Olympic Fixings soars to 99.7% stock availability while reducing stock levels with EazyStock
Olympic Fixings is a wholesale distributor of products to electrical wholesalers, builders, timber and agricultural merchants, plumbers and engineering merchants, hardware, DIY, and tile merchants, tool and plant hire, and PVC fascia merchants.
They operate distribution centres in England and Ireland to manage their 3,500 SKUs and offer merchandising, point-of-sale material, and internal sales executive team support to wholesalers.
The challenge
Olympic Fixings had a bespoke ERP system for distributors, which was transactional, but lacked some advanced forecasting functionality. While they were happy with the level of data they could get from the system, they knew that there was more data, such as trends, that could help make informed purchasing decisions.
Having recently replaced their CRM system, they knew the benefits of installing the right software to help meet their business needs. So, they explored software options that could connect with their existing ERP system to provide this additional data.
The solution
Olympic Fixings went to tender to find the best inventory optimisation tool to support their business.
EazyStock’s functionality and price model made it a winner for Olympic Fixings’ Finance Director, Gareth Williams, “EazyStock provides all the features we need in a transparent pricing structure. There aren’t any hidden costs, and we can balance the risk thanks to the subscription model.”
Paul Gordon, Managing Director of Olympic Fixings, explains how the customer success team supported them throughout the implementation and onboarding process. “Mark and Cristina were true partners in getting us set up; they felt like an extension of our business. Initially, we had weekly sessions, and Mark was very good at keeping us on our toes. He kept us all accountable to his action log.”
While the Customer Success team are well-practiced at implementing EazyStock, sometimes they come up against issues. However, as Gareth explains, there was no issue that couldn’t be rectified. “Whenever we felt there was an issue, Mark and Cristina would quickly come back with a solution and were happy to talk to our IT team or a third party to explain. Their in-depth understanding of the product and the time they spent getting to know our business meant that nothing was impossible.”
Olympic Fixings implemented EazyStock during one of the most volatile times for supply chains, meaning supply and demand were outside normal levels. Still, Paul and Gareth were quick to adapt to using the system.
“The amount of information we can get from EazyStock is amazing. We have visibility of our stock in gross terms, which we check daily. We’re also big fans of the risk of run out report, which uses our current stock information and historical sales to forecast upcoming demand and lets us know whether we have enough stock or need to order more.
“As EazyStock flags exceptions and demand patterns faster than our old ways of working, we can take control of our stock levels now that we are seeing demand and lead times returning to pre-Covid levels.” Adds Gareth.
The results
With a small purchasing team, Olympic Fixings’ purchasing sometimes felt confusing, but EazyStock has provided clear processes, and they know they can trust EazyStock to ensure they are running optimum stock levels.
As a result, stock availability surged to an impressive average of 99.7%, all while reducing overall stock levels.
As most Olympic Fixings products come from the Far East, it has been challenging to balance stock levels with demand fluctuations and operational considerations.
Now, the team use EazyStock’s Schedules for Far East orders and suppliers to optimise order recommendations based on how often they want to place and receive orders.
One of Olympic Fixings’ most significant results is in their Northern Ireland warehouse. They have been struggling to get stock levels right, often having “meetings about meetings about meetings” to no avail.
EazyStock has removed the headache for Paul, Gareth, and their warehouse manager, Dylan, and it now runs itself. First thing every morning, EazyStock recommends the orders for that day and sends them from Northern Ireland to the UK. It will then provide supplementary orders, depending on demand for no-fuss ordering.
For companies struggling with getting their stock levels right, Olympic Fixings recommend using EazyStock and advise getting an internal champion to help with the project. “Someone who can lead the process will really help you get the system up and running as quickly as possible so that you can start to see some return on investment.” Explains Gareth.
“Embrace the system and ensure you have quality data going in so that you get quality information that you can use to enhance your purchasing.” Finishes Paul.
