PITTSBURGH, Feb. 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TrueCommerce has announced a new customer success story showing how ¡CACTUS! Water Co., a dynamic small business specializing in flavored waters enhanced by the power of cactus leaf juice, used its solution to effortlessly meet EDI compliance of a major grocery partner and achieve accounting accuracy. In the case study, TrueCommerce, a global provider of trading partner connectivity, integration and unified commerce solutions, analyzes how its QuickBooks Online EDI integration helped ¡CACTUS! mitigate supply chain challenges and get fast ROI.
Background
Founded in 2017 and rebranded in 2019, the ¡CACTUS! Water Co. specializes in flavored waters enhanced by the power of cactus leaf juice. Founder Sarita Lopez discovered the popularity of cactus juice after selling cactus paddles at farmers markets in the Napa Valley. The drinks are known for their great taste and health benefits, including hydration, digestion, and skin health.
When a large, Texas-based grocery chain decided to start carrying ¡CACTUS! Water, they required all transactions to be done via EDI. Ms. Lopez explained, “H-E-B gave me a list of companies they recommended, including TrueCommerce.”
Although she looked at several EDI providers, Ms. Lopez quickly felt drawn to TrueCommerce. She commented, “When I called to inquire about TrueCommerce, I got ahold of someone so quickly. The salesperson I spoke with was warm and friendly. I had called two or three other companies and had to leave voicemails—and no one ever got back to me.”
Fast and Easy Implementation
To meet its customer’s EDI needs and get products on the shelves quickly, ¡CACTUS! Water Co. needed to implement an EDI solution in short order. TrueCommerce’s proven onboarding process provided the speed, transparency, and support the company needed to get started.
“Implementing TrueCommerce EDI was so easy,” said Ms. Lopez “My implementation specialist and I had an initial call to walk me through how everything worked. He showed me how to get purchase orders, how to acknowledge them, and how to mark orders as shipped. He explained all the details I needed to fill out, too.”
Thanks to TrueCommerce’s support team, ¡CACTUS! Water Co. was able to start trading with grocery partners fast. Ms. Lopez recalled, “I processed my first purchase order just a month after I started with TrueCommerce.”
A “Flawless” QuickBooks Integration
¡CACTUS! Water Co. has been using QuickBooks Online since its inception to manage invoicing and financials. “QuickBooks is an accounting software I’ve known forever,” said Ms. Lopez. “I’m very familiar with the platform, and it’s always been good to me!”
TrueCommerce’s direct integration with QuickBooks has been a key benefit. Ms. Lopez remarked, “The TrueCommerce integration with QuickBooks is flawless. It’s a seamless transition of data.”
That exchange of data has played an important role in creating accounting accuracy for ¡CACTUS! Water Co. “TrueCommerce EDI keeps my accounting accountable,” clarified Ms. Lopez. “With integrated EDI for QuickBooks, I don’t miss a single purchase order. TrueCommerce keeps track of everything and keeps everybody on the same page.”
She went on, “With TrueCommerce, my customer gets the information they need right away; I have the information I need on my end as well. That makes transactions easier for everyone, instead of having to rely on back-and-forth emails or a paper trail.”
A single vendor solution is also a key benefit for Ms. Lopez. She noted, “I have to use so many different types of technology in my business. I love that with TrueCommerce, everything is on one platform. TrueCommerce connects to my QuickBooks directly, which cuts out a huge amount of work, and keeps everything accurate. It’s one less thing I have to worry about at the end of the day.”
Expert Support with a “Human Touch”
The TrueCommerce platform and fully managed service offer several ways for users to find answers to their questions. One useful option is the in-platform Help feature, which allows users to type in questions and find tutorials and articles on numerous topics.
“I love the fact that I can use the Help feature to look up any questions I have,” Ms. Lopez told us. “In many cases, the TrueCommerce Foundry Platform gives me the answers I need, without even needing to call in and speak to someone. The system is very user-friendly; for someone who might be fearful of technology, or inexperienced, it’s a great platform.”
She maintained, “Of course, it’s nice to know I can call and get ahold of someone if I need to!”
Ms. Lopez has been impressed by TrueCommerce’s support teams. She noted, “Customer service is my favorite feature of TrueCommerce. When you’ve had a rough day with technology, it’s wonderful to speak to someone who is kind, and doesn’t make you feel like you’re asking a silly or ‘wrong’ question. The TrueCommerce team is always there to take the extra step and walk me through anything I need.”
When the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic set back ¡CACTUS! Water Co.’s H-E-B launch in March, the TrueCommerce team was there to offer support. Ms. Lopez explained, “H-E-B needed time to figure out what was going on, and whether this product was going to sell in the middle of a pandemic. TrueCommerce followed up with me to check in and see how I was doing. That was a really nice, human touch that you usually don’t get from such a big company.”
Finding Success Despite Difficult Times
Launching a new brand in 2020 had more than one complication. For one thing, many of the trade shows and reviews necessary for getting a new food product on store shelves were frozen in March. Ms. Lopez remembered, “No one knew if they were just postponing, or cancelling. Grocery stores were going wild, so for the most part, category reviews were on hold, indefinitely.”
For Ms. Lopez, the uncertainty was trying. “At one point I wondered, am I going to have to close my business before I really got started?” she described.
Thankfully, ¡CACTUS! Water Co.’s H-E-B partnership was able to move forward, and Ms. Lopez told us, “The brand has resonated really well with consumers, even during the pandemic.”
Managing supply shortages was another challenge in the food and beverage industry. Ms. Lopez explained, “There’s a worldwide aluminum shortage right now. At one point, I had to put off fulfilling a purchase order because I couldn’t get cans fast enough. With TrueCommerce, I didn’t need to do any messy paperwork; I just needed to let my customer know, and the system handled the documents when we were able to fulfill the purchase order. It was so easy”
She went on, “Everyone at TrueCommerce has been so generous with their time and their kindness, and that is so appreciated, especially now.”
The Future is Bright
¡CACTUS! Water Co.’s success is just getting started. Ms. Lopez remarked, “Right now, H-E-B is the only customer I have using EDI, but I’m already talking to a few other potential partners. I’m currently under very positive review with two large grocery chains, who would want me to use TrueCommerce EDI.”
To Ms. Lopez, the benefits of being EDI enabled from the beginning are clear. “Everyone is switching over to EDI,” she noted. “That’s the wave; people are trying to cut out all the paper and emails going back and forth. Having TrueCommerce EDI is a huge competitive advantage for me.”
Although the company’s products have only been on store shelves a few months, it’s already seen significant ROI from investing in EDI. Ms. Lopez reported, “At first, I thought EDI was going to be so much more expensive than what I’m actually paying to TrueCommerce. Because it’s affordable, TrueCommerce EDI has already paid for itself in my business.”
“I want people to know how easy it was to connect QuickBooks and TrueCommerce,” Ms. Lopez concluded. “If you can make order processing easier, without spending an excessive amount of money, I would highly recommend it—and that’s what TrueCommerce EDI does.”
About TrueCommerce
TrueCommerce is the most complete way to connect your business across the supply chain, integrating everything from EDI, to inventory management, to fulfillment, to digital storefronts and marketplaces, to your business system, and to whatever comes next. To stay ahead in today’s dynamic global market, companies need to be able to do business in a lot of different directions at once. But too often, doing so means too many solutions and too much assembly required. For decades TrueCommerce has helped businesses be more connected, more supported, and more prepared for what’s next. That’s why thousands of companies – ranging from startups to the global Fortune 100, across various industries – rely on us.
TrueCommerce: Do business in every direction
For more information, visit https://www.truecommerce.com.
Media Contact
Yegor Kuznetsov, TrueCommerce
703-209-0167
yegor.kuznetsov@truecommerce.com