Austin, TX, July 18, 2023 – London-based backpack and accessories brand, ROKA London, has implemented Inventory Planner by Sage to supercharge its inventory planning processes and support its plans for continued growth.
Since launching in 2017, ROKA London has specialized in selling colorful, stylish backpacks and outdoor accessories to its ever-expanding customer base. The multichannel merchant originally reached high levels of success with B2B sales, stocking its popular product lines with over 1,500 UK retailers and even more internationally, in countries such as the USA, France, Spain and Australia.
In recent years, ROKA London has focused its aims on digital sales via its Shopify Plus webstore, in part by upgrading its tech stack – and has consequently seen phenomenal digital growth of over 70% year-on-year.
With plans to continue this trajectory in both the UK and U.S., ROKA London was inspired to try Inventory Planner. The team heard about the top-rated tool in a recent Brightpearl webinar which featured an interview with Shopify and UK apparel brand Passenger, which also adopted Inventory Planner to boost direct-to-consumer sales.
ROKA London formerly depended on spreadsheet-based inventory planning, but chose Inventory Planner due to its time-saving, robust features and swift functionality, including its accurate sales forecasting and automatic, data-led purchasing recommendations.
It’s also deeply connectable, able to swiftly extend to the many popular ecommerce apps top retail businesses use to build a best-in-class tech stack, including ROKA London’s chosen ecommerce platform, Shopify Plus.
The team has already gained access to the tool’s granular inventory insights and precise purchasing recommendations, which eliminates the need for time-intensive spreadsheet calculations and significantly reduces human error.
Additionally, having full inventory visibility means ROKA London can work towards custom inventory KPIs, and go as granular as variant level such as color, style, or size. With such in-depth data, ROKA London can identify its best-selling, slowest-moving, and most profitable items for all markets, channels and geographic locations, empowering the team to make informed purchasing decisions when growing into other territories and demographics.
With ambitions to become a multi-million dollar, omnichannel brand, the team at ROKA London recognizes the impact of using comprehensive inventory intelligence to rapidly scale.
The merchant is attacking its international growth from all angles; introducing Google Workspace to facilitate remote working, a boost in their use of Google Ads and Shopping, and championing the brand’s overwhelmingly positive TrustPilot reviews.
With Inventory Planner by Sage alongside, ROKA London is confident that the only way is up.
“Inventory Planner is one of the most significant changes we’re implementing this year,” said Peter Gough, COO at ROKA London. “This platform is a game-changer, it’ll take us to another level. We’re reaching a point where stock management and finance are becoming more complex; and we need better insights into our operations and purchasing decisions. Traditionally, we relied on gut feelings and instincts, but now we have data coming into the picture. This will be the next big shift for us.”
“ROKA London is a hugely successful brand with epic sales results for both B2B and direct-to-consumer” said Justin Press, SVP Customer Success at Inventory Planner. “Implementing Inventory Planner is a smart, sensible next step for them – allowing them the means to boost digital sales as they expand into more and more territories and demographics.”
ROKA Chief Operating Officer Peter Gough talks about the brand’s five-year plan to build a global outdoor lifestyle brand with global sales of £40 million on the Lightning 50 Ecommerce Growth Hacking Podcast
About Inventory Planner by Sage
Inventory Planner by Sage is the premier inventory planning software for e-commerce businesses. Our top-tier solution helps thousands of entrepreneurs and enterprise businesses across the globe reduce their time investment, adapt quickly to market shifts, and bolster their profits through smart purchasing decisions generated by our demand forecasting capabilities.
Merchants of all sizes use Inventory Planner to avoid spending countless hours toiling over tedious spreadsheets, to prevent costly stock planning mishaps due to product outages, and reduce unnecessary expense in terms of safety stock and low performing items.
Inventory Planner also offers powerful integrations with key e-commerce platforms such as BigCommerce and Shopify.
The latest chapter of this innovative product began in 2022 when Inventory Planner officially became part of the Sage Group plc, granting its users an even more intuitive experience.