Monsoon Express Success
Prairie Hill Books
"Monsoon Express gave us more sales, more efficiency, more profit, more enjoyment of the business." Don and Charlene Keller
Prairie Hill Books
The Kellers had worked themselves into a jam. Balancing retail and Internet businesses, plus book marketing events, was difficult and they still were not hitting the sales targets they desired. Throw in Don's day job and their rural location, and there seemed to be no clear way out.
The Kellers purchased Monsoon Express in 2006. As part of their effort to refocus the business on marketplace selling, the Kellers beefed up their Internet connection and shipping capability. This included the installation of a 60 foot tall tower to improve their wireless Internet connection.
Early sales results with Monsoon were promising, and soon Prairie Hill Books converted from a walk-in store to all Internet. They upgraded computers and changed their item locator process. After making a few bulk inventory purchases, they added a warehouse facility and quit hosting special events. The capper? Don retired from his day job and is now a full time marketplace seller!
Nick’s Knacks and Books
Nick Wilson was lost under piles of clutter. Struggling to locate and process 25 orders per day in his disorganized shelving, he couldn't find any time to list new inventory or reprice. As a result, new inventory was piling up, which made the problem even worse.
When Nick’s Knacks and Books installed Monsoon Express , he rented a storage area and cleared out his unlisted inventory. Using Monsoon's locator code system Nick was able to devise a new shelving system for his inventory and speed up the "pick" time for an item from 15 minutes to just a few seconds.
With more time left to manage his business, Nick got loads of new inventory listed, which increased his sales and made his operation more profitable. Before using Monsoon, Nick averaged 25 to 35 orders a day while pricing his books at the lowest competitive price. After a period of extensive growth, Nick’s Knacks and Books upgraded to Monsoon Pro. He now averages 50 to 70 orders a day, and has experienced over 100 orders in a day, even while pricing books sometimes at well above the lowest available price.
Luval Farms
"We installed Monsoon Express and the results were immediate ... Monsoon was the answer to my prayers." Val Chapman
Owner, Luval Farms
The Chapmans split responsibilities between inventory sourcing (Luke) and listing, sales and order processing (Val). After 2 years, Val was growing concerned that using manual processes, particularly manual re-pricing, they could not process enough listings and orders to achieve their sales goals. As a result Val was losing sleep and worried that their business was not going to make the grade.
After only 3 weeks on Monsoon Express, Val was processing more orders than she was before Monsoon, with much less time and energy. Remarkably, after such a short time Luval Farms is already achieving the financial goals that seemed impossible a short time earlier. Val is now focusing on additional growth. She is also checking out Endicia as a shipping solution, and spending more time with her grandchildren.