THE CHALLENGE
Multichannel selling is loaded with potential data and inventory headaches
In business for more than 20 years, Bases Loaded has provided equipment and uniforms to hundreds of thousands of baseball, softball, and fastpitch teams of all levels. The store opened in 1997 as a small retailer in northern California looking to support baseball and softball players in their apparel and equipment needs. Whether a small child came in to buy their first glove or an expert-level team needed uniforms, Bases Loaded dedicated the same level of unmatched service and unbeatable prices. It’s no wonder the company grew so quickly.
The sporting goods industry is full of experts, so Bases Loaded owner Dan Wells knew he had to capitalize on the brand’s momentum if growth was going to be sustainable. He continued to prioritize service and pricing, but also expanded inventory and launched online sales channels. Bases Loaded now has one of the largest inventories in the country and is a top 10 supplier in the nation for all the major manufacturers. To compensate, Wells purchased 29,000 feet of retail space plus a warehouse in Folsom, California, to fulfill online orders.
But this growth didn’t happen overnight or without any challenges.
In fact, the growth was the challenge. With its massive customer base, Amazon gave Bases Loaded wide exposure and an easy way to move large quantities of product. However, because the Bases Loaded team put a significant amount of focus on business at the physical store, they needed to ensure they could keep up with the pace of online sales. “We needed to build out the infrastructure to grow our online business channels while running a very successful brick-and-mortar retail location,” Wells says.
Bases Loaded started looking for a data-sync solution that would connect its business systems and manage a huge inventory between multiple online channels and a large brick-and-mortar location. The qualifications:
- It needed to connect to QuickBooks Point of Sale, Amazon, and the Yahoo Store.
- It had to help Bases Loaded cut down order posting time.
- It absolutely had to be backed by a superior support team.
"We needed to build out the infrastructure to grow our online business channels while running a very successful brick-and-mortar retail location."
DAN WELLS
OWNER
BASES LOADED
THE SOLUTION
Webgility’s ecommerce accounting automation platform knocks it out of the park
At the end of 2011, after looking at several software alternatives, Bases Loaded decided to try Webgility’s ecommerce accounting automation solution. “Webgility seemed to be robust and meet all the qualifications we required, such as connecting to QuickBooks POS, Amazon.com, and the Yahoo store platform,” says Wells.
The Bases Loaded team soon discovered that Webgility was the perfect fit. It integrates with dozens of sales channels, including Shopify, Magento, and BigCommerce, which Bases Loaded uses to power its ecommerce website. Webgility also tracks all sales and returns, whether they were made in-store or online, and automatically posts the transaction details to QuickBooks. This ensures the store’s inventory is always accurate, a top challenge for multichannel retailers.
But the software’s features weren’t the only draw. Wells appreciated that Webgility’s customer success team was always just a call or click away in case he had any questions. “We found the support at Webgility to be superior,” Wells says. “I can call anytime and speak to a live person.” Wells is not alone in his appreciation of great customer service, which is why the Webgility Customer Support team earns week-over-week customer satisfaction ratings above 98%.
Between the top-notch product and a Support team that goes above and beyond, signing up with Webgility was a no-brainer for Bases Loaded. They had no idea how big of an impact automation would make on their business.
“We found the support at Webgility to be superior. I can call anytime and speak to a live person.”
DAN WELLS
OWNER
BASES LOADED
THE RESULTS
Bases Loaded scores a triple by saving time, increasing accuracy, and scaling big
Webgility was a grand slam for Bases Loaded, and they deemed the solution an instant success. In fact, the team went from spending an average of four minutes to manually post each order to putting it on autopilot with Webgility, saving time and increasing accuracy. And not a moment too soon.
“During the early days, manually posting a few orders a day was manageable,” Wells says. “But now on a typical busy day, Bases Loaded automatically processes more than 1,000 orders to inventory, accounting, and shipping with virtually no data entry.” He readily admits, “We could never process [all our orders] manually. We live in a 24/7 world, and Webgility keeps everything in check even when we are not at our business. The scheduler feature keeps posting and updating inventory constantly.”
"We live in a 24/7 world, and Webgility keeps everything in check even when we are not at our business."
DAN WELLS
OWNER
BASES LOADED
Aside from enjoying the peace of mind that stems from always having their sales channels in sync, Bases Loaded also appreciates the platform’s ease of use and scalability. “When we started with Webgility, we generated approximately $1.9M in revenue and less than 15 online orders a day,” says Wells. “Today we are over $5.5M in revenue and process over 10,000 online orders a month.”
The Webgility platform was created to help multichannel online retailers stay ahead of their business and get back to what inspired them to create their company in the first place. It’s a vision that’s alive and well at Bases Loaded. “Our goal as a company is to build something great for our employees and customers,” says Wells. “We want to provide the best place in the world for people who have a passion for baseball, softball, or fastpitch.”
Long story short? With Webgility, everyone wins.
