Burnt Oak Builders Merchants

Improved business processes with K8 - SBE (Small Business Edition)

The key to profitability is good customer service, keen pricing, and in-depth knowledge of business performance. By using *Kerridge Commercial Systems’ K8-Small Business Edition, Burnt Oak Builders Merchants has improved the sales process, automated stock control, enhanced its customer image, and reduced debtor days.

Founded in 1995, Burnt Oak Builders Merchants (the trading name for Olivewood Ltd) is a family-run business with branches in Burnt Oak and Harrow. It sells a range of builders supplies such as bricks, blocks, timber, and plasterboard. The business employs 22 people and has a £5 million turnover.

Manager Sanjay Murji, son of joint co-founder Laxman Murji (whose business partner is Jadva Pindora) says that the business sells several thousand product lines from screws to cut timber. It has a traditional builders yard in Burnt Oak and two warehouses in Harrow.

"We mostly deal with small independent builders. Before implementing *Kerridge Commercial Systems’ K8-SBE, we used information technology just for producing customer statements and for accounts. Everything else was written down," says Sanjay who joined the business two years ago. Sales were recorded in a two-part carbon copy invoice book with the totals entered to a sales ledger for monthly statements. A purchase ledger recorded supplier invoices. With pricing set manually, some customers found prices inexplicably varied.

"There was no consistency in pricing from day to day," says Sanjay. "So that’s when I realised we needed a computer system."

Many problems stemmed from manual trading and unreliable paperwork. Customers queried illegible invoices, disputed prices, and often exceeded credit limits - balances could not be checked at the sales counter - while stock control owed more to instinct than planning. Any new system had to offer margin analysis, professional-looking customer documents, support two branches, provide integrated accounts, and give comprehensive management information.

"People were taking 45-50 days to pay so I needed more efficient invoicing and pricing - giving our customers fewer excuses," says Sanjay. "We were the only merchants around here using hand-written invoices too."

Tried and Tested

*Kerridge Commercial Systems' K8-SBE soon emerged as a possible solution, helped by an informative *Kerridge Commercial Systems sales presentation. The system is also used by two of Burnt Oak Builders Merchant’s suppliers. "*Kerridge Commercial Systems was a tried and tested solution for builders’ merchants including some in my own area. It was a far better package in terms of user friendliness and functionality compared to others," says Sanjay. "*Kerridge Commercial Systems also understood exactly how our business worked before implementation."

K8-SBE was quickly installed by "very good" *Kerridge Commercial Systems consultants in October 2008 and existing accounts data imported. Soft forms for plain paper printing were implemented for invoices and statements. User training was given by *Kerridge Commercial Systems.

It didn’t take long to learn the "very easy to use" system that’s functionally rich, intuitive, and fast. All data is held in a single secure database which supports daily trading, accounts, and management analysis.

Sales counter staff now have product details, prices, and customer balances to hand while Sanjay regularly views key performance indicators such as daily sales, profit, and debt. Counter and telephone sales are quickly processed and the paperwork laser-printed. An order margin review process identifies orders where the margins are incorrect before invoicing.

Thanks to K8’s pricing features, Sanjay has set safe limits on discounts staff can give without referral. "The building trade can be quite tough and very slow, bringing a lot of competition and aggressive pricing. With K8-SBE you can review pricing and make instant decisions," says Sanjay. "That gives us more flexibility in terms of selling and we know exactly how much we are making on each sale too."

Better cashflow

The versatile, powerful, and affordable system has ensured that daily trading operations and back-office accounts are tightly integrated with automatic ledger postings for unprecedented accuracy. Each branch can view the other’s stock - trading between as necessary - for improved customer service. Automatic stock reordering ensures customers always have the supplies they need.

By monitoring customer spending, credit limits, and ensuring timely, accurate monthly accounts, K8-SBE has even improved cashflow which will help with a rapid return on investment.

"My payments are coming in much quicker than before. My average debtor days were 46 days, it’s now 37," says Sanjay. "One of the other main benefits is that you know exactly what your sales team are doing and how much daily profit you’re making."

Burnt Oak Builders Merchants now believes that *Kerridge Commercial Systems' K8-SBE is a complete all-round software solution for builders’ merchants, that’s closely matched by *Kerridge Commercial Systems’ technical expertise.

"I think *Kerridge Commercial Systems are a very professionally-run company as the consultants we dealt with were well-trained and knowledgeable - they saw our point of view. From the moment they arrived, they helped us implement the system in the best possible way for the business," Says Sanjay "If we expand to another branch, it will be simple to include it too."

Project summary

Before implementing *Kerridge Commercial Systems' K8-Small Business Edition, Burnt Oak Builders Merchants relied on paper, pen, and an account ledgers system. Following in the footsteps of other local builders’ merchants and two of its major suppliers, it has installed *Kerridge Commercial Systems’ solution for integrated trading and accounts. A smooth implementation in October 2008 has revolutionised the company’s outlook.

*Kerridge Commercial Systems' K8-SBE now handles the company’s day-to-day trading needs, manages all stock for two branches, and provides integrated financial ledgers. The system also tracks product margins, controls customer discounts, and provides comprehensive business information support. And if Burnt Oak Builders Merchants decides to expand with more branches, K8 is ready to deploy.

Efficiency at work

K8 – SBE has been developed to enhance business efficiency, streamline trading activities and create an effective working environment. As Colin explains "Month End processing is a lot quicker, easier and more accurate".

Computer systems and information technology can play a central role in helping to make businesses more efficient. K8 – SBE supports the use of ‘best practice’ processes and helps to drive greater success and profitability.

Solution

• K8 Server

• K8-SBE

• Integrated soft form printing

Kerridge Commercial Systems' Services

• Installation

• Training

• Support

Benefits

• Accurate customer pricing, invoicing, and statements eliminate errors

• Tighter customer account control has significantly reduced debtor days

• Staff have discretionary discounting within management-set margins

• Integrated accounts supports financial processing and business reporting

Sanjay Murji
Manager
Burnt Oak Builders Merchants