Full Service Auto Parts, a 13-location automotive replacement parts distributor serving south-central Texas, has completed its software upgrade from Epicor Ultimate software to the Epicor Vision distribution management solution.
A member of the National PRONTO Association and authorized distributor of ACDelco, Motorcraft and MOPAR parts, Full Service is already benefitting from increased pricing flexibility, improved inventory control, and other advantages of the Vision solution.
“We are definitely happy with our decision,” said Chris Huff, vice president, Full Service Auto Parts. “The implementation was well planned and executed, our confidence and knowledge of how to use the new system is high, and we now have the ability to pursue a broad range of new strategies for growing our business.”
Full Service utilizes the Vision solution to operate its distribution center and its network of 13 company-owned stores. The distributor relied on the Ultimate solution, with extensive customization, for more than 17 years. This level of local customization initially raised concerns for Huff’s team about being able to replicate business-critical processes following the upgrade to Vision. As it turned out, those concerns were unfounded.
“Any time you change software, you’re going to worry about preserving key business processes and all of your data, but we also balanced that concern with the significant benefits that would come with Vision,” Huff said. “In retrospect, it was really a natural progression to move from Ultimate to Vision. I can’t think of any capability we had built into Ultimate that we don’t have in Vision. The Epicor implementation team did a good job and our own team was well prepared by the time we went live.”
Huff’s team has already used the new solution to expand available pricing levels by customer segment for improved margin performance, and is beginning to leverage the power of the integrated Epicor Vista inventory modeling tool to improve store assortment planning. “Now we have the ability to apply new thought processes to how we stock our stores, which can make us more effective in serving customers and increasing sales,” he added.
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