Mastering Peak Seasons with Descartes pixi* WMS
The amount of savings compared to the old system is tremendous. We’ve doubled our packing and shipping productivity and tripled our receiving productivity, saving nearly $600K a year. Descartes pixi* is a huge advantage for us.
Mastering Peak Season Logistics with Descartes pixi* WMS
MASKWORLD, Germany’s leading ecommerce vendor of costumes and disguises, peak season logistics challenges and fluctuations in orders from its global customer base. To meet the demands of surging shipment volumes, the omnichannel distributor implemented the scalable, automated Descartes pixi* warehouse management system (WMS) to increase shipping efficiency and productivity, ensure order accuracy, and reduce operational costs.
The Challenge: Keeping Pace with Peaks
Every year, costume supplier MASKWORLD faces a spike in orders ahead of Halloween and Carnival, with shipping volumes topping 450% at their height. To manage order fulfillment during seasonal peaks, the ecommerce vendor required a scalable, efficient and flexible WMS. With its current system not up to the task, MASKWORLD sought a WMS that would streamline and accelerate its picking, packing and shipping processes for its ecommerce customers; maintain accurate inventory over various channels; and support the expansion of additional online storefronts. To handle the flood of orders, the company also needed to rapidly train 200 seasonal employees on the WMS system.
The amount of savings compared to the old system is tremendous. We’ve doubled our packing and shipping productivity and tripled our receiving productivity, saving nearly $600K a year. We’ve been able to cut the number of shipping stations in half and reduce the number of shifts from two or more per day to a single shift. Descartes pixi* is a huge advantage for us.
-- Roman Matthesius, CEO, MASKWORLD
The Solution: Scalability Transforms Business Model
To manage seasonal order fluctuations of its 12,000 different products, MASKWORLD implemented the automated Descartes pixi* warehouse management system (WMS). The Descartes solution easily scaled to meet increased volumes while supporting expansion and evolution of the business through the addition of new online shops.
By automating logistics processes for ecommerce order fulfillment, the Descartes pixi* WMS drives operational efficiencies across MASKWORLD’s multichannel warehouse. Using Descartes’ simplified scanner-based solution for picking, packing and shipping, the company was able to consolidate shipping stations and reduce the number of warehouse shifts, improving productivity by 300 percent and generating substantial cost savings.
“Because of a more automated system, we’ve been able to reduce our labor costs. Plus, training new employees is simple and quick, which is especially crucial during seasonal peaks,” said Roman Matthesius, CEO at MASKWORLD.
Seamless integration of the Descartes solution with MASKWORLD’s sales channels, carriers, and other internal systems enables synchronized order status updates. With real-time data, the company mitigates the risk of errors while improving visibility into warehouse inventory to avoid stock-outs and increase customer satisfaction.
Matthesius added, “The flexibility and advanced functionality of the Descartes pixi* WMS offered us a chance to easily set up new webshops using the same logistics system, and the same processes. This capability has changed our whole business concept to a multi-brand concept. Now we can extend our sales season all year round.”
The Results
Doubled Productivity
MASKWORLD was able to consolidate shipping stations from 24 to 12. With simplified one-scan shipping, standardized processes between marketplaces, and full integration of its WMS and ERP, the company improved operational productivity by 300%.
Reduced Costs by $600k per Year
Automated logistics processes ramped up efficiency, enabling MASKWORLD to reduce the number of warehouse shifts from two (or more) to one, and reaping savings of nearly $600K annually. Seasonal employees can be trained quickly and easily, saving time and money.
Heightened Accuracy to 0% Errors
With Descartes’ automated scanner-based solution, the risk of order processing errors is eliminated at MASKWORLD—even with 12,000+ products online, more packages sent per employee, faster shipping processes and ~200 seasonal staff brought in to support peak demands.
Ease of Expansion due to Descartes pixi* WMS
Descartes pixi* WMS enabled MASKWORLD to easily expand by setting up additional webshops using the same automated, efficient logistics processes. By evolving to a multi-brand concept, the company can now drive sales year-round.
