Fashion industry experts are well aware that the way people shop has changed forever. According to an Insider Intelligence study, most consumers prefer to shop online. According to the study, online sales for all goods have increased dramatically and will reach $1 trillion by 2022.
They also found that apparel and footwear sales online grew to an astonishing $61 billion by 2021, making them the fastest-growing segment, right after electronics. This shift means that apparel companies must reach their customers online. This means that they have to get their products to market faster than ever. Although this sounds impossible, the tools apparel companies require to speed up their go-to-market strategy are already in place.
Apparel ERP software
ERP software is generally designed to integrate all aspects of a company’s business processes. This includes design, accounting, manufacturing, order fulfillment, and even accounting. An ERP is a single source of truth that allows everyone to access all financial and inventory information. An ERP automates the internal business processes of an organization, which increases productivity and efficiency.
Industry-specific ERP software for apparel is however even more extensive. This software was developed by fashion industry experts and facilitates apparel manufacturing and distribution, increasing speed to market. The digital age is here, and apparel companies need to adapt the way that they plan, design, produce, and ship their products.
Apart from integrated fashion-specific components, Apparel ERP software offers many benefits to apparel and footwear companies. But the greatest benefit is a reliable source of real-time data that is easy to use. This ensures that everyone, from the design team down to the shop floor, has the same information.
Read More: Using ERP Software in Your Fashion Industry for Such 5 Reasons
The Benefits of Apparel ERP software
Every apparel company, whether they are manufacturing or designing apparel, needs to have full visibility of every product from conception to completion. As you source raw materials, you must manage a constantly changing supply chain. Your customers will be happy if you plan, design, and create the products they want. You must also be conscious of your carbon footprint, as every industry has become more restricted by international regulations.
You won’t be capable of managing your apparel business with legacy ERPs or manual processes. Industry-specific apparel ERP software is the best way to manage your processes and meet customer expectations.
A garment ERP software manages all of your business processes including warehouse management, accounting, manufacturing, and design functions. This solution gives you complete visibility into the entire process and provides valuable data that allows you to make better business decisions. Online eCommerce tools allow you to master omnichannel fulfillment when clients are ready.
Benefits to Finance and Accounting Departments
It is vital that you have accurate financial and accounting data. This allows you to create budgets and allocate financial resources for items such as salaries, raw material procurement, and operating expenses. Apparel ERP software allows you to make data-driven business decisions as all data is integrated throughout the company. This gives you a 360-degree view that includes data from all business areas, giving you a complete picture of your financial health.
These are some of the many benefits that ERP software can bring to the accounting and finance departments.
- This tool provides detailed information about chargebacks and deductions so that you can reduce them in the future.
- Duplicate data entry issues can be resolved by combining information from different departments into one system. This results in data consistency and fewer errors.
- Built-in workflows simplify order-to-cash cycles and automate data entry during the sales process.
- This reduces the time required to produce accurate, real-time financial reports that can be delivered to stakeholders in minutes.
An ERP allows you to have more control over your finances. You can see the fiscal effects of each order and make relevant decisions in real time.
Benefits to Warehouse Team
Every industry is facing shortages and bottlenecks right now. This means that even with all their best efforts, your manufacturing and design teams might not be able to source supplies from their preferred vendors. Your warehouses should be able to manage the incoming inventory efficiently and ensure compliance with all outgoing orders.
It is essential to have an apparel ERP software that includes inventory management tools. If you order too many items, you may have to reduce the quantity to make room for more-sold items. You could lose a customer if you order too much and the item is sold out.
To ensure financial stability and efficient fulfillment, a warehouse must be organized. You can track completed orders and place them where they are. With inventory management tools, you can also keep accurate counts of each item in every size, color, and style. You can also improve the speed of your business cycle and increase security by using electronic data interchange (EDI). Automatic coordination with sales and accounting processes means that inventory levels are automatically updated once orders have been placed.
Other benefits of inventory management and warehouse management tools include:
- Improves accuracy and efficiency of orders: Reduces inventory that you have to keep in stock, while still ensuring that all orders are sent out correctly and with the correct paperwork.
- You’ll save money by knowing exactly what stock you have and where it is located. This will reduce inventory costs and unsold items.
- This allows for better planning: A central record of each item, its location, supplier information, and specifications, as well as quantity in stock, is available. This makes it possible to forecast future sales and make data-driven business decisions.
Your warehouse is the heartbeat of your business. To manage it, you need robust inventory management tools. A warehouse ERP that integrates inventory and warehouse management functionality can help you achieve the critical balance between supply and need. These tools allow you to track the products at all stages of their life cycle, from processing raw materials to shipping out finished products.
Design and Manufacturing Benefits
Apparel ERP software systems have the greatest benefit. Because you have one source of truth, it makes it easier to increase the speed to market. Your team is equipped with the information they need for collaboration and to make changes in the design and manufacturing phases. Once integrated with tools such as shop floor control (SFC), and product lifecycle management (PLM), an apparel ERP reduces the time it takes to develop a product.
The design team can keep a current Bill of Materials (BOM) and provide visual assets management tools to help the manufacturing team understand what the expectations are and which materials they should order. SFC software allows you to see real-time production numbers so that you can keep your promises to customers and get precise counts of the finished products.
Additionally, apparel ERP software streamlines the manufacturing process by allowing for the management of the sourcing and distribution of raw materials. The manufacturing team would still have to calculate how much raw material is needed to make a finished garment without a technology solution.
If these numbers are wrong, the manufacturing team would have to manually calculate how much material they need in order to make a finished garment. This problem is solved by Apparel ERP software. It calculates the exact amount of material required and the current cost.
Apparel ERP software can be integrated with an SFC solution to provide real-time information throughout the manufacturing process. This includes dyeing, sewing, and printing. This allows you to ensure that processes are efficient and adhere to quality control standards. The system detects any discrepancies or errors and stops production until they are corrected by the manufacturing team.
Your design team will be able to focus on next season’s products with automated manufacturing and inventory processes. They can have confidence in their ability to get the supplies they need. Because they know when the final products will arrive, sales can provide accurate dates for final orders. Your financial team can then forecast based on these incoming sales.
Sewing it All Up
Distributors and manufacturers of apparel must be agile. They need a software solution tailored to their industry that helps them stay ahead of changing trends, comply with regulations, and support sustainability initiatives. Apparel industry leaders require total transparency throughout the value chain. This means they need one source of truth: integrated data.
Arion ERP is your solution. Arion ERP software Apparel integrates all business processes that involve critical areas in apparel production, from procurement of raw materials to inventory management and warehouse management to production and final sale.
This means you can spend more time innovating and less time getting your products on the market. That is what a successful apparel business needs.