Sierra Plumbing Supply is a thriving supplier of plumbing parts and fixtures in northern California. The Grass Valley Showroom destination sells every category of plumbing, irrigation, supplies and products to contractors, plumbers and homeowners alike. In addition, the company boasts an impressive 3,500-square-foot Kitchen and Bath Showroom recognized by Supply House Times as the “Best Showroom of the Year” (under 4,000 square feet) in 2021.
In addition to the luxurious location in Grass Valley, there are two sister showrooms in Folsom and Granite Bay. Granite Bay opened its doors in December 2015 with 8,000 square feet of luxury plumbing and lighting fixtures that caters to homeowners, contractors, new home builders and investors. The newest location, Folsom Plumbing Supply, focuses on providing supplies for plumbers and contractors.
Each location relies on providing outstanding old-fashioned personal service, great prices and exceptional customer support to satisfy customers and keep them coming back. When the expanding business became overwhelmed with its disconnected point of sale and accounting software, the team turned to buying
group resources in IMARK and Luxury Products Group (LPG) to get some perspective on potential cloud-based ERP options.
A Modern Tech Upgrade
Owner, Jason Craig knew all three businesses needed to take a step forward in modernization. Craig hoped to find an ERP solution that would not only tie together accounting and point of sale but could also handle showroom business efficiently for all three store locations. In addition, Craig believed it was time to look for a cloud-based solution to avoid potential future pitfalls.
“They were as hands-on as you can be and remain great partners with us even after our transition.”
“We embarked on a full evaluation of potential providers and decided to go with Savance Enterprise to fulfill multiple needs for us,” says Craig. “We wanted a partner with a history of great customer service and strong referrals within IMARK and LPG. Having our ERP as a central resource for accounting, point of sale, showroom operations and even our content was critical to simplifying our daily operations,” explains Craig.
Another key factor that led the team to select Savance was the technology partners’ ability to integrate Bravo Business Media content into everyday operations.
“We had been using Bravo, but it was not really talking to the rest of our system the way it does now,” said Craig. “Having that feature was incredibly important to us. We just really felt like Savance delivered the entire package.”
Moving In The Right Direction
To get the ERP transition headed in the right direction, Craig advises owners to take the time to set and manage team expectations.
“ERP transitions are known to cause some pushback, but I think outlining a realistic plan and communicating with both my team and the company you’re moving forward with is incredibly important to making the switch as seamless as possible,” Craig adds. “What our company stood to gain versus the inefficiencies we were exposing ourselves to far outweighed any typical transition challenges we would face. And knowing you’ve got someone on the other end coaching you through that helps ease that worry,” says Craig.
“From one central location we can view any POs associated with an order as well as create hard linked POs specifically for the order. This has been a great time-saving resource for all of us.”
By making the move to the cloud, the businesses were able to benefit from a reduction in hardware maintenance and avoid some unknown circumstances. Moving to the cloud helped free up time that would have typically been spent managing the server. Leadership is now able to use the staff’s time more effectively.
One immediate benefit: lessening the burden of business continuity. “We had challenges with our previous on-site solution because it was all on a server and if there was a power outage at one place, it affected all of our locations,” says Craig.
With the cloud-based solution, they no longer have to worry about those kinds of situations. Additionally, the transition to the cloud ensures the businesses take advantage of any software updates, which helps keep all three locations current with the latest technology.
Speed Of Sales At The Counter
The upgrade to the cloud and the integration with Bravo are just a few of the perks since moving to Savance. After being on the system for a few months, the teams have been able to capitalize on workflow efficiencies designed specifically for counter sales.
“One of the great features of the Savance ERP platform is the ability to work on multiple tabs at the same time. We utilize the ‘save as’ function frequently, as it gives us the ability to create a variety of ‘standard build’ quotes that we can reference and modify for future sales,” says Sierra Plumbing’s Store Manager Joe Cotney.
This critical functionality gives the teams the tools to make a sale quickly and seamlessly when attending to a customer. In addition, Savance makes it easy to see past associated orders and POs as users navigate through screens.
“One of my favorite features is the links tab. From this one central location we can view any POs associated with the order as well as create hard linked POs specifically for the order. This has been a great time-saving resource for all of us,” says Granite Bay’s Adam Ingraham.
The hands-on level of customer care excites Craig and his team. “Deciding you need to change software and then actually having to experience a ‘go-live’ is always something owners are cautious of,” says Craig. “Savance just stood out from that perspective. They did not present that large corporate ‘look and feel.’ To me, that really was important because the partner I chose needed to be incredibly responsive to our changing needs to help us adapt quickly.”
Craig says that level of support is just not something many companies get to experience these days. “If they hadn’t already set themselves apart with software features, they (Savance) definitely did so with their customer support,” he said.
All three locations are looking forward to the future and continuing as a distinctive destination showroom.
“With the help of Savance, we can continue dedicating our efforts to providing the personal attention and exceptional service our customers expect,” says Craig. “As a trusted technology partner, Sierra Plumbing Supply and Savance will continue to work closely together strengthening our processes—on and off the sales floor.”
“The team at Savance is extremely personable and easily accessible. They were as hands-on as you can be and remain great partners with us even after our transition.”
