How Anjoman Foods went from four software suppliers to one
One of the largest suppliers of Mediterranean foods replaced Sage and three bolt-on systems with a single DataFlow platform covering accounts, stock, mobile sales and e-commerce.
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- 4 → 1 software suppliers to support the business
- 5 steps in the risk-free migration from Sage
- Unlimited currencies supported for sales and purchases
- Live stock and supply-chain reporting
Inside Anjoman Foods.
Having begun life as a major exporter of saffron, Anjoman Foods has grown to become one of the largest suppliers of Mediterranean foods — from dates and spices to rose water and fruit juices. European operations are managed from its North London offices, and its products are now sold in several countries.
- Sector
- Food and drink distribution
- Origins
- Saffron export
- Base
- North London
- Reach
- Sold in several countries
Four suppliers, and nobody clearly responsible.
Sage was creaking under transaction volume, and support meant working out whose problem it was.
Like many growing businesses, Anjoman had used Sage for years to track cash flows and stock movements. A third-party system let salesmen take orders on the road, with order information downloaded into Sage afterwards. They also wanted to add warehouse management with barcode recognition to streamline order processing and improve the shipping cycle, plus e-commerce so customers could order directly.
That meant dealing with four different software suppliers. Getting vital support was difficult, with it often unclear exactly where responsibility lay. Meanwhile Sage had started to creak under the strain of high transaction volumes: standard financial reports had become time-consuming, and reliable reporting and forecasting increasingly hard to produce.
- Four software suppliers between the business and a working system.
- Support requests falling between vendors.
- Sage struggling with high transaction volumes.
- Standard financial reports slow; forecasting unreliable.
- Multi-currency profitability hard to see across geographies.
One platform, and a migration that could not lose data.
Anjoman came to DataFlow on a recommendation from their accountants.
DataFlow’s ERP system, developed for Microsoft SQL, gave Anjoman the entire functionality in one comprehensive platform — removing the need for multiple suppliers and, more importantly, ensuring a single point of contact for any support need.
Multi-currency runs deep: DataFlow supports an unlimited number of currencies, automatically tracks exchange-rate differences, and offsets invoices in one currency with payments in another, whether Euros, Sterling or Rial. Accurately understanding the profitability of each part of the business, wherever it sits, matters for a business as diverse as Anjoman’s.
Migration from Sage ran in five deliberate steps: a full data audit; transfer to a test environment; users continuing on the existing systems throughout; testing and training in the test environment; and live migration only once the test system was fully approved.
- Accounts, stock, warehouse, mobile sales and e-commerce from one supplier.
- Unlimited currencies with automatic exchange-difference tracking.
- Salesmen taking orders and adding customers on Android tablets.
- Customers ordering through the website, plus a branded ordering app.
- Warehouse teams recording deliveries and shipments on mobile devices.
- Five-step migration with no cut-over until the test system was signed off.
Order restored to the supply chain.
Real time savings in reporting, and operational overheads low enough that the system pays for itself.
Anjoman’s accounts team made real time savings in reporting, freeing them to concentrate on growing the profitability of the business. CEO Mehrdad Salimi is direct about the operational effect: “DataFlow has brought order back to our supply chain and stock management. With our warehouse teams able to record deliveries and shipments and keep track of stock levels via mobile devices, we’re able to operate at a level of efficiency we’ve not enjoyed before. The related savings to operational overheads mean DataFlow is paying for itself.”
The knock-on runs in both directions: fewer stock issues mean happier customers, while better financial visibility means happier suppliers and smoother cash flows.
| Outcome | Before DataFlow | With DataFlow |
|---|---|---|
| Software suppliers | Four, with unclear responsibility | One, with a single support contact |
| Financial reporting | Time-consuming under volume | Real time savings for the accounts team |
| Field sales orders | Third-party system, downloaded later | Taken on Android tablets into the same system |
| Customer ordering | Phone and rep only | Website plus a branded ordering app |
| Stock movements | Recorded after the fact | Captured in the warehouse on mobile devices |
We have been truly impressed by DataFlow’s software and their team. They have implemented a system which enables us to view all the information we need from across the business with ease. DataFlow’s support desk have always been willing to provide advice and be the first port of call.
What Anjoman run.
Stock and order processing at the centre, with mobile sales and e-commerce feeding them.
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