Customer Story
Johnstone Supply
$1.7 billion
in sales and over 400 suppliers
400
store locations in the United States and six regional distribution centers
47%
eSales YoY growth
Johnstone Supply wanted to adapt a new eCommerce strategy using improved electronic B2B methods through a wider range of channels.
The Company
Johnstone Supply is the largest HVAC Distribution Cooperative with close to 400 store locations “in the United States and six regional distribution centers. Of their $1.7 billion in annual sales, B2B eCommerce accounts for five percent or $96 million.
Johnstone Supply selected EnterWorks Product Information Management (PIM) to provide a centralized information repository that enabled better enterprise data management with their member organizations.
Business Challenge
An increasing reliance on B2B, the need to explore new channels (web, mobile, etc.), and a desire to give members a competitive advantage led Johnstone to adapt a new eCommerce strategy.
Supporting increased product assortments and offering more choices, along with delivering enriched and consistent content across channels, is a daunting task without the right tools. Quickly, Johnstone realized how critical a PIM solution is in an eCommerce journey.
Johnstone had to deal with data from multiple systems and spreadsheets, and multiple versions of the same data. They also faced inconsistencies in digital and print channels. Legacy systems and processes could not handle the increased volume of changes—making scalability, inconsistency, and duplicate information major roadblocks to eCommerce success. They also wanted to add increased assortment capabilities, which is a major competitive advantage.
Johnstone Supply
- $1.7B in sales and over 400 suppliers
- Several product categories ranging from equipment, motors, parts and supplies
- Sales channels: counter (in-store), phone and eCommerce
- Over 80K actively managed products with 900 possible attributes—with another 1M SKUs added through system consolidation
“Johnstone uses EnterWorks to publish a 300 page annual catalog.”
Solution
Johnstone implemented the EnterWorks PIM platform to consolidate their product information into a central data hub with a business-friendly UI for easy management. With a more comprehensive view of—and greater control over—product data, Johnstone was able to enhance data quality, deliver consistent information to member organizations, and communicate with customers more effectively.
With EnterWorks, Johnstone realized several key benefits that contributed to their eCommerce success:
Improved customer experience through enhanced product information in all channels
- eCommerce and Counter Sales had access to enhanced and accurate content
Content consistency in physical and digital channels
- Web and mobile
- In-store
- Hard copy and electronic publications
Speed to market for new product introduction and marketing
- Content to website
- Build flyers and catalog publications
Operational efficiencies and scale
- Ability to handle increased volumes of product data
- Better position cooperative members with right information
Results
Johnstone achieved significant eCommerce gains—including 47% YoY growth—with EnterWorks PIM.
– Laura Schultz, Director IT and PMO, Johnstone Supply
Precisely EnterWorks
EnterWorks is an enterprise-grade PIM, DAM, and MDM data hub that enables you to compete and thrive in today’s digital economy—across all your channels.