms, and government entities. The distributor’s unique selling point is their ability to offer a 360-degree product category, supplying clients with quality and in-demand brands.
To stay competitive in the fast-growing MENA e-commerce market, PPTCO has embraced advanced e-commerce and drop-shipping capabilities, supporting online retailers with marketing budgets and ensuring efficient logistics for timely deliveries. At the same time, the supplier and distributor wanted to eliminate a very specific set of challenges.
Challenges
As PPTCO expanded, they encountered challenges with their operational processes. The system they had in place was outdated and unable to handle their market demand. It caused inefficiencies in inventory management, led to frequent errors and delays, which hindered their ability to meet customer expectations and service level agreements (SLAs).
Here are the challenges they faced:
1. Inefficient order and inventory management
PPTCO faced specific challenges with order management as they used an outdated system that lacked the necessary integrations with their business ecosystem. Without integration for essential ERPs, clients’ sales channels and last mile carriers, the distributor struggled to maintain the necessary connectivity to deliver efficient order processing.
Similarly, when it came to inventory management, picking the correct inventory to fulfill orders took longer than required. Moreover, without an effective way to manage stock levels, PPTCO sometimes missed SLAs due to unstocked shelves.
2. Difficulty meeting growing demand
Initially, PPTCO used a technology platform that met their basic requirements. But as their operations advanced, so did their need for additional backend support. Given their system grew outdated over time, it was unable to service the growing demand for PPTCO’s services. For example, they didn’t have the capacity to manage multiple warehouses, specific inventory requirements, growing order volumes, route orders to different carriers based on location, etc.
3. Ineffective batch and expiry management
As PPTCO manages a variety of perishable products, they required a more efficient inventory batch and expiry management program. Unfortunately, their business technology and manual processes didn’t provide the means to achieve this. This contributed to wastage and inefficient inventory picking.
Implementation
Upon assessing the reasons for their struggles, PPTCO identified the need for a more robust and integrated solution that could streamline their processes, improve accuracy, and enhance overall efficiency.
Anchanto stood out to the distributor due to its features and user-friendly interface. During their discussions with Anchanto, PPTCO appreciated the SaaS provider’s commitment to addressing unique challenges and providing an integrated solution.
Solutions
PPTCO implemented Anchanto’s Warehouse Management System (WMS) due to its features like real-time inventory tracking and automated stock updates. These significantly improved the company’s inventory management, reducing errors and increasing efficiency. Here’s how they achieved this:
1. Enhanced inventory and order management
The new WMS from Anchanto enabled PPTCO to track inventory in real time and automate stock updates. This drastically reduced errors and improved efficiency within their warehouse. In fact, real-time automated updates became a cornerstone in PPTCO’s operations, providing accurate and up-to-date stock information across all platforms.
Anchanto’s advanced order and inventory management features allowed PPTCO to optimize their order processing workflow, leading to a 50% reduction in processing time. This improvement had an immediate positive impact on their ability to fulfill orders promptly.
The system also introduced the distributor to fail-proof integrations with multiple marketplaces, webstores, carriers, and ERPs. This boosted their order processing accuracy and speed even further.
2. Scalability for current and future growth
Anchanto’s technology has positioned PPTCO to scale their operations efficiently. It is capable of supporting their plans to expand product ranges, enter new GCC and MENA markets, enhance digital capabilities, optimize logistics, and promote sustainability. So even when orders grow, Anchanto’s technology will have the framework to support PPTCO’s business activities in logistics and e-commerce.
3. Smart management for perishable products
With better inventory accuracy and faster order processing, PPTCO met their SLAs more effectively and improved customer satisfaction. They also reduced product wastage through the inventory batch and expiry management capability of Anchanto’s WMS. The feature enables them to store inventory based on batch and expiry dates. That way, the items likely to expire first are sent out for delivery.
PPTCO’s partnership with Anchanto has proven to be a transformative step in their journey towards operational excellence. By addressing critical challenges in inventory management and order processing, PPTCO can streamline their processes, improve accuracy, and enhance customer satisfaction.
With Anchanto’s support, PPTCO is well-equipped to pursue its growth ambitions over the next 4 to 5 years, including expanding into new markets and enhancing its digital and logistics capabilities. The collaboration between PPTCO and Anchanto stands as a testament to how innovative technology solutions can drive efficiency, scalability, and success in a rapidly evolving industry.