eZCom and Wurkin Stiffs

For years, Jonathan Boos, Chief Execütive Stiff at Würkin Stiffs, was frustrated by the fly-away collars on his dress shirts. He thought Saturday Night Fever was a perfectly good 70’s movie but he had no interest in looking like he was auditioning for a part in the remake.

After securing a patent, Boos launched Würkin Stiffs. A blog wrote about the product and he went from selling about one box per day to shipping 300 units in 24 hours. Two months later, he quit his day job. With his wife, Amie, as his lead salesperson, Boos began to get his product placed in men’s stores. It was the start of the kind of organic growth that would build the company into the successful operation it is today, with placement in major retailers like Nordstrom. The company now has different versions of its Power Stays® Magnetic Collar Stays, along with newer items such as tie bars and Dopp kits.

For years, Jonathan Boos, Chief Execütive Stiff at Würkin Stiffs, was frustrated by the fly-away collars on his dress shirts. He thought Saturday Night Fever was a perfectly good 70’s movie but he had no interest in looking like he was auditioning for a part in the remake.

After securing a patent, Boos launched Würkin Stiffs. A blog wrote about the product and he went from selling about one box per day to shipping 300 units in 24 hours. Two months later, he quit his day job. With his wife, Amie, as his lead salesperson, Boos began to get his product placed in men’s stores. It was the start of the kind of organic growth that would build the company into the successful operation it is today, with placement in major retailers like Nordstrom. The company now has different versions of its Power Stays™ product, along with newer items such as cuff links and Dopp kits.

Once the company began selling to major retailers, Würkin Stiffs turned to eZCom for EDI. They have enjoyed years of consistent growth, but have also cycled through different inventory and order management providers, and shifted from QuickBooks Enterprise to QuickBooks Online. Each time, eZCom has integrated its Lingo software seamlessly.

A less flexible, responsive EDI provider might not last through such a series of changes. But while Würkin Stiffs was looking for a better solution for inventory and order management, it never needed to seek a new approach to EDI.

“Not only does eZCom provide the kind of EDI services we need, every integration they have done has been great,” remarked Boos. “Anything I’ve thrown at their team, they have handled.”

After working with many other providers, Würkin Stiffs is now using LOCATE for inventory and order management. As so often happens when someone finds a technology provider that makes their lives easier and the process more efficient, Boos describes aspects of working with LOCATE in the simplest terms.

“For instance, the pick-and-pack is just bloop-bloop-bloop, and it’s done.”

That’s the kind of solution eZCom likes to provide, too. Easy, intuitive, as automated as possible—just bloop-bloop-bloop.

As he has expanded his retail footprint, many have tried to steer him towards industry giant SPS Commerce. But Boos doesn’t want to leave an EDI provider that has been able to meet any challenge he sends over. And after dealing with the customer service teams at larger inventory and order management companies, he is not particularly interested in trying to find allies within a bigger organization.

“People tend to want to force you into using SPS Commerce and I’ve had to deal with the company at times,” said Boos. “But newer brands may not realize they don’t have to use SPS for EDI just because they do the testing for a particular retailer. I’d suggest that companies research EDI providers and work with one that’s a good fit.”

Boos has never felt the need to change his EDI provider because it’s an element of his business that he doesn’t need to worry about. Now that he has an inventory/order management provider in place, he’s feeling more confident than ever about the efficiency of his supply chain.

As he has expanded his retail footprint, many have tried to steer him towards industry giant SPS Commerce. But Boos doesn’t want to leave an EDI provider that has been able to meet any challenge he sends over. And after dealing with the customer service teams at larger inventory and order management companies, he is not particularly interested in trying to find allies within a bigger organization.

“People tend to want to force you into using SPS Commerce and I’ve had to deal with the company at times,” said Boos. “But newer brands may not realize they don’t have to use SPS for EDI just because they do the testing for a particular retailer. I’d suggest that companies research EDI providers and work with one that’s a good fit.”

Boos has never felt the need to change his EDI provider because it’s an element of his business that he doesn’t need to worry about. Now that he has an inventory/order management provider in place, he’s feeling more confident than ever about the efficiency of his supply chain.

“I think eZCom and LOCATE are two gems out there, sometimes hidden ones,” added Boos. “If companies do their own due diligence and talk to people who have used them, they’ll understand why I say that.”

Entrepreneurs like Boos don’t go into business because they want to deal with tasks like EDI. They’re creative and focused on growing their business. At the same time, smart brands realize that seamless EDI not only helps their own company operate more efficiently, it enhances important retail relationships.

“EDI is very specific, and a lot of companies don’t want to take it on. Or you might work with a 3PL that wants you to work with the EDI provider they use. But when your EDI is handled well, it makes everything a lot easier. And I can’t say enough good things about eZCom.”