Gorgeous Shop: Automated despatch improves customer service
Launched in 2007, Gorgeous Shop is now one of the leading suppliers of hair and beauty products throughout the UK. Stockists of a wide range of premium products, Gorgeous Shop offer their customers the choice and convenience of having salon products delivered to their door. With years of experience, the creative team are on hand to offer tips and advice and provide all the latest industry news, ensuring their customers are always kept on trend and looking their best.
The Challenge
Gorgeous Shop initially carried out despatch from its own small warehouse but quickly moved to a 3PL solution as the business grew. They were using a myriad of despatch solutions, each with their own process. Using a script, details were passed between their back end system and order management system Orderwise, with the address details manually entered into one of the three different carrier systems dependant on which carrier they chose to ship with. This process highlighted a number of inefficiencies. The process was too time consuming, there was too much labour involved, thus having an impact on resources and the means to provide a high level of customer service was too long winded. Gorgeous Shop were growing at a much faster rate than first anticipated and quickly realised they would need to look at their delivery operation as it was beginning to negate their customer service. The main focus was on streamlining the process and putting functionality in place which would enable them to offer a more proactive customer service.
The Solution
After reading about a number of customer successes in the trade press, the Gorgeous Shop became aware of MetaPack, then when recommended by a parcel carrier, Gorgeous Shop realised the functionality that MetaPack could offer would streamline their despatch process too. Continuing to use Orderwise, who are a fully integrated partner of MetaPack, Gorgeous Shop were the first customer to use the combined solution. Mark Gray, Director thinks this should be the way forward for all Orderwise customers, saying "Orderwise with the MetaPack bolt on is a real advantage to all new customers". Using a file import method, orders created through Orderwise are now uploaded directly into MetaPack by the remote 3PL company and correctly allocated using pre-defined criteria. This seamless integration has removed nearly all manual intervention, the possibility for human error and has reduced labour hours by 34% which enables the team to concentrate on picking and packing. Gorgeous Shop has also implemented the tracking email functionality, where emails including a tracking number with a link to the relevant carrier’s site are sent out to each consumer at the point of despatch. As a result, they’ve seen their inbound delivery enquiries reduce and have seen the time take to resolve all other queries reduce by 32%. Gray comments, "implementing MetaPack has given us more credibility and shows others that we're serious about what we’re doing, and we’re not taking delivery for granted". Gorgeous Shop has also recently integrated with a carrier who will despatch all their International deliveries. MetaPack is set up to handle the nuances of international deliveries and will automatically populate the customs documentation with the relevant information, automating the process even more. Gray adds "MetaPack's international options are critical for any business. They can only be a benefit to those who must sell internationally". Gorgeous Shop's experiences a high level of repeat business with consistently good reviews and they feel that MetaPack is one of the factors that have enabled this. They’re now in a better position to despatch their goods easily and respond to customer queries quicker and more efficiently."MetaPack handles new, small, growing and established enterprises alike. It’s an enhancement and a natural choice for any growing ecommerce business. If we were asked to operate without MetaPack, the answer would be no. If you don’t consider MetaPack then you’ll always be searching for a cost effective solution. It’s the perfect product that it is essential to factor in this valuable tool into your business plan"
Mark Gray, Director
