Sydney October 2019 – Australia’s largest liquor co‑operative headquartered in Western Sydney, Independent Liquor Group (ILG) has selected Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) specialist, SYSPRO, to help future proof its business ahead of its national expansion. The wholesale alcohol co-operative has chosen to implement an integrated ERP system to reduce the number of manual and duplicated processes and to significantly improve data integrity and reporting capabilities.
ILG is a member owned co-operative wholesaler that services hotels, bottle shops, licensed clubs, bars, restaurants and sporting grounds across New South Wales, Queensland and Australian Capital Territory. Ahead of its expansion into Victoria and then South Australia, the company wanted to update its outdated technology systems to streamline the company’s reporting capabilities in order to improve timely decision making.
The 45 year-old liquor co-operative identified a couple of years ago that there were some serious issues with the outdated and cumbersome technology it had developed in-house. There were various disconnected systems that failed to deliver accurate business analysis and month-end reporting was taking three weeks and many labour hours to complete using a combination of the NAVISION accounting package and Microsoft Dynamics.
“Access to accurate data and real-time reporting is crucially important to a liquor wholesaler and eCommerce business like ILG, as it is impossible for our mobile sales team to make timely decisions regarding stock holdings and deliveries without precise data integrity and the level of visibility that an integrated ERP system will provide us,” said ILG’s CEO, Paul Esposito.
Prior to selecting the SYSPRO 8.0 ERP system, ILG used a bespoke warehouse application called Licker for its three warehouses in Western Sydney, Brisbane and Townsville and one of the objectives of adopting an integrated ERP system was to improve warehouse picking, optimise stock levels and to remove manual or duplicated processes for the distribution side of its business.
“During the discovery process ILG surveyed many of our suppliers to see what ERP systems they were using and as part of this process we assessed Microsoft Dynamics, Oracle NetSuite and SYSPRO. SYSPRO and Oracle went through to the final stage and we ultimately selected SYSPRO as we needed a fully integrated ERP system that could handle the complexities of our business and we weren’t convinced that Oracle’s platform was flexible enough to manage this”, Paul said.
The SYSPRO ERP system will integrate with ILG’s Paperless Warehousing system, eCommerce website and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system Rhino, so that sales teams on the road have access to accurate stock information exactly when they need it. There will be 110 users interacting with the system across ILG’s three facilities, and more as the business expands into other Australian States. Currently ILG has 32 SYSPRO users.
“This move will make the process of expanding into Victoria and other states more straightforward for ILG as they will achieve greater efficiencies by eliminating manual process, removing duplication of data in multiple systems as well as ensuring data integrity across the whole business,” said Rob Stummer, CEO for Australia and New Zealand at SYSPRO. “It’s an exciting time for ILG’s growing business and we are pleased to be integral to its digital transformation journey,” Rob said.
SYSPRO and ILG are currently at the final design stage, with the system due to be finalised in May next year. The next step will be for SYSPRO to build the system, bringing data across from the old applications, testing it with the real data and integrating it with the other systems.
“SYSPRO has been great throughout the whole process; not only has is its team been extremely knowledgeable about distribution and warehousing, but their depth of expertise about their product’s capabilities and their ability to get the balance right in terms of adopting best practice meant that they were able to customise the SYSPRO ERP product to meet the needs of our business,” concluded Paul Esposito.
About SYSPRO
SYSPRO is a global, independent provider of industry-built ERP software designed to simplify business complexity for manufacturers and distributors. Focused on delivering optimized performance and complete business visibility, the SYSPRO solution is highly scalable, and can be deployed on-premise, in the cloud, or accessed via a mobile device. SYSPRO’s strengths lie in a simplified approach to technology, expertise in a range of industries, and a commitment to future-proofing customer and partner success.
For more information, visit www.syspro.com.
About ILG
Australia’s largest liquor co‑operative, The Independent Liquor Group is a member owned organisation of licensed liquor stores, hotels, registered clubs and restaurants working collectively to obtain the best service and benefits whilst maintaining their own autonomy and independence.
From its humble beginnings, ILG has become a major business in the wholesale and distribution of wines, beers and spirits across NSW, ACT and QLD, enjoying a prominent position in a competitive environment.
Membership to the Co‑operative allows the return of all surpluses to members in the form of subsidised wholesale prices and patronage rebates. Nonetheless, a shareholder member automatically becomes part owner of ILG’s state of the art wide range wholesale distribution centres located in Erskine Park Business Centre, Western Sydney in New South Wales, Richlands in Brisbane, Queensland and Mount St John in Townsville, North Queensland.
Committed to providing choice and flexibility to better service our members’ diverse business models, ILG owns six distinct banner groups in Fleet Street, Bottler, Super Cellars, Pubmart, Clubmart and The Liquor Coop. The Co‑operative extends its members significant buying power with enhanced marketing opportunities through specific advertising under these banner groups.
The ILG Logistics Contract Warehousing and Distribution Solutions, extend warehousing, handling and distribution services, as well as customised supply chain solutions for the Liquor Industry. At ILG, it’s all about our members. Our family is rich in history, strong in member relations and committed to exceptional service.
Media Contact:
Louise Roberts or Sonia Morris
Sphere PR for SYSPRO
Tel: +61(0)2 9403 1449
Mob: +61(0)405 579633 or +61(0)421 672162
