Xperia Solutions News and Tips

Why You Need Fashion-Specific ERP for Your Apparel or Footwear Business

Tue, 16 Mar 2021 20:08:49 GMT

Xperia’s Comprehensiv TM Enterprise (ERP) System has been built from the ground up to meet the unique needs and challenges of today’s apparel and footwear industry. From startups to multi-billion dollar corporations, fashion and uniform companies of all sizes can enjoy the benefits of Xperia’s incredibly robust, reliable and scalable industry-specific solution.

But why is it important for clothing and footwear suppliers and manufacturers to choose an enterprise system designed specifically for their industry? Unlike other products, apparel and footwear items come in a variety of colors, sizes, and dimensions. Simply put, if your database and applications are not optimized to address that reality, then you will be in for a lot of duplication of effort!

Consider, for example, that a single garment style such as a shirt or pair of pants can be offered in multiple colors and sizes, and in multiple dimensions by size (think of inseam lengths for a size 32 waist, or sleeve lengths for a dress shirt). Likewise, shoes may come in a multitude of colors, sizes and widths for a single shoe style.

With typical enterprise software , you would be required to set up each variation of the style separately, AND, if something changes such as the cost, description, or other specifications, then the change must then be applied to every color, size and dimension. That can be a lot of work, and it opens the door to data inconsistency.

By contrast, with Xperia’s industry-specific enterprise system , you only enter style-related information once, and then define size, color, and dimension overrides as needed, which is super-efficient both up front and in the event of changes!

We refer to this ease-of-use feature as the Style Matrix. It applies not only to how styles are defined, but also to how information is stored for sales orders, purchase orders, manufacturing orders and more.

The style matrix makes it easy to answer questions like these:

What are the total sales for this style?
What are the sales by size and by color?
How much inventory do I have for this style in total, and by color and size?
What colors are selling the fastest?
What sizes am I running low on?
And so on …

So now it should be clear why you need an enterprise system that is optimized for your industry. You can learn more about Xperia’s fashion-optimized ERP software at www.XperiaSolutions.com .

Analyze Data with Fashion Business Intelligence Software

Sat, 15 Feb 2020 13:41:17 GMT

BI software for your apparel or footwear enterprise is designed to make effective use of data and information so that your business can make sound decisions.

Your fashion business collects a large amount of data from its operations. Without Business Intelligence (BI) software to keep track of that information, you would need to use a variety of software programs--Excel, Access and some database applications--for various departments in the organization. These multiple software programs make it a challenge to retrieve information quickly and to perform analysis of the data.

BI software for your apparel or footwear enterprise is designed to make effective use of data and information so that your business can make sound decisions. Its primary goal is to extract important data from your fashion organization's raw data to reveal insights that can then help you make faster and more accurate decisions.

BI software integrates data from all areas of your business and provides end-users with reports and analysis. Your apparel or footwear company gets a better understanding of its strengths and weaknesses. It helps your management team to better see the relationship between different data, which allows for better decision-making and optimal deployment of resources. Business Intelligence fashion software plays a key role in the strategic planning process of the company.

Fashion BI encompasses the following elements:

Reports: accessing, formatting, and delivering data inside and outside the organization
Analysis: identifying patterns and establishing relationships in a group of data
Data mining: the extraction of original information from data
Data quality and interpretation: the correlation between data and the objects they represent
Predictive analysis: the attempt to predict probabilities and trends

Make Better Decisions with BI

BI can give your fashion business the ability to make better decisions by quickly understanding the various sources of information in the company and how these interact with each other. The information can include customer databases, supply chain information, personnel data, manufacturing, product data, sales and marketing activity, as well as any other source of information critical to your operation.

BI applications for your footwear or apparel company include integration and data cleansing functions. These allow disparate data sources to be integrated into a single coherent framework for reporting and detailed analysis by employees, managers, and executives.

Are You Ready to Move Up to Fashion BI Software?

If you're considering BI software for your fashion business, please contact Xperia Solutions today!

WMS Tip: Reduce Inventory Shrinkage with Apparel Management Software

Sat, 30 Nov 2019 15:54:29 GMT

Today’s fashion ERP systems can be leveraged to help you better control inventory, which includes reducing or even eliminating inventory shrinkage problems.

