Case Study - Accelerating Food Wholesale ERP Transition

Background

Palvelutukku Immonen, part of the national Palvelutukkurit (Patu) network, found themselves stalled in unifying thousands of SKUs under a single numbering system—an essential step before adopting a new ERP. Despite early progress on about 1,000 products, over 5,000 still remained. Manual Excel updates were the norm, slowing the process to a crawl:

• The project was projected to take three additional years without external assistance.
• Constant inventory fluctuations, new products, and phasing out old items added complexity.
• Variable weights, deposit systems, and other supplier-specific nuances demanded tailored solutions.
• Any mistake risked e-commerce downtime, customer dissatisfaction, and operational disruptions.

The company needed a partner who understood both real-world operations and advanced data management, ensuring the work was done quickly and transparently, with minimal risk to daily operations.

Solution

Econ stepped in as a turnkey partner, bridging operational insight with sophisticated data automation. We eliminated Excel’s bottlenecks and delivered results 50x faster than manual workflows:

Turnkey Project Execution

• We handled the entire migration, allowing Immonen’s team to focus on everyday tasks.
• No forced system replacements—our solution built on Immonen’s existing environment to ensure minimal disruption.

Comprehensive Product Data Audit

• Consolidated duplicate products and removed outdated or unsold SKUs.
• Uncovered errors and inconsistencies in chain-level data, providing crucial feedback to address them early.

Tailored Problem-Solving

• Created custom workflows for variable weight items, deposit systems, and supplier-specific constraints.
• Ensured new product numbers integrated seamlessly into existing order pipelines, price lists, and inventory management.

5,000+ Products Migrated in 3 Weeks

• Reduced the anticipated three-year timeline to just three weeks through rapid automation and direct mapping processes.
• Preserved day-to-day continuity—staff noticed no disruption other than updated product numbers.

Integrated Reporting & ERP Prep

• Enabled seamless procurement and reporting integration, so Immonen remains fully operational even if the ERP launches mid-fiscal year.
• Flagged bugs and limitations in the target ERP, giving Immonen an edge in avoiding future breakdowns.

Results

50x Faster Data Migration

Immonen saved thousands of hours once pinned to manual spreadsheets, freeing teams for more strategic tasks.

Zero Operational Downtime

The e-commerce platform stayed online without interruptions or missed orders. Inventory management and reorder pipelines continued uninterrupted.

Cleansed & Accurate Data

Audit and cleanup ensured each product record was correct and future-ready, reducing confusion and strengthening confidence in upcoming ERP changes.

Immediate ROI

Within the first quarter, Immonen saw a 70% reduction in manual data entry costs. Even more importantly, they sidestepped the risk of delayed ERP implementation.

Lasting Confidence

By proactively identifying system issues and localizing new product numbers, Immonen now has a stable foundation to build on—one that won't require a rework when the ERP finally goes live.