Custom ERP management system development
Custom SaaS ERP management system development for tracking and managing the retail and bulk purchase of goods from online stores, managing inventory, warehouse operations, and sales price calculation.
About the client
A leader in electronic goods reselling approached Altamira to address the challenges associated with managing and optimising retail and bulk purchases across multiple eCommerce platforms, such as Best Buy, Amazon, and Walmart.
Scope
Discovery phase
MVP
Development
Maintenance
Vertical
Retail
Tech stack
- React
- PHP 8 / Laravel 8
- MySQL 8
- Sellercloud
- UPCItemDB
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01
The Challenge
Our Client envisioned a complex system that could help control and analyse all stages of the purchase/sales process and calculate buyer payments. The primary goal of this project was to develop a software solution to eliminate the dependency on third-party subscription services. Our Client aimed to achieve several key objectives:
- Streamline and accelerate current business processes and reduce the time employees need to track and process received items.
- Integrate with various third-party services to automate manual work.
- Improve the UI/UX for mobile browsers and ensure a high level of responsiveness.
Thus, our Client aimed to develop a solution that would digitalise wholesale and retail purchasing, allowing control of the catalogue, inventory, orders, fulfilment, and shipping management, as well as simplifying and speeding up the current business processes.
So, Altamira team took full charge of the development process, collaborating closely with the Client’s management at various stages to ensure alignment with their operational needs and business goals.
During the product development, we faced some technical challenges. For example, integrating with third-party inventory management systems, which required proactive negotiation and communication skills with representatives to resolve the issue.
Additionally, handling large datasets while maintaining optimal system performance was a key consideration. To address this, we implemented robust backup, archiving, and monitoring systems. We have successfully overcome these obstacles and delivered a solution that meets and exceeds the Client’s expectations.
02
The Solution
Our journey started with a Discovery phase to dive deep into the Client’s industry, understanding the market dynamics, competitors, and target users. During the development process, our team provided visual representations of the application’s architecture, the user interaction flow, activity diagrams to visualise the way different components interact, and the user journey through the application.
We also outlined and broke down each feature into manageable components to understand the project’s scope and efficiently plan resources and timelines. In addition, we identified potential risks and dependencies, along with any restrictions that could impact the project timeline, budget, or functionality.
When the technical feasibility of the proposed features was analysed, we moved to MVP development, which was highly successful. The user base grew, and feature requests increased.
Key features include the following.
UPC scanning
Our team streamlined and expedited the process of creating new items in the system. Users can now streamline the process by simply scanning or entering the UPC to add items, eliminating the need for extensive manual data entry. Additionally, they can add newly received items to receipts, even if those items are not yet present in the system.
- The integration with UPCitemdb provides detailed product information through its API. When a new item is created, either from the items list or directly from the receiver terminal, the system automatically fills in all available fields with information. Users can add a product photo and ensure all relevant details are filled out accurately and promptly.
- Managers or administrators only need to verify the information and add any critical details that might be missing, making the entire process user-friendly and hassle-free.
Optimisation of item returns and automated calculations
Our team has successfully optimised the process of creating and managing return tasks, allowing managers or administrators to efficiently add and update specific items for return, include photos, and provide accurate information to buyers through pre-filled tickets.
- Return tasks are no longer written in plain text within the notes field of the receipt. This change simplifies the item processing and tracking.
- The system now allows users to add photographs of incorrect/damaged items to the return task, enhancing process transparency and improving documentation management.
- Users can now create return tasks without needing a tracking number solely based on the receipt.
- The system validates whether the active item is correctly marked as damaged, ensuring accuracy.
- The total number of whole and damaged items is automatically calculated, eliminating the need for manual entry.
- By storing all information separately, this feature enables conducting detailed analytics retrospectively.
Calculated cost
We aimed to provide the most accurate and relevant value of the current average cost of an item. So, this feature ensures that admins and managers have precise information about the product’s worth within the company, facilitating better pricing and sales strategies.
- Our team developed unique formulas tailored to various scenarios. These formulas take into account the cost of each specific item across all receipts, factoring in the quantity of items in inventory at their respective costs.
- This unique approach to calculating item cost is not found in any of our known competitors, giving the company a distinct advantage in the market.
Calculation of buyer balance
Altamira team sought to enable fast and accurate balance calculation for all buyers, ensuring transparency and precision in financial transactions. To achieve this, we developed an extensive calculation method that incorporates multiple factors:
- The total amount from items that have been verified in receipts.
- Any rewards or incentives given to buyers for adding tracking numbers promptly.
- Any extra charges or credits applied to the buyer’s account.
- The calculation excludes payment requests and invoices to ensure the balance reflects only finalised transactions.
As a result, the complex calculation process ensures buyer balances are computed quickly and with absolute precision. Buyers have a clear understanding of their balance, fostering trust and improving the overall customer experience.
Our Client was greatly impressed by our product ownership and the ability to expertly convert business requirements into effective technical solutions, which laid the groundwork for our sustained long-term partnership.
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03
The Result
The collaboration with the Client yielded significant business benefits. Now, the new system can handle 4,000 concurrent users, facilitating scalability and reliability without downtime. This platform’s capability is a top priority for the Client’s operations, particularly during periods of high demand.
The newly delivered solution smoothly integrates with third-party tools and services, overcoming initial API discrepancies, and improves the UI/UX for mobile browsers in compliance with the Client’s needs.
The system also enables the following:
- effective warehouse management
- inventory synchronisation
- complex buyer balance calculations.
In addition, Altamira’s team has implemented commission, cash-back rewards, and bonus mechanism options to engage and motivate buyers. The logging and monitoring systems ensure optimal performance by managing system load and data flow.
Altamira’s expertise in developing complex inventory management solutions enabled the Client to overcome significant operational challenges and capitalise on digital commerce opportunities. The project met current operational needs, highlighting Altamira as a key partner in the Client’s ongoing success.
