Image module

Halsted improves retail operations

We expect that our investment in inventory will be reduced significantly while sales will also increase, simply by having the right stock in the right moment in the right place.

Stuart Knight, CEO, Halsted Brothers

Exceptional customer service since 1897

Founded in 1897, Halsted is the leading supplier for building and plumbing in Zimbabwe. The company focuses on providing exceptional customer service and maintaining a large stock holding of timber, hardware, appliances and specialist products and materials catering to all requirements. Today, Halsted manages a central distribution center and eleven fully operational branches across Zimbabwe.

Challenges

Manage all branches more efficiently

One of Halsted’s main objectives was to improve the stores’ operational control and get higher visibility into their performance. The company needed a modern, modular solution that would be able to handle multiple branches and grow the business.

Gain inventory control and visibility

It was particularly important to have a robust inventory and merchandising system which could handle a vast assortment of heterogeneous products across its stores as well as e-commerce operations.

Improve security and cash management

It was also crucial to find a solution with the flexibility to adapt to key requirements such as integration with fiscal devices, multi-currency payments in a single transaction, or specific cash management on each terminal, all in compliance with Halsted security policies.

Image module

Halsted chose Openbravo for its ability to fit our requirements and low cost of ownership, as well as for the ability to support a mobile workforce and the organization e-Commerce aspirations going forward.

James Stevens, Group Accountant

Image module

Solution

A single and centralized solution for all the branches

Openbravo provides Halsted a single and centralized solution that empowers each branch to manage its own sales, procurement, warehousing, and financials.

Comprehensive point of sale functionality

Openbravo Store provides Halsted with a comprehensive mobile-enabled point of sale component whose flexibility allows Halsted to support a variety of sales and returns scenarios. This includes quotations, credit sales, in-store order preparation and delivery among others, as well as support to processes such as duties calculations and commissions.

Flexible warehouse management solution

Openbravo WMS offers Halsted a complete set of warehouse management capabilities for a better control and management of all its inventory across branches.

Results

Higher capacity for daily orders

Thanks to a centralized system Halsted has gained greater visibility into all operations, which enables new validation and traceability processes that save time and reduce errors, like for example a significant reduction in the number of stock breakages with an accurate and real-time inventory management. The Openbravo solution enables now Halsted to effectively manage hundreds of daily orders with flexible support to a variety of sales scenarios.

More effective customer credit control

With Openbravo POS Halsted has also gained better control and visibility of the available credit of each customer. At the moment of paying, the option to pay as credit will be only available if the customer has a credit limit configured in the backoffice and the available credit is equal or minor to the amount pending to be paid in the new order.

Accurate cash control and visibility at the point of sale

Through various rules and validations, and tools such as guided store and terminal opening and closing processes as well as detailed closing reports, Halsted has also been able to improve cash control and fraud reduction at the point of sale.

Improved cost control and procurement process

With Openbravo Halsted has now a better control of the total costs including duties and transports. The procurement process has been also improved with different rules that control who and how can register purchasing requisitions and how they are converted into purchase orders.

Faster decision making

Accurate, real-time visibility and reporting into sales and inventory across all of its branches, enables faster and more effective decision-making. Information about sales, returns, discounts, payments and inventory from all locations is now aggregated and can be easily accessible in real-time from the central office.

WANT TO LEARN MORE?