Just Spices

M&P spices up the introduction of a uniform, standardised, integrated and company-wide ERP system with lots of good ideas – perhaps because the M&P project team perfectly internalised the requirements of Just Spices, as Marcel Zaft-Gujer, Head of Accounting at the Düsseldorf-based company, tells us.

Good work opens doors: the start of the project

The benefits of experience: the head of accounting at Just Spices introduced Microsoft Dynamics with M&P Business Solutions GmbH at a previous employer. The good cooperation stuck in the memory – and opened doors at Just Spices. Initial talks took place in September 2020, and the project got underway in November.

Initial and target situations

Up to that point, the commercial and retail processes of Just Spices were carried out in different software systems (ERP weclapp, Magento On). For greater efficiency, structure and transparency, a uniform, standardised, integrated and company-wide ERP system and connection of interfaces (such as the online shop, logistics and warehouse interface ingram, Anveo EDI document exchange program and Continia invoice receipt recognition) were to be initiated. The target system: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central V18 (access only via web client).

Challenges: searching for the right recipe

• Short preparation time before the project start
  • Detailed analyses only in the course of the project
• Coronavirus: meetings could not be held on-site as usual, but only remotely
  • As a result, there were long testing times
  • Key users were not included in some cases
  • The right ideas only came together on-site
• Specific requirements and subtleties only became apparent in the course of the project
  • Further specifications were added to the project
  • This resulted in an expanded project scope, an increase in budgets and an extension of the project duration
• System-side performance issues that could be resolved by upgrading the BC version
• Interface connections (ingram, Anveo EDI, bizzee)

Florian Falk, Ole Strohschnieder and Bela Seebach (from left to right) founded Just Spices.

The right mix: our conclusion

The project was stressful and challenging at times. But all in all, it was still a great experience for both sides – characterised by friendly cooperation and a high level of motivation. But Marcel Zaft-Gujer from Just Spices can explain that better than anyone:

‘Now we are ready for growth!’

‘Part of growth is about making system structures ready for new tasks. For us, the next logical step was a new, fully integrated system that covers all areas and eliminates isolated solutions. We chose Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC) – and a service provider with a lot of experience in this field: M&P. Our complex processes made implementation challenging: e-commerce with a shop system, payment providers, producers, logisticians, etc. In addition, there was the food retailing with fixed structures – the document flow with delivery notes, shipping notifications, invoices, orders, etc. and EDI.

Transferring data from the weclapp/DATEV combination to BC was also challenging.

There is an expert at M&P for each project area. And each of them is really strong in their field and was able to quickly understand our structures. The cooperation was very amicable and the M&P team was available at all times – if there was an emergency, they put in a night shift and the problem was solved.

I compare our collaboration to building a house. Of course, you can lay the tiles in the bathroom yourself. But then you have to invest time and accept that in the end it will not look as good as if it had been done by a professional. We chose M&P as the “tiler” – and the result is impressive.’

Images: © Just Spices