Take a simple flip flop sandal. Put a strap on the back so it stays on your foot. And generate millions of dollars in sales.

That’s been the recipe for success at Teva Sport Sandals, the company that created its own niche in open footwear for the active-lifestyle market. Around the world, the name “Teva” has become virtually synonymous with Velcro-strapped sandals. More than 100 different shoe models are now offered through licensees, catalog sales and the Internet.

THE CHALLENGE

Exponential growth in direct marketing distribution channels forced Teva to rethink its business management strategies. Since 1993, catalog sales had been tracked effectively by Best MAS 90. But with the potential of e-commerce on the horizon, Teva’s needs changed. A super-powered database with customizable applications became an absolute necessity.

Teva decided to grow with a winner, and upgraded to MAS 500.” But not without making certain that this was the wisest move. John Kalinich, COO, led a thorough investigation of competitive options. MAS 500 was his choice based on both price and performance.

THE SOLUTION

MAS 500 now handles all of Teva’s catalog and Internet transactions. It manages online, telephone and mail purchases, keeps updated information on inventory, and also compiles data on licensee business, which represents the bulk of Teva’s revenue.

When a customer places an order, the system immediately delivers data to MAS 500, avoiding any hand-keying or possibility of error. The customer knows right away whether items are in stock. Credit cards are approved online for instant input into the Best system.

Shipping and inventory management is handled through MAS 500 as well. Kalinich’s team wrote a program in Crystal Reports to create customized pick lists for the warehouse. Once orders go out, MAS 500 charges the credit card, does cash receipt posting, and generates an invoice for insertion with the customer order.

“The main thing I like about the MAS 500 is the ability to go into the database, grab information, and then manipulate it however we want,” says Kalinich. “Because the system is based on an SQL engine, we can store vast amounts of data and generate any type of report imaginable.”

A custom reconciliation report compares funds transferred to the bank from credit cards against amounts reported in MAS 500. “Sometimes banks lose transactions, or double-process a credit card transaction,” he explains. “MAS 500 does the reconciliation in about five minutes, and has greatly improved our accuracy.”

He also likes the returns function in MAS 500. Returns are high in catalog and Internet sales, often posing problems in accounting. But the MAS 500 Sales Order module automatically opens whenever a return comes in, for immediate modification, depending on whether the customer wants a refund or exchange. “This has saved us a tremendous amount of time,” says Kalinich.

Did the new system fulfill Kalinich’s expectations? “Absolutely. It did exactly what was promised. As proof, we’ve doubled our business in the past eight months, and yet lowered our labor costs, thanks to MAS 500. We believe the Internet distribution channel will continue to deliver large growth rates, and MAS 500 will help us capture our share.