If you own an apparel or footwear business, you may be heavily invested in inventory. If so then you probably are dealing with inventory shrinkage. Shrinkage is the difference between the amount of inventory listed in your accounting records and the amount that is actually on your shelves. In today’s challenging economy, avoiding inventory shrinkage is an easy way to increase profits and prevent a host of problems including:

The people in your sales department promising your customers apparel or footwear that appears to be in stock but isn’t actually available to deliver
The additional cost to replace the missing material
Paying your employees to search for missing products

4 key causes of shrinking inventory

Theft : This is the number one cause of a shrinking inventory, and it often comes from employees who help themselves to your stock.
Careless record keeping: If everyone involved is not attentive to recording all transactions, it affects inventory.
Errors: When a shipping clerk packs seven pairs of shoes instead of six, or you return a dozen boxes of buttons to your supplier but only reduce your inventory by one box, you are causing inventory discrepancies.
Vendor Fraud: A dishonest vendor bills you for a quantity of material but ships less than promised

Solutions for inventory shrinkage

Minimizing inventory shrinkage starts with accurate inventory tracking. This is accomplished with frequent cycle counting and the use of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software that is optimized for the apparel and footwear industry and is fully integrated with warehouse and inventory management components. This ensures that inventory numbers are up to date and accurate across all systems, and will improve key aspects of your fashion business operations, including reduced inventory, better customer service, and fewer data entry errors.

While it may not be possible to totally prevent inventory shrinkage, you can significantly reduce it by having a strong knowledge of your inventory status. An ERP system, specifically designed for your fashion enterprise, will assist you in keeping accurate counts at all locations and verify the quantity of items in your shipments, thus avoiding most “honest” shrinkage. And transparent and methodical procedures, along with well-trained and trustworthy employees, will go a long way to reducing “dishonest” loss.

Need a better Warehouse Management System to Control Your Inventory?

If you need a better WMS to control your apparel or footwear inventory, or if you are considering upgrading to world class enterprise system for your fashion business then contact us online or call us at 610-967-5821. We'll be happy to learn about your needs and provide a demo so you can decide if Xperia's apparel management software is right for you.

Lobo Mau Selects Xperia Apparel ERP, BI, WMS Software

Mon, 09 Sep 2019 20:12:16 GMT

Contemporary women’s clothing line Lobo Mau has selected apparel ERP experts Xperia Solutions as its enterprise software partner including an apparel ERP suite, Business Intelligence suite, and a future fashion PLM software integration.

Considered one of Philadelphia’s hottest up-and-coming brands, Lobo Mau was started in 2008 by Nicole Haddad while she was a graduate student studying fashion design at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Haddad had worked for several local designers before starting her own business. “I knew I had a unique design sensibility and I wanted to share it with women who liked my aesthetic,” she said. Today the company is based in Philadelphia with studios and offices in Ambler, Pa.

Lobo Mau is running a wide range of Xperia Solutions products and services for the fashion industry, including apparel ERP, Warehouse Management (WMS), Customer Management, Supply Chain Management (SCM), and Financial Management.

According to Joe Weltz, Lobo Mau’s CFO, the regional design and manufacturing company plans to broaden its distribution nationally and into Canada in 2016. “Because of the comprehensive and integrated functionality provided by Xperia’s ERP software, our expansion plans can become a reality,” said Weltz.

“It’s always exciting to witness a small apparel business grow from regional to national, and even international scope with the help of our ERP software suite,” said Alan Robezzoli, VP of Sales & Marketing. “Xperia’s fashion software provides the information tools to manage and control the entire supply chain process while streamlining our clients’ business and improving efficiencies.”

Lobo Mau’s parent company, Piccione Fashion Group, connected the apparel company with Xperia. “Xperia Founder and President Gene Bonett has been a professional colleague of Vincent Piccione for many years, and Vincent was excited to be able to use Xperia’s apparel software programs for Lobo Mau,” Weltz explained. “But it was Xperia’s helpful and friendly customer service, and dedicated team of professionals that sets them apart from the competition. That kind of mindset starts with Gene and is apparent throughout the entire organization.”

About Lobo Mau

Lobo Mau is one of Philadelphia’s hottest up-and-coming brands. The highly stylized look is for the woman who wants to offer a peek at her wild side while still proclaiming that she is a sophisticated, successful adult who has it all together. Find them at www.lobomau.com.

About Xperia Solutions

Founded in 1984, Xperia is an industry leader in enterprise management and business intelligence software solutions for the apparel and footwear industries. Xperia’s software suites help fashion businesses of all sizes manage the full spectrum of business intelligence and manufacturing, importing and distribution requirements including warehouse inventory, procurement, production, financials, e-commerce, product lifecycle management (PLM) and more. Xperia offers affordable cloud-based SaaS and enterprise solutions designed to address the needs of companies of all sizes from startups to multi-billion dollar corporations. For more information about Xperia’s apparel software products and services, visit the company's web site at www.xperiasolutions.com .

Xperia Announces Uniform Management System with Employee Ordering Portal

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 12:40:28 GMT

Xperia's Uniform Management System Can Transform Your Uniform Business!

Xperia Solutions now offers a complete uniform management system (UMS) for uniform and career apparel manufacturers and suppliers. It includes features enabling their customers and their customers' employees to place orders through a company-branded online portal linked directly to the ERP back end.

Fully integrated with Xperia's Apparel ERP Software

Developed as a fully-integrated extension to Xperia's powerful industry-specific apparel ERP system, the uniform management software enables uniform and career apparel manufacturers, as well as embroidery and screen printing shops of all sizes, to significantly streamline their order processing, manufacturing and shipping processes, resulting in faster throughput and reduced operating costs.

Xperia's ERP system is fully scalable and has been used by some of the world's most successful apparel companies, including multi-national firms with $billions in annual sales. ERP modules include Order Processing and EDI, Customer Management, Supply Chain Management, WMS and Inventory Control, Manufacturing, and a full-featured Accounting Management suite.

Branded Self-Service Uniform Ordering Portal

Xperia's white-labelled B2B online ordering portal makes it easy for uniform and career apparel companies to create separate websites appropriately branded for each of their customer accounts, and linked to each account's pricing and business rules, thereby creating a competitive advantage to help uniform and image apparel companies acquire new customers.

Portal set up is quick and easy, and includes a bulk-import feature for uploading employee information and related data such as the employee's uniform budget, wardrobe (the clothing associated with their role), and the rules for handling budget overages, such as whether to prevent the overage, deduct the overage as a payroll deduction, or to allow employees to charge overages to their personal credit cards.

By allowing employees to personally enter their uniform orders, supervisors and HR personnel are freed from the tedium and time normally associated with this burdensome task.

Employee Packaging

Employee uniform shipments can be sent to the company's business address or directly to the employee's home. Orders can also be entered by supervisors for multiple employees, in which case the software produces employee labels for each garment as well as carton labels and packing slips indicating the garments to be distributed to each employee. Production tracking visibility is also provided at the employee level, as well as by other variations to speed order processing through the shop.

Embroidery and Screen Printing Capacity Planning Breakthrough

Embroidery and screen printing operations are unusually machine-dependent in terms of their impact on shop capacity. Xperia's UMS provides detailed machine-level capacity information, including variables for average stitches per minute, number of heads, average set up time, and more.

The Shop Scheduling software then takes into account machine speed as well as the number of stitches per logo, per garment, and per order, and indicates how much time will be required to run the order through various machines, as well as providing the current backlog on each machine. The manager can then assign the order to the optimal machine, thereby minimizing backlog and speeding throughput of the right orders at the right time.

Consolidated Company Invoicing Across Employee Orders

With Xperia's Uniform Management System, career and uniform companies can provide their customers with consolidated invoicing, as well as detailed information all the way down to the employee order line item level.

Built-In Artwork and Order Approval System

Xperia's UMS contains an easy-to-use approval system to ensure that orders containing new logos or based on new garments are not released until the customer has indicated their approval. Approval workflow rules can be copied from pre-defined workflows, or created on-the-fly.

Learn More About Xperia's Uniform Management System

To learn more about how Xperia's Uniform Management System can speed throughput and improve workflow while helping your uniform, career, or image apparel company gain a real competitive advantage, contact us online or call (610) 967-5821.