“ . . .an executive decision was made to migrate to Ability OMS after reviewing its capabilities and total cost of ownership. Having cooperating partners made the experience a win for all involved.”
DELRAY BEACH, Fla. (PRWEB) October 21, 2014
Mack’s Prairie Wings, the premier U.S. retailer of gear for waterfowl hunters, is ready for a robust peak season after migrating to Ability Commerce for more efficient, integrated multi-channel order management.
“We’re prepared to have our best-ever peak fall and winter season,” said Cheryl Rimmer, chief financial officer of Mack’s Prairie Wings. “We now can process 3,500 customer orders on average per day. That translates to more sales for us and faster service for our customers.”
Selecting the Ability Commerce Order Management System™ (OMS) has helped the No. 17 Internet Retailer “Second 500” e-tailer meet its financial goals and increase customer satisfaction. The new system offers greater functionality and a lower cost of ownership than the previous OMS solution the retailer had been using. An alliance between Ability Commerce and JDA Software facilitated the transition.
“The decision to migrate from such a well-known and robust platform was not easy,” said Cheryl Rimmer, chief financial officer of Mack’s Prairie Wings. “But an executive decision was made to migrate to Ability OMS after reviewing its capabilities and total cost of ownership. Having cooperating partners made the experience a win for all involved.”
With more than 10 years of year-over-year growth and an aggressive plan to continue that pace, Mack’s needed an upgraded system to support shipment of as many as 80,000 packages a month from its headquarters and main retail store in Stuttgart, Arkansas.
Specific requirements included PCI (payment card industry) compliance; system enhancements for higher efficiency, lower cost and reduced downtime; cross-channel real-time inventory and customer information; marketplace channel integration; a better omni-channel customer experience; faster point-of-sale transactions; and faster, more personalized support services.
Integrated with the Ability Commerce SmartSite™ ecommerce platform Mack’s had been using, the Ability OMS has brought together retail, catalog and Web sales, as well as incorporated Mack’s email, social media and advertising streams. Mack’s is leveraging Ability Commerce’s proprietary Whisper™ architecture to share real-time data in its store, online and warehouse environments.
Calling the Mack’s transition seamless, Ability Commerce Vice President Debbie Longo said: “Our experienced migration team was able to complete the task of migrating 935,000 customers, 250,000 items and five years of order history with a minimal error rate, all the while providing uninterrupted service to customers through all channels.”
Rimmer said enriching the customer experience was as important as reducing costs. “We want to know that if we have questions or there are problems, we have a support team that will be there when we need them no matter what. And, we want to know that there’s a team that’s receptive to listening to us when we see a real business need for changes.”
She added: “Customers want the freedom to shop and buy what they want, when they please. We needed an omni-channel commerce solution to bring that flexibility and cohesiveness together in a way that allows our customers to enjoy the whole experience. Ability Commerce was able to do that for us.”
In an early test, on one of the biggest days of the Mack’s retail season, during its Fall Festival, the Ability Commerce OMS enabled the company to run 14 retail registers at once, quickly provide sales receipts, and offer gift receipts to customers who requested them. In-store exchanges also were hassle-free.
“These were things we were not able to provide our customers before,” Rimmer said, “and it’s an amazing customer experience for us, not to mention cost-effective and one where we see a positive impact on our bottom line.”
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About Ability Commerce
Ability Commerce is a leading provider of order management, ecommerce and financial software platforms that help growing businesses increase revenue, reduce overhead and engage with their customers. The company ranked No. 3 in the Marketplace Management category on Internet Retailer’s 2014 list of Top Second Collective 500 (“Second 500”) Leaders. Its comprehensive solutions, which enable companies to acquire, convert and retain customers more efficiently, include the Ability OMS (order management system) module and the SmartSite ecommerce platform. Also, as a Microsoft Gold Partner, Ability Commerce offers the Microsoft Dynamics GP ERP (enterprise resource planning) solution. While founded in 1999, Ability Commerce leverages more than 30 years of combined direct marketing and management experience from its sister company, Marketing Concepts, a forerunner in the direct commerce industry. For more information about Ability Commerce, visit http://www.abilitycommerce.com or email info(at)abilitycommerce(dot)com
About Mack’s Prairie Wings
Mack’s Prairie Wings (also known as Mack’s Sport Shop) is a premier retailer of waterfowl gear and equipment. A family tradition since 1944, Mack’s Prairie Wings offers a one-stop shop for avid duck hunters. Mack’s Prairie Wings has a central location in Stuttgart, Arkansas. For more information, please visit http://www.mackspw.com.