ApparelSuite
Background
Leina & Fleur is an Australian boutique women’s clothing company that sells its products online. It has been in operation since 2010 and thanks to government funding has been able to invest in bespoke software built by The Logic Studio and appropriately named ApparelSuite.
Fleur Richardson, the company’s co-owner and managing director, has been closely involved in the development of ApparelSuite and, with The Logic Studio’s Ian Simpson, is constantly finetuning it to ensure it operates seamlessly across all the company’s divisions – purchasing, production, dispatch etc.
Client Needs
Apparel Suite has been designed to meet all the back-end needs of a constantly changing manufacturing business and by doing so to save the company time and money. Manually keeping track for instance of the many components required in garment making – fabric, thread, zips, buttons, bindings etc – to be certain the right amount of everything, in the right colours, is in stock when it’s needed, is an almost impossible task. Especially if your garment range is large. Which Leina & Fleur’s is.
As well, tracking the various orders through the manufacturing and packing process can be a nightmare if the systems aren’t in place to ensure it is done accurately. Fleur Richardson says Apparel Suite captures a snapshot of what is happening in the business at any given time, giving them the agility to change very quickly when needed. This is vital in an industry that is in constant flux, with regular changes in inventory.
Logic Studio Response
One of the many things Fleur enjoys about working with The Logic Studio team is their “I can fix that” attitude. She finds them frank and authentic. “There is always someone available to respond to requests for tweaks, ApparelSuite’s inner workings are always clearly explained and there is open and transparent communication with the developers,” she says. From the supplier side, Ian Simpson believes it is important to understand what his clients need so that can be translated into a system that solves all their unique challenges. Fleur likes that she is able to map out three months’ production in three days instead of the three weeks it used to take her. As well, there are many reports that give her a current view of every aspect of the business; reports that include profit margins, sales orders, bestselling items, production costs, bulk component requirements and orders, work in progress, product margins by season and order, and linesheets.
Benefits
One of the many benefits of ApparelSuite to Leina & Fleur is that it reduces risk by enabling staff to see at any time where there might be a bottleneck in production, an inventory gap or a product that’s not selling. There’s a sense of relief too, that all the information staff hold in their heads is now documented in the system and available to anyone else on the team to access. And, because ApparelSuite is intuitive, it can be used by anyone and even Fleur’s sister, who is not in the fashion business, finds it easy to use. The icing on the cake for Leina & Fleur was when ApparelSuite was independently audited, it received a double thumbs-up, the highest accolade there is.
Outcome
Fleur says, “The Logic Studio has had the capacity to grasp and interpret our ideas and to manifest our vision. Their understanding of our needs has enabled us to grow in what is traditionally a very competitive industry and marketplace.”