Retail Supply Chain: Internet-Based Logistics Helps Business To Grow

When a company grows from shipping out of one location to shipping from multiple locations, it can end up with a very complex shipping and logistics system. This is the problem Vermont Teddy Bear encountered when it added Calyx and Corolla, a luxury flower business, to its product lines. Calyx and Corolla is a direct from the grower fulfillment model, and the business line works with more than 20 different growers.

Vermont Teddy Bear, founded in 1981, is a $66 million gift delivery business. The company currently has five different business lines, including teddy bears, pajamas, gift bags, flowers, and gourmet food. All of Vermont Teddy Bear's business lines were created in-house with the exception of the flower business. Calyx and Corolla was using an order entry system called Page Digital when Vermont Teddy Bear acquired it. Page Digital was tightly integrated with a FedEx server shipping solution. Each grower location was supplied with PCs, printers, and Internet connections to support the three applications required to process daily shipments. Vermont Teddy Bear had a difficult time managing upgrades and version control since each grower was responsible for their location. As a result, Vermont Teddy Bear became the growers' help desk. "The other problem we had with the Page Digital system is that it did not comply with our multicarrier model," adds Rick Coon, application integration manager for Vermont Teddy Bear.

The company began looking at various solutions to replace the Page Digital system. The new system had to allow for the company's multicarrier model, support multiple shipping locations, and integrate with the order entry system. The new system also had to allow the growers to process shipments from any PC and printer and leverage their existing Internet backbones.