Case Study
Customer Challenge
Business Need
As one of the nation's largest companies and a leading retailer, they know that
customer experience is everything. Ensuring the shelves are stocked daily with
the freshest meat, produce and dry goods and the variety of items their 5 million
customers want is key. In a competitive market, managing costs and customer
needs is a delicate balance. It became clear that they needed a user-friendly
solution to help them on-board existing and new suppliers, partners and vendors
quickly and easily while eliminating third party costs related to management,
support, and charges.
IT Issue
With numerous suppliers, partners and vendors, incoming data formats were varied. With large EDI batch files arriving from multiple trading partners, they needed to ensure the invoices, purchase orders and product data was accurate. The data also needed to be shared through a fail-safe secure AS2 connection. Scalability and flexibility for future consolidation of additional communication protocols was required. EDI translation was a critical component for system integration. The data also needed to be easily-accessible, real-time. Staff was limited and downtime was not an option.
Cleo Solution
Cleo's VLTrader software was quick to install and set-up, allowing them to communicate with suppliers, partners and vendors the very same day. With a built-in EDI component that works with more than 30 of the most common translators, data was moving seamlessly. VLProxy provided additional security at the beginning of all transactions, managing the flow of defined information before it got through the firewall. The new solution was working with 100% up-time. VLTrader also offered a user-friendly web interface that made it simple to set-up, monitor and manage communications by the limited IT staff. Managing every penny in an industry where margins are tight means finding ways to streamline manual processes and reduce outsourcing costs so they can focus on what matters - their 5 million customers.
Success Snapshot
Size: $7.1 Billion in Annual Sales
Software and Services: VLTrader & VLProxy
Vertical Industries: Grocery & Retail
Country/Region: Northeastern U.S.
Business Need: Information Management
IT Issue: EDI Management & Throughput
Grocery Retail Case Study - PDF