Westmoor Manufacturing Co. Transitioning to Momentis
November 25, 2020About Westmoor Manufacturing Co.
In 1946, Westmoor Mfg. Co. was founded on the principles of individuality, intelligence, and style. These values, set forth by two German immigrants, quickly intermingled with the designs, passion, and marketing put forth by the brothers and the employees they welcomed into the company like family. Today, Westmoor Mfg. Co. prides and builds itself upon these same family values that permeate throughout the company’s four successful apparel brands.
Ernest and Martin Hochster began their journey with a stroke of both luck and genius when they added pearl snaps to their popular “Gambler” shirts. This small detail quickly became the trademark of their first brand – Panhandle Slim. Panhandle Slim, now simply shortened to Panhandle, still honors its authentic cowboy inspiration through its small but impactful style details, western prints, and supreme fit. The brand features cool, comfortable shirts and outerwear for both men and women, embracing styles that transition easily from a day on the ranch to a night of line dancing.
In the 21st century, a new generation of Westmoor Mfg. Co. arrived, once again providing a fresh take on apparel while diversifying the company’s brand portfolio. New labels Rock and Roll Denim and Rock and Roll Cowgirl were introduced, presenting western apparel and denim with a fashion flare that was undeniably enticing. The clothing features the details those living the Western lifestyle know and love while pushing the boundaries with new prints, stylized embroidery, and modern trends. Through these brands the company has continued to pursue its love of fashion, persistently and consistently designing and creating stylish, high-quality merchandise.
Desined in Texas, with American values.
The Challenge
In 2019, Westmoor realized that in order to succeed and respond to the ever-changing demands of the marketplace and their clients, they would need to re-evaluate their operational and business processes and upgrade their system solutions.
Westmoor’s legacy-based ERP system initially installed over 20 years ago, had become overly customized and was struggling to allow Westmoor to advance without substantial additional customizations. The legacy system’s workflows and software had become dated and were not able to efficiently handle the company’s future growth plan. In addition, the system was not set up to provide integration with modern third-party system solutions. Further customizations would have made things worse, not better.
The risk of falling behind their competitors due to inaccuracy of data, the amount of customization required, as well as cost concerns related to the on-premises solution being provided, solidified their decision to explore new ERP solution providers.
The goal was to position themselves with an ERP system that was ready to provide the agility, scalability and collaboration required to thrive in their industry’s fast-paced, dynamic environment. Investing in modern systems would provide greater operational management, increase timeliness and accuracy of data, add to the empowerment of staff, and reduce IT infrastructure costs.
Westmoor’s vision was to set the company up for continued success in today’s Omnichannel driven world, positioning themselves for future growth, investing in a solution that offered comprehensive integrations, and to partner with a provider that was experienced in delivering apparel ERP solutions.
The first step in looking for a new ERP solution was to begin an inward reflection of their current business procedures and establish their requirements. Only then could they begin the process of searching for a provider who would be able to assist and lead them to realize greater efficiencies and centralized business processes.
The Search
To aid in their search, Westmoor’s management team engaged a seasoned consultant who had apparel, IT systems and operational experience. This was a key component to ensure a proper internal study would take place, which also allowed Westmoor to include their operational team members in the process.
After the first phase of review of Westmoor’s requirements, a detailed request for proposal (RFP) was created that would serve as the framework to begin the search for compatible suppliers.
Multiple ERP providers were approached, and their solutions reviewed, but the list soon became narrowed to 3 possible options. Detailed reviews of each of these finalists were performed by the Westmoor team.
Ultimately, it became apparent to the Westmoor team that they required a modern, robust ERP solution, a provider who had apparel experience along with a history of helping similar types of owner managed businesses.
They realized early in the search that Momentis was the leading ERP candidate based on their experienced team, cloud-based technology, comprehensive software solution and history of integration with other best of breed solutions.
The Solution
The Momentis Cloud-based ERP solution was chosen and will be the operational hub of information and integrate seamlessly with their business to consumer (B2C) Ecommerce provider, Big Commerce, and the design and product lifecycle management solution, Centric PLM.
The Momentis apparel ERP is a comprehensive system providing companies with access to real-time data, the management of products, purchasing, inventory, demand, finance, and analytics. It’s suite of products includes solutions for Business to Business (B2B), Business to Consumer (B2C), powerful business intelligence (BI) features, EDI, plus integrations to Big Commerce, Centric PLM, Amazon, Lightspeed, Shopify, ShipStation and more.
With this new system, co-ordination, and consolidation of data across business channels will allow Westmoor to position themselves to capitalize on omnichannel opportunities and reduce operational overhead. In addition, POS integrations and overall improvements to events management sealed the deal for Westmoor.
Utilizing implementation best practices, Momentis’ professional service team performs an in-depth review of all operations, system requirements, and integration points. As an ERP project touches all aspects of the business, it was also paramount to ensure that the Westmoor employees were included and consulted for their input. Westmoor and Momentis worked together to ensure everyone had a voice throughout the ERP installation. Through this process, Momentis developed a comprehensive understanding of Westmoor’s business, which is critical to developing an effective implementation solution.
Momentis effectively leads the project and leads the client through discovery sessions, solution design, playback sessions, deployment, data migration, training, and go-live assistance.
Westmoor was impressed that a seasoned company like Momentis, who has been in existence for 30+ years, had significantly invested in their technology platform. Momentis invests heavily in research and development which allows their software and clients to stay current and ready for any challenges or opportunities that may arise.
Momentis continues to support Westmoor in achieving their goals and benefitting from their software investment. Through ongoing training, support, and software updates, Momentis is committed to serving their clients as their industry evolves.
Once the solution is implemented Westmoor is expected to benefit from a reduction in overhead costs and increased market share due to ability to now focus solely on the business and not the IT infrastructure and outdated operational procedures.
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Momentis has over 30 years of experience in providing ERP solutions to wholesalers and retailers in the fashion apparel, accessory, and footwear industries, and has recently expanded their offering to manufacturers of home goods and textiles.