Growing Private Food Company Achieves 67% Inventory Cost Improvement Through Bridgepoint’s Custom NetSuite Solution
Before Bridgepoint:
- Reliance on QuickBooks and disconnected systems limited scalability and created reporting challenges
- Manual processes and journal entries prevented real-time visibility into sales performance and inventory costs
- Small team lacked ERP experience and NetSuite expertise to manage implementation independently
- Limited ability to capture true product costs, with only 33% of inventory costs properly recognized as assets
- Month-end delays in recognizing e-commerce sales through manual journal entries
After Bridgepoint:
- Unified NetSuite ERP platform with integrated Shopify and SPS Commerce connections for real-time data flow
- Outsource manufacturing capabilities enabled 67% more accurate inventory cost recognition
- Real-time transactional reporting replaced manual journal entries, providing instant visibility into sales and costs
- Enhanced product-level cost analysis capabilities supporting strategic decision-making
- Positioned company for growth and investment opportunities with robust financial infrastructure
Project Overview
A private food manufacturing company with $6M in annual revenue needed to transition from QuickBooks to NetSuite to support expected growth. The client operates with a unique co-manufacturing model where third-party manufacturers produce their products using client-owned materials, requiring specialized ERP configuration.
With a very small team and no internal ERP experience, the client turned to Bridgepoint Consulting’s team of NetSuite financial experts to implement a comprehensive NetSuite solution. The goal was to establish real-time financial visibility, accurate inventory costing, and integrated e-commerce operations to position the company for scalable growth.
Business Challenge
The client’s QuickBooks system could no longer support their growing business complexity. Manual processes and journal entries created delays in financial reporting, particularly for e-commerce sales recognition. The unique co-manufacturing arrangement made accurate inventory costing difficult, with the company only capturing approximately 33% of true product costs as assets.
The small team lacked ERP experience and NetSuite expertise to manage implementation independently. Without real-time visibility into sales performance and product costs, the company struggled to make data-driven decisions and position itself for growth opportunities.
The client needed a solution that could handle their specialized manufacturing model while integrating seamlessly with their Shopify e-commerce platform and SPS Commerce EDI requirements.
Approach
Bridgepoint Consulting managed the complete NetSuite implementation with a project timeline from mid-July to October 1st go-live. Working closely with the client, our team provided the following solutions.
Discovery & Process Mapping
The team conducted comprehensive discovery sessions to understand current procedures across Order to Cash, Procure to Pay, and Design to Build processes. This deep dive revealed the complexity of the co-manufacturing model and the need for specialized NetSuite configuration.
System Design & Configuration
Bridgepoint translated existing procedures into NetSuite operations and redesigned the chart of accounts to align with NetSuite transaction flows. The team configured NetSuite’s Outsource Manufacturing capabilities to properly handle the client’s unique co-manufacturing model, ensuring an accurate bill of materials setup for all item records.
Integration & Data Migration
Working with third-party implementation teams, Bridgepoint integrated Shopify through Celigo and SPS Commerce for EDI capabilities. Our team managed comprehensive data migration including customer, vendor, and item records, followed by trial balance loads and cutover coordination for inventory quantities, open AP/AR, and uncleared checks.
Collaboration & Training
Weekly meetings with the knowledgeable but small client team ensured deliverables stayed on schedule. Our team maintained accountability for timeline adherence while designing solutions based on actual business processes rather than cookie-cutter implementations.
Results
Bridgepoint delivered a fully integrated NetSuite environment that transformed the client’s financial operations and strategic capabilities from manual, delayed processes to real-time, data-driven decision-making capabilities that support strategic growth initiatives.
Improved Financial Accuracy
The outsourced manufacturing configuration enabled the client to capture an average of 67% more inventory costs as assets when products were produced, with proper cost recognition aligned to revenue timing. This dramatically improved real-time COGS analysis and product-level profitability insights.
Real-Time Operational Visibility
Integration with Shopify eliminated manual journal entries and provided instant recognition of e-commerce sales with full transactional detail. The client gained access to real-time reporting throughout the month rather than waiting for month-end manual processes.
Enhanced Decision-Making Capabilities
Transactional-level data enabled sophisticated customer demand analysis through NetSuite reports. The company can now quickly evaluate strategic decisions, such as recent analysis to determine optimal product packaging sizes based on current cost data.
Scalability for Growth
The robust financial infrastructure positions the company for both organic growth and investment opportunities. The system’s flexibility and reporting capabilities provide the foundation needed for expanded operations and investor presentations.
Ongoing Support Value
Bridgepoint continues to provide technical support, recently helping the client navigate complex inventory adjustments when co-manufacturers short-shipped customer orders, demonstrating the long-term value of the partnership.
Services Provided