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nickolls_and_perks

Wine merchant uncorks bespoke accounting solution for the fine wine industry

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30th Aug 2017
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An award-winning, 220-year-old independent wine merchant has moved over from traditional cloud-based accounting for a solution built specifically for their industry. Suzi Dixon examines the transition.

WineSuite, built by FHL.co.uk, uses NetSuite to support stock control for Nickolls and Perks, such as listing product quantities and tasting notes and integrates with Amazon Marketplace. Currently, a quarter of Nickolls and Perks’ trading is done online, both via their own website and Amazon. Their reasoning behind the adoption of a single platform for all parts of the business is the hope that it will aid growth and improve customer service.

The platform has been evolving since its initial launch in 2010 and is popular with a number of expanding fine wine businesses. Appellations, the first WineSuite customer, use the software to track imports from all over Europe.

Liz Boote, who does PR for FHL, explains: “WineSuite came about because a savvy business owner - Tom Mann from Appellations - did not want to make the ridiculous choice that other fine wine businesses are faced with: ‘Do I choose a good accounting technology platform or a system that understands my industry?’. Tom decided he wanted a system that offered him both - and a competitive edge. And so he approached FHL and together they developed WineSuite.”

But why does the industry need a specially tailored accounting and stock control solution? FHL points out that the complex nature of the wine industry means standard accounting systems simply do not have enough features to fulfil the clients’ needs. For example, some wine sales are made En Primeur - on promise - where a sale takes place on an upcoming vintage, a wine that has not even been produced yet. This is more common than you may think.

“Other industry requirements include ‘reserves’ and ‘broking’,” Ms Boote continues. “In other words, offering to store a portfolio of wines on behalf of clients, monitoring the changing value of this portfolio over time, and a broking service to sell the wine in future, typically at a much higher value.

“WineSuite can handle these niche requirements so we no longer need to compromise between technology and functional fit".

Nickolls and Perks hopes the transition to WineSuite will be complete in September and expect online sales to rise substantially.

FHL will manage the WineSuite implementation and integration of Nickolls and Perks’ecommerce site at www.nickollsandperks.co.uk. According to their predictions integration with Amazon marketplaces will increase online sales even further – up to 20% by September 2019.

Improved customer service comes with a new ecommerce website with a more intuitive, interactive feel. It has been developed to work with smartphones and tablets to encourage repeat sales and speed up the checkout process, as well as improve their knowledge of the wine industry in general.

Specialist features on the platform include multi-currency capabilities, reserves and portfolio management, bonded warehouse management, an en primeur sales module and duty and bond management.

There are also benefits for the consumer, too, helping wine enthusiasts decide what to stash and what to enjoy now.

Gardener said: “10,000 cases of wine stored in reserve for private clients need to be effectively monitored to ensure they are provided with the latest information. WineSuite’s reserves management feature will make it quick and easy to provide our clients with up-to-date intelligence, such as when they should be considering drinking or selling their wines.

“FHL’s partnership-led approach was a real selling point for us. The company is keen to work closely with us to create an even better and more tailored solution, and so we’re excited about where our journey to the cloud takes us.”

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