Apparel Fashion and Footwear ERP System
As every fashion fan knows, a shoe is not just a shoe. It’s a statement. And shoes from Havaianas make statements as spectacular as the personality wearing them. Pink soles and yellow straps? No problem. Emerald heels? It’s done. Terrifically turquoise toes? Coming right up. Thanks to their ERP system, Havaianas delivers footwear as individual as the foot it frames.
Havaianas
Established in 2007, New York-based Alpargatas USA Inc. distributes Havaianas flip-flops, espadrilles, and sneakers across the United States. Manufactured in São Paulo, Brazil, by parent company Alpargatas S.A., Havaianas footwear has become a high-end fashion must-have, attracting followers among Hollywood’s stars. The U.S. subsidiary has come a long way since it began trading five years ago with a staff of just four. Recognition from the fashion world and growing popularity with a wide range of consumers has boosted sales and caused it to increase its staff.
SAP Business One for Footwear and Apparel Industry
A key enabler of this success has been the SAP Business One application, which continues to play a pivotal role at the heart of the company’s operations. The recent addition of an SAP software-based solution for the footwear and apparel industry helps Alpargatas USA to manage the high level of product complexity required to deliver the breadth of choice that is delighting its customers.
Staying Ahead of the Fashion Curve
There is no doubt that offering a wide choice of style options has helped to set the Havaianas brand apart from its competition. But to deliver this choice, Alpargatas USA must manage up to 3,000 product variations at all times, reflecting different styles, colors, accessories, and sizes. And with new collections released every season to keep products fresh and ahead of the fashion curve, managing this complexity presents Alpargatas USA with a significant challenge.
“To run our operations efficiently, we need to analyze our stock quickly. It’s vital that we understand what products are available to offer customers and keep this information up-to-date and accurate.”
–Vito Dileo, senior IT manager at Alpargatas USA
The company needed a specialized solution that would integrate with SAP Business One to help it manage this complex product data. And the existing outdated software did not offer the level of automation required to ensure smooth and efficient operations like SAP automation tools.
“Going forward, we wanted to find a robust solution that would help us handle the level of complexity involved in our inventory management, without requiring time-consuming manual intervention.”
–Dileo.
