Perfion "forced" us to create a new data structure. Now we harvest all the advantages.
“The best about the Perfion PIM system is that we now have one central place for product information. Changes are made easily, and consequently we can act faster. From Perfion we have an easy connection to our websites and other marketing channels - we can export data to other parties in a standardized way as well.” Pim Poll, Director Business Systems, Smartwares Group
The Smartwares Group is a B2B supplier offering a rich selection of smart safety, lighting and home appliances. The main customers are e-commerce portals like Amazon, Bol.com, Conrad or CDiscount plus a large number of Europe’s top retailers and purchasing organizations. Smartwares Group originated from a merger between the companies Smartwares Safety and Lighting and Tristar in 2016.
Challenges
After the merger of Smartwares and Tristar, some product data was still maintained in two different ERP systems. A lot of data did not belong in the ERPs but was stored there as a result of time-consuming customizations. Product information was not well structured and manual interferences could lead to errors in product descriptions. It was not possible to export data based on language, because this information was difficult to get out of the ERP systems.
Other product information was stored in Excel sheets and on server level, and some was created in InDesign files or in the CMS system. Some information was not available at all. Furthermore, Smartwares was not able to distribute data or to export it to its many websites.
Solution & Benefits
Smartwares opted for the Perfion Product Information Management solution because of its scalability and its complete integration with the Sana Commerce platform and Dynamics NAV 2013 that is now the company’s only ERP system (an upgrade to D365BC will take place later).
At Smartwares, the Perfion PIM system will be the single, central place for managing product information. From Perfion, product data (descriptions, images, etc.) of 6500 items and in 8 languages is fed to:
- 15 websites & webshops (e.g. Smartwares.eu, Tristar.eu, Princesshome.eu)
- InDesign catalog files
- Icecat catalog solution
- Marketplaces
- Excel exports, e.g. product lists for customers
- Data Sheets via Perfion’s built-in designer
- Pricelists
- Distribution partners
Later, Smartwares will also create a connection from Perfion to Spotler, the group’s newsletter marketing automation tool. Furthermore, they will have a connection to GS1 and more direct customer connections. The content from Perfion will also be distributed to a supplier portal in order to ensure that ordered goods have the correct specs.
Pim Poll, Director Business Systems, explains:
“Everything was very uncomplicated – and with an equal dialogue. We felt comfortable right away. The consultants have an ear for the problems and are anxious to establish standard processes. If IT projects would always work this way, I would be happy.”
“The implementation of Perfion PIM "forced" us to face our data structure challenges. We needed to restructure our features and feature data and clean up our ERP system. This has taken a lot of effort, but we really see the advantages now. Especially in the way of sending data to our websites. Perfion is extremely flexible and scalable to our needs.”
About the Smartwares Group
The Smartwares Group is a fast-growing consumer goods company, B2B and based in the Netherlands, offering a rich selection of Smart Home essentials: crisp, clever, well-designed products to use in and around a home. They are a leading player in smart safety, lighting & home appliances. The main brands are Tristar, Princess and Smartwares.
The Smartwares Group originated from a merger between the companies Smartwares Safety and Lighting and Tristar in 2016. The group is an active player in 47 countries with 16 offices and 400 employees worldwide